By DON McINTOSH
International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced July 1 that it has reached tentative agreements on several hard-fought union demands. While bargaining continues on a new contract for 340,000 United Parcel Service (UPS) workers, the company agreed in negotiations to eliminate a two-tier wage system that paid some drivers less, end forced overtime on drivers’ days off, and establish Martin Luther King Day as a full holiday for the first time.
Under the terms the two sides agreed to, all drivers currently working at the lower-paid tier would be reclassified immediately and have their pay increased to the regular rate based on seniority.
Since taking office March 2022, Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien has been leading preparations for a strike when the UPS contract expires July 31 if no new contract is in place. Teamsters-represented UPS employees haven’t gone on strike since 1997, but they’re ready to walk: Members voted last month to authorize a strike by a 97% margin. The union additionally announced that it considers July 5 to be the deadline for it to reach agreement, in order to give members time to review and vote on the deal; that’s after this issue went to press.
In Portland and around the country, UPS workers have been holding “practice pickets” to signal their serious intent. UPS is the world’s largest private logistics company, and a strike would be one of the biggest in U.S. history.
