UPS’s historic deal with the Teamsters shows hot strike summer starting to yield worker wins
Driving a hard bargain… now with air-conditioning. This week, UPS and the Teamsters union reached a tentative agreement (which covers 340K UPS workers), likely averting what would’ve been one of the largest — and costliest — strikes in US history.
For unions: The deal features a 48% raise for part-time workers and a $7.50/hour hike for all union employees over five years, 7.5K new full-time Teamster positions, and (finally) AC in new delivery vans.
For UPS: It’s avoiding a calamitous strike that could’ve cost the US an estimated $7B over 10 days, and retaining major clients that may’ve jumped ship.
For competitors: less stress. UPS ships about a quarter of US packages, and FedEx, Amazon, and USPS wouldn't have been able to handle the excess volume.
Cross-union solidarity is in… As simultaneous labor strikes pop up around the US, unions are teaming up to fuel what’s become a hot strike summer. A union representing UPS’s 3.3K pilots said its members would honor a Teamsters strike and stop working in solidarity. In the entertainment industry, striking WGA writers and SAG-AFTRA actors are picketing together, and the two unions have overlapping demands. Collaborative action is happening across industries too: WGA and SAG members have joined the picket lines of 15K striking Los Angeles hotel workers.
Momentum is motivating… With a tight labor market, the highest level of public approval for unions since 1965, and shared pains like automation and AI, hot strike summer could lead to more worker wins. The Teamsters’ deal could embolden other labor battles, like the United Auto Workers’ contract with GM, Ford, and Stellantis that covers 150K workers and expires in September. The two unions have already held joint rallies.