LOS ANGELES, Feb 13 (Reuters) – United Parcel Service (UPS.N) on Monday confirmed it's taking steps to scale back its workforce in areas the place supply demand has softened, a remark that comes days after a neighborhood union reported that the corporate had begun nationwide layoffs of some drivers.
With the transfer, UPS joins rival FedEx (FDX.N) and different main transportation corporations in trimming jobs because the early pandemic's e-commerce delivery growth fizzles.
However the stakes are increased at UPS, which is making ready for the biggest North American non-public sector union contract negotiations later this 12 months that may pit the world's largest bundle supply agency in opposition to the highly effective Teamsters union.
The contract overlaying roughly 350,000 Teamsters-represented drivers, loaders, bundle sorters and different UPS staff expires on July 31.
UPS is “reassigning” affected staff, the corporate mentioned in a Monday e mail.
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“This isn't nationwide, however solely in choose elements of the nation, in response to uneven demand,” UPS mentioned.
In response to the UPS labor contract, reassigned full-time staff might choose to depart or take one other job. Full-time staff have seniority over part-time staff, who could possibly be changed if reassigned staff choose to vary duties.
UPS has introduced plans to put off so-called 22.4 drivers, a lower-paid class of drivers created over the last spherical of negotiations in 2018, Washington State's Teamsters Native 174 mentioned in a web posting dated Feb. 9. The union, which didn't instantly reply to requests for remark, didn't say what number of positions can be affected .
Some New York locals even have reported the layoffs, in accordance with Enterprise Insider, which first reported the information.
Nationwide talks are scheduled to begin on April 17 in Washington, D.C.
A break-down in talks between UPS and the union might have main penalties for the nationwide financial system and a worldwide provide chain that's starting to get better from the shock of the early pandemic.
The primary and solely strike at UPS in 1997 lasted for 15 days, impeded the cargo of products, value the corporate $850 million and despatched some clients to rivals.
Reporting by Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles; Enhancing by Aurora Ellis
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