Helpers who never drove have no idea how easy their job is compared to the driver's job. The driver has to plan the whole day out, when to break off to make NDA commits and on call airs, the best way to run the housecall loop, when to break off to make scheduled pickups, and continually making updates and adjustments to the initial plan as unexpected delays crop up. The driver is also accountable for everything that happens on route, if something goes wrong no one is going to blame the helper. I'm not saying that helpers don't work hard because it's UPS and everyone works hard, but whenever I've teamed up with another driver I always volunteer to jump and let the other guy drive because running off stops is a piece of cake compared to what I usually do.
<sigh> So some helpers have expressed frustration that they're tired & sore but their driver is continually handing them multiple stops to deliver while he sits on the truck and texts (NOT sorting, setting-up future deliveries). And drivers have justified it by saying a) they're giving the helpers work and b) they work dang hard everyday.
-- NOBODY'S arguing that neither the driver nor helper work hard everyday. EVERYBODY works hard at UPS.
-- Most everyone -- even those in the best of shape -- experience aches & pains when doing these types of jobs - the body just isn't use to this type of "workout." And helpers have to adjust more quickly -- many routes in high-density subdivisions can deliver close to 50 SPH. That means in less than 2 hours, they've made MORE deliveries than many drivers did in 8+ hours in the early reigns of their career. Sure, much of the equipment today is superior to those of yesteryear... but my building had many 30-year-old trucks with no power steering, high-steps, etc.
-- No, you don't do this work everyday. If you did, you wouldn't have a helper. I route I'm helping on goes out with 280 stops (more on peak days) -- I actually delivered it an entire summer, and it averaged 120-140 & covered a much larger area. The portions that have been removed are the slower-moving stuff.
-- You're banking $32/hour but your helper is reaping $8-$9.50 (or $12.88 in Central States). Everybody has their price, and aches and pains can become much more tolerable. As the starting wages haven't moved in nearly 30-years, when you began this work you were making significantly more (adjusting for inflation). While I have the attitude "deal with it," I don't blame somebody making $8 for quitting after being at it for a week.
-- Many buildings -- and this sounds like the OP's case -- are asking drivers to drop helpers off with carts full of packages and deliver them on their own. They're enforcing it here but only for a handful of drivers.
The OVERWHELMING majority of drivers (and the number's over 50) I've worked with have been wonderful -- when they're not sorting/setting up the route, and there's multiple stops, they WILL take one. When they realize I'm getting tired (I work Preload for 6-9 hours before helping) they'll offer to run off a stop. Many will offer to buy me a soda or something to eat, but I will always decline. It's only a select few that sit on the truck with the cell phone glued to their ear, that merely set-up the stops and expect me to find the package in the back and run it off while they sit there and talk+text, that I have a problem with.