Category: UPS News

With truckers and shipping firms increasingly warning of a potential slowdown, United Parcel Service should feel lucky to have its huge consumer and e-commerce holiday season right around the corner. But after two straight years of Christmas disappointments, the pressure is on for UPS to deliver.

The company has been planning for the fourth-quarter peak period since just about last Christmas, including better coordination with large shippers so it is better prepared for a surge. It has also made investments in its technology in hopes of being able to better flex its network as needed.

UPS earned more than $3 billion last year. But 8,737 of its former workers could see their pension checks cut next summer.

The problem is that some UPS retirees receive their pensions from the cash-strapped Central States Pension Fund, which covers hundreds of thousands of workers from different companies. That fund says it needs to make cuts in order to keep from running out of money.

UPS says any talk of holiday disruption is negotiations posturing

The union representing United Parcel Service Inc. pilots voted overwhelmingly to strike as contract negotiations enter their fifth year, a very public signal of employee dissatisfaction at the delivery giant as its all-important holiday peak fast approaches.

On Friday, the union said that more than 99% of its 2,500 pilots voted yes, authorizing the Independent Pilots Association’s executive board to request a release from federally mediated negotiations with UPS . If the union chooses to ask for release and it is granted by the mediators, the pilots would be able to strike.

“The ball now is really in UPS’s court to decide which direction we’re going,” said Capt. Robert Travis, president of the union.

Package delivery giant UPS Wednesday reached a $4.2 million settlement for overcharging 17 states and three local entities by falsely recording that next-day delivery packages reached their intended destinations on time.

The agreement, the Atlanta-based company’s second on similar allegations this year, covers alleged wrongdoing from 2004 to 2014 in which some employees recorded inaccurate delivery times on packages that government customers sent via UPS next-day delivery services.

Recently, UPS made news by acquiring Coyote Logistics for a reported $1.8 billion. Coyote Logistics is a full-scale service provider that offers transportation and logistics services to more than 12,000 customers across a wide range of industries. This acquisition aims to strengthen UPS’ business while eliminating a competitor. However, there are always specific reasons why a multinational will acquire another for more than $1 billion.