Just my 2 cents... 401K may not have a match but I still contribute. Why?
I'm over half way through my full-time progression and less than half way to vesting. I spend about five months of the year unscheduled and getting called in 1-2 days/week. There are UPS operation changes at my Center that would see me getting laid off permanently for years if they occur in the next five years and about as much as I am now if they happen in the next ten years. If those changes occur in the next five years, my choices are pretty much to file for management or go work for someone else because I am not putting in for a transfer to another Center so I can be back on the bottom of the seniority list and getting laid off for lack of center seniority. It is what it is and I will cross that bridge when I get there if I have to but the 401K contributions will cross that bridge with me if I have to cross it.
I'm fortunate enough to not be in some of the Teamster pension plans that are not managed as well but that can easily change. My father is a non-UPS Teamster retiree in the Central States and he is one of the unfortunates having his pension reduced. We cannot ALL be leadership in the Union and we aren't working for the people paid to actually manage the pension or we wouldn't be Teamsters in the first place so the simple fact is that most of the members are going to be dependent on someone else when it comes to their pension with regard to how it is managed. Within the parameters of the 401K plan, I manage how my 401K contributions are invested.
As negotiated in the Local Rider, we have to vote periodically on whether a portion of the Company's pension contribution increase to the Local pension should be given instead as a wage increase. In a democratic process, the UPS Teamsters in my Local voted a portion of the pension contribution increase to the Local pension to be given as a wage increase last year. I wouldn't have seen that $ .25/hr ($ .0375 of which would go to my 401k) anyways for another year and a half when I reach top scale; however, it is currently a moot point as it is at the National Panel since UPS refused to give the wage increase. All the same, my brothers and sisters have demonstrated that when given a choice between the two, the majority of them prefer a wage increase to a pension contribution increase. I decide how much of an increase to make to my 401k contributions.
Regardless of the decisions made about my Teamster pension plans (I am part of two - my Local and my Region), the other reality that many Teamsters face when retiring is that Teamsters generally have better than average medical coverage at higher than average costs to the Teamster. Add to that a reasonable expectation that the cost of medical coverage for Teamster retirees will outpace any growth in Teamster pension payments (which are actually decreasing in my father's case). The result is that we can expect that we will likely have to do more (pay higher medical coverage costs, cost of living, and/or taxes) with the same or less (our pension payments). If you agree with the preceding assumptions, the only way to make up that difference is to invest in some manner on your own. 401k contributions are one of the ways I choose to achieve
There are several ways to achieve financial security in retirement and the 401k is an excellent technique. Another one that some Teamsters avail themselves of is a Roth IRA account. There are many other ways to ensure financial security in retirement (some of which come with more risk and some of which are not as easy) but a 401k and Roth IRA are good places to start in my opinion.
All of that said, UPS remains an excellent employer to work for from the perspective of wages and retirement (make your own judgment about the rest). First, you make excellent wages over a career at UPS (if you stay that long) with which you could secure your own retirement completely independent of the pension. Second, we do not know with absolute certainty what will remain of the pension plan when we retire; however, defined benefit plans (e.g. pensions) are becoming scarce ( as mentioned by PT Stewie) outside the government sector and union membership. Even within the government sector, pensions are under attack. I set ambitions to be a teacher aside when our state did away with defined benefits in lieu of defined contributions for educators.
Understanding you may be familiar with 401k matches with other employers, I have only had one other employer (military) that offered a full pension with medical coverage and 401k (no match but a nice exclusion from taxes in combat zones). They also have very few competitors in their industry and no stock holders to answer to. Staying within our own industry, you may or may not be able to sustain an argument that FedEx employment is preferable in some matters, but I don't see how wages (over the course of a career) and retirement is one of the subjects on which you could sustain that argument (not suggesting you were trying to).
Without knowing your employment goals at UPS, I am reasonably certain that you will be advantaged in the long run if you make 401k contributions (even without the match). I know I was gangbusters when I hired on permanently after my first peak season with UPS. Sad to say, but that enthusiasm has been slightly diminished in the years since. I've steeled myself to hold on until I am vested barring any significant operation changes that might occur between now and then which force me to leave or something coming along that I would rather do. After I am vested, I intend to make a determination about my intentions. I chose vesting because I will likely still see occasional layoffs even after making top scale and at that point I will have something to show my efforts. Regardless of the outcome between now and my final day delivering at UPS be it last week or 30 years from now, I have my 401K contributions.
