BrownCafe

The pilots’ union for UPS Worldport in Louisville claims the parcel service offers limited testing for COVID-19 even as a growing number of pilots contract the virus.

Between the end of March and late October, UPS union members with the Independent Pilots Association reported 100 cases of COVID-19, but in the last month that number has doubled to 200, said Brian Gaudet, public affairs director with the Independent Pilots Association, which represents 3,000 UPS pilots.

Despite a growing number of transmissions, Louisville’s UPS hub is only testing a small number of pilots flying out of Louisville on international flights, not inbound or domestic flights, he said.

Craig Arnold works as a sales executive for UPS, based in Sandy Springs. But, a couple of years ago, he found himself in the Caribbean, helping to organize food distribution after Hurricane Irma barreled through the Virgin Islands.

The Colorado Springs area may be about to add yet another distribution center — shipping giant United Parcel Service has filed plans to build a nearly 100,000-square-foot distribution center in Monument.

The Atlanta-based company plans to begin construction by March on the facility in the Falcon Commerce Center, southwest of Interstate 25 and Baptist Road, according to plans filed with the town of Monument. The project, which would open in early 2022, must still be approved by the Monument Planning Commission next month and the town’s Board of Trustees in January, though the the town’s planning staff plans to recommend approval with conditions related to access.