UPS to Hire 100,000 Seasonal Workers and at Higher Pay
United Parcel Service announced its plans today to hire more than 100,000 holiday workers, about the same as last year, but the pay will be better this year.
A tentative five-year contract agreement approved last month with the Teamsters union includes a pay bump and other benefits for part-time and full-time workers, in addition to those hired for the holiday season.
Seasonal package drivers will now get a minimum rate of $23 an hour, while package handlers will get $21. That’s $2 an hour more for drivers than last year. In 2022, package handlers were paid $15.50 an hour.
“We do have a good package to offer everybody with an industry-leading pay, but we still haven’t seen those job numbers change,” said Matt Lavery, UPS director of global sourcing, recruiting and onboarding. “So we’re hoping and we believe that we are going to get the number of employees. It’s a little uncertain whether it’s going to be easier or not for us at this point.”
UPS says in addition to finding enough people who want to work, they are also faced with a shortage of younger people who have drivers’ licenses and therefore can’t apply for the available driver positions.
Holiday season for package handlers UPS and FedEx typically begins in October and runs through January. UPS will start external hiring of seasonal support drivers who use their own vehicles to deliver packages later in the season, for a period that runs from November 15-December 26.
Last month, Atlanta-based UPS cut its revenue and profitability targets, thanks to higher-than-expected labor costs as well as about $200 million in business that was lost during contract talks with the Teamsters union.
Those interested in applying at UPS can fill out an online application at upsjobs.com. Officials say the application process only takes about 20 minutes and nearly 80% of the positions don’t require an interview.
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