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The Center for American Progress reports
The Teamsters union represents the 280,000 UPS employees who voted overwhelmingly in favor of going on strike[paywall] if a deal is not reached before the current labor contract expires on August 1. More than 90 percent voted for a strike.
Issuing a strike authorization vote does not necessarily mean UPS workers will order a work stoppage, but it does give the union leverage over management to win their negotiations.
[...] Since UPS began offering regular Saturday delivery service just a year ago, [demands on its labor force] have increased. While the company hasn't announced plans for Sunday service, the union claims UPS has made several proposals to expand weekend deliveries.
[...] The shipments [which] UPS transports comprise an estimated 6 percent of the United States GDP. A labor strike among the company's workers would have a sizable effect on the economy and would be the largest U.S. labor strike in decades. Three bargaining sessions ago, in 1997, UPS workers went on strike for 16 days, and there were 180,000 Teamsters at UPS at that time. There hasn't been a bigger strike since.
Coverage by the World Socialist Web Site is skeptical about the union's efforts and what will be the outcome. Not surprisingly, that article closes with:
There is no progressive answer to the continual lowering of living standards outside of the transformation of industry, communications, and transportation monopolies into publicly owned utilities under the democratic control of the working class.
Also covered at Fortune in UPS Has 260,000 Union Workers and They've Just Authorized a Strike:
The labor talks are proceeding amid discussions on pay and work schedules, as UPS looks to increase warehouse automation to keep up with surging demand from e-commerce shipments. The union has proposed increasing the part-time starting wage as well as improving the overall pay structure, according to a statement on its website. It's also pushing the courier to increase contributions to health and welfare and pension funds.
A previous "big" thing (39,000 workers): Largest Labor Action in 5 Years Slated for Wednesday, April 13 Against Verizon
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Friday June 08 2018, @01:11PM (1 child)
Far from all our USPS workers are of fit build. The ones that are seem happy to have the job and do it well. The ones I have trouble with tend to be older, heavier, women who move like they've got serious arthritis, gout, or both. My comment was prompted by our latest display of "I HATE MY FUCKING JOB AND I HATE YOU FOR BEING A PART OF IT" when the USPS truck came blasting down our (long) private driveway at unsafe speeds, slid to a stop, creaked her fat ass out of the vehicle and lugged a box of paper to our doorstep, literally threw it at the door, though it landed about a foot short of the glass, upside down breaking the cardboard box but not quite the plastic strap holding it shut, then left the way she came: hell bent for leather past the neighbors' small children back to her route. Our previous house just had a normal 40' sidewalk from the roadside mailbox to the doorstep, and the mid-50s bad attitude carrier there actually opened her mouth and tried to justify why: A) she had to park her truck in the grass (braking, accelerating, and turning as hard as possible - for maximal turf damage - in the process) while doing the delivery and B) why the doorstep deliveries were such an injustice to her existence.
I think we've had a total of 3 "bad" USPS carriers in the past 12 years, but it's the bad ones you notice.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Friday June 08 2018, @03:20PM
We've had good and bad here. My favorite was Dave - a black guy just a little older than I, maybe 5'10", mild and meek, but a well built, solid guy. The man would deliver ANYTHING. A hundred pound package? No problem. And he didn't throw it at the end of the driveway, either - if you had a quarter mile driveway, he would drive in to the house, and put the package at your door. He is the ONLY mailman I've ever given a gift to at holiday time. His only shortcoming was, he didn't like or trust dogs - but he was a helluva guy anyway. Dude retired . . . .
Most of the rest of our USPS delivery people have been women. One, moderately overweight, the rest of them, not bad looking, if looks are important. But, universally lazy. None of them will deliver a package weighing more than about ten pounds. None of them likes coming to the house. A couple don't mind the dogs, most act like little sissies if they hear or see a dog. All of them are nicer in the spring and autumn than during the summer or winter, but even then, they aren't usually especially nice.
Personally, I like the UPS drivers. Male or female, old or young, black or white, they have always seemed willing to go the extra mile. Driving up the driveway is no problem. A two hundred pound package is no problem. I've had engines delivered, one of the boys or I climb on the truck and help to move it to the tailgate, then lift it down to the ground. I like UPS a lot better than I like USPS, or any of the others. Fedex isn't even in the running with UPS - they act like dainty little prima donnas in comparison.