UPS, TEAMSTERS REACH TENTATIVE AGREEMENT ON CONTRACT
UPS and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters said Tuesday they reached agreement on a historic new six-year contract.
The contract, which covers about 230,000 UPS employees in the United States, includes a wage increase of 22 percent over the six-year term, and improvements in health, welfare and pension funding contributions.
The Teamsters said the agreement, which will be presented to union-representative workers for ratification, provides the largest wage and benefit increases in UPS's history. The current contract expires on July 31.
'In an economic climate in which many workers are losing their retirement savings and having their health benefits slashed, this contract protects our UPS workers and their families and sets a new standard for American workers,' said Jim Hoffa, Teamsters general president.
The Teamsters said the new six-year agreement 'easily surpasses' the current package, that was negotiated following a two-weeks strike in 1997.
'This agreement is good for our customers, good for our employees and good for our company,' said Mike Eskew, UPS chairman and chief executive officer, on Tuesday. 'It enables UPS to remain strong in a very competitive industry, with the added stability of a six-year contract.
The tentative agreement was reached Monday evening 'after nine straight weeks and a marathon weekend of bargaining,' the Teamsters said. The union's UPS negotiating committee unanimously recommended acceptance of the agreement. Ratification results from a membership vote are expected in mid-August.
Terms of the agreement include wage increases of $5 over the life of the contract; a new cost-of-living formula; pension increases of $3.75 over the life of the contract; 10,000 new jobs created, plus an additional 10,000 Teamster jobs through the elimination of subcontractors; and pay raises and health and pension benefits for part-time employees.
The agreement also solved several long-term non-economic issues including language limiting excessive overtime and improved health and safety protections.
The two sides exchanged initial proposals Jan. 30, and held regularly scheduled negotiating sessions over the subsequent six months.