As 340,000 Teamsters employees prepare to strike on Aug. 1, the company says its priority is reaching a labor deal before that day – though no talks have taken place since July 5. “We do not engage in public relations wars that keep consumers aware of any possible strike impact,” it stated in its statement.
Orlando Weekly recently spoke with several UPS employees participating in “practice pickets” Thursday; these full-timers and part-timers emphasized they were not there to harm anyone but simply want their bosses to treat them fairly.
Teamsters refer to part-timers employed at UPS as “unsung heroes.” Their duties include sorting and loading delivery trucks in warehouses before taking them out on to streets to deliver packages. Furthermore, part-timers play an integral part in keeping the company running – such as assembling packages, labeling them and loading onto aircraft for overseas deliveries. According to Lou Griffith, an Orlando warehouse employee of 25 years working on practice picket at one UPS facility: “This job we do well and deserves better treatment than what is provided,” according to Lou Griffith during practice picket at Orlando facility.
Griffith and other UPS employees across Florida have joined together in several locations – from Tampa in west central Florida, Melbourne, Ocala and Gainesville – in an attempt to show that they too will honor the 340,000 Teamsters’ vote to authorize a strike and demand that UPS offer better wages and benefits.
An expected nationwide strike by the company could cause delays, higher shipping costs and supply-chain disruptions. But workers hope the public will support them since they’re not out to punish anyone- not even their employer!
Michigan economic research firm that analyzes work stoppages estimated that a 10-day UPS strike would cost the US economy an estimated total cost of $7.1 billion – representing one of the highest costs ever seen from one work shutdown, per the firm. But its effects wouldn’t be felt equally across American households – more value international and expedited deliveries may be affected more due to management employees not covered by Teamsters contracts who won’t participate in any strikes being used instead to handle work; A UPS spokesperson indicated they have begun training managers to support an event should one occur while declining comment regarding third-party research or any third-party research findings.
