UPS to hire over 100,000 seasonal workers with Teamsters pay increase

UPS is planning to hire more than 100,000 seasonal workers to help take on the holiday rush this year, falling in line with the company’s past hiring during peak holiday shipping season, but workers will see higher pay this year.

As a result of a negotiated Teamsters deal, UPS workers voted to accept a five-year tentative contract that included wage increases for the 340,000 workers. The agreement features a $2.75 hourly raise this year for full- and part-time UPS employees, and it allows for $7.50 more per hour over the length of the contract.

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UPS is offering package handlers $21 per hour, while certain drivers will make $23 per hour for the holiday period. Last year, drivers made $21 per hour, and $15.50 was the pay for package handlers.

“The best talent delivers the best service. That’s why we’re proud to offer industry-leading pay for UPS part-timers, full-timers and seasonal employees alike,” Nando Cesarone, UPS’s executive vice president, said in a statement on Tuesday. “We’re looking forward to delivering yet another leading on-time performance this holiday season and helping thousands of workers kick off their UPS careers in the process.”

Under the new deal averting a nationwide strike that would have had damaging effects on the economy, the average full-time UPS driver will make around $170,000 annually in pay and benefits. Nearly 50,000 seasonal employees have turned into permanent employment with the company over the past two years, UPS said.

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While the company is offering pay increases to holiday workers, the tight job market will make it difficult to fill seasonal jobs this year, according to Matt Lavery, a talent acquisition manager at UPS.

“We do have a good package to offer everybody with an industry-leading pay, but we still haven’t seen those [job] numbers change,” Lavery said. “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.”