ATLANTA — Negotiations between the International Brotherhood of Teamsters’ union and the United Parcel Service have stalled out with both sides walking away from contract talks Wednesday.
With hundreds of thousands of workers and millions of packages being part of this global shipping operation, a work stoppage could have wide-ranging ripple effects.
The Teamsters' union announced Wednesday contract talks have “collapsed." Labor expert, Arthur Wheaton, said there are a number of sticking points complicating negotiations including a new union president, a two-tier wage system for part-timers and overall pay.
“Historically, people who weren’t working the typical 9 to 5 or the typical 40-hour work week were not getting paid or having the same level of benefits,” said Wheaton.
Akilah Love operates a couple of businesses that rely on UPS to serve her customers. She said if a strike happens, that will place a big burden on her.
“I’ve relied on UPS and so, we’re really going to have to find other sources of shipping and use competitors. I’m used to the ladies and gents here in the local store. We know each other by name so it kinda sucks,” said Love.
11Alive reached out to UPS and the Teamsters’ union.
While the union hasn’t responded to 11Alive yet, they have been tweeting about the matter online, alleging that UPS " is only prepared to honor its own balance sheet."
UPS did email a statement to 11Alive, saying in part:
“The Teamsters have stopped negotiating despite historic proposals that build on our industry-leading pay. We have nearly a month left to negotiate. We have not walked away, and the union has a responsibility to remain at the table.”
The current contract ends on July 31.