UPS agreed to reinstate nearly three dozen workers it laid off last week at a package sortation hub in Louisville, Kentucky, after the International Brotherhood of Teamsters threatened a peak season strike over the job cuts..
The union had immediately requested a reversal of the layoff of roughly 35 specialist and administrative workers, who were terminated after UPS claimed their jobs at UPS’ Centennial hub should be performed by management, according to a Dec. 8 statement on X.
According to the post, Teamster’s General President Sean O’Brien and General Secretary-Treasurer Fred Zuckerman worked directly with UPS labor management to reach a solution to bring the members back to work.
“The workers and Teamster leadership spoke by phone on Friday,” the union said in a statement. “The resolution to recognize specialist and administrative workers as Teamsters extends to members of Local 89 and members of Teamsters Local 705 in Chicago as well.”
All affected workers will receive full back pay and return to their positions on their next scheduled workdays, the Teamsters said.
UPS said that it is “pleased to have reached an agreement with the Teamsters regarding our Louisville Centennial and Chicago Jefferson Street hubs,” as it remains focused on providing service during peak season, the company told Supply Chain Dive in an email.
“The union achieved a great result for our UPS members in Louisville, and we couldn’t be happier to see them clock back in as Teamsters,” O’Brien said. “Both sides immediately came together and were able to resolve the situation on the ground. This is the outcome we were looking for. Now it’s time to do what the Teamsters do best, and that’s get back to work.”
