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JUNE
**14, 2023**
Dayen on TAP
UPS Workers Beat the Heat
A win at the negotiating table for the Teamsters will make delivering
packages a little less dangerous.
Negotiations between UPS and approximately 340,000 workers represented
by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters have been ongoing for
several weeks
<[link removed]>,
in advance of a July 31 expiration of the current contract. A strike,
which would be the nation's largest ever and the first for UPS since
workers walked out in 1997, would take a large chunk of the logistics
sector offline and disrupt the national economy. The Teamsters have a
number of demands, including two-tiered wage scales and the company's
overreliance on part-time and gig economy-style work. But one of their
bigger issues was not related to pay, benefits, or job security. It was
the heat.
UPS package delivery trucks, the famous brown ones that drive through
neighborhoods, do not have air conditioning
<[link removed]>,
a fact the company justifies by saying that the vehicles frequently
start and stop, requiring workers to shut the engine and open the doors.
Thermometer readings in the back of UPS trucks have reached 150 degrees
Fahrenheit <[link removed]>
on occasion. Numerous drivers have suffered
<[link removed]>
from heatstroke, dehydration, and other consequences, including several
<[link removed]>
deaths
<[link removed]>.
And another hot summer is approaching.
Alleviating the heat problem was a major focus for negotiators. And
yesterday, they announced a breakthrough. The Teamsters and UPS
announced a tentative agreement to add air-conditioning to the fleet.
All new package delivery trucks will get equipped with AC, and use of
those trucks will be prioritized in the hottest areas of the country.
Existing package cars will get two fans installed, one within 30 days of
ratification of the contract, and a second by next June.
New vehicles will also have "heat shields" installed in the cargo floor,
which UPS estimates
<[link removed]>
will minimize temperatures by up to 17 degrees. Those heat shields will
be retrofitted onto existing package trucks. An induction system that
flows fresh air from the front of the truck into the cargo area will
also be installed on new trucks and retrofitted onto old ones. Overall,
these changes will affect the majority of the 93,000-strong UPS fleet.
The larger UPS tractor trailers already had air conditioning.
"Teamster members in these vehicles will get the relief and protection
they've been fighting for," said General President Sean O'Brien in a
statement. "We are here to protect more than 340,000 UPS Teamsters and
get the best contract in the history of our union with this company.
Today's progress was a significant step towards a stronger new reality
for so many workers and their families."
UPS is a big enough employer that its attention to extreme-heat dangers
could spur action for other workers, like FedEx trucks or Amazon
warehouses. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration published
an advance notice of proposed rulemaking
<[link removed]> on extreme
heat in workplaces in 2021, but it's nowhere close to completion. The
agency has not initiated an interim heat standard while the rule is
finalized.
All of these advances are contingent on UPS signing a final contract.
The two-tier system (known as 22.4 after the numbered provision in the
2018 UPS contract) continues to be a sticking point; 22.4 drivers work
full-time shifts at lower than full-time wages, without the same control
over schedules. The Teamsters also want to increase pay for part-timers
who work in UPS distribution facilities and make as little as $15.50 an
hour. And UPS has begun to use personal-delivery drivers who deliver in
their own cars during peak seasons like the Christmas holidays; this
non-union DoorDash-style workforce is looked upon unfavorably by
Teamster members. A strike authorization vote has been called, and the
results will be announced Friday.
Bargaining continues with about six weeks until the deadline. But
earning better conditions for drivers after years of dangers is a big
step forward.
~ DAVID DAYEN
Follow David Dayen on Twitter <[link removed]>
[link removed]
Biden's Unused Clean Energy Authority
<[link removed]>
A new report identifies several powerful options using the Defense
Production Act to support the energy transition. BY DAVID DAYEN
Tesla's "Self-Driving" System Never Should Have Been Allowed on the
Road
<[link removed]>
Elon Musk's automatic driving technology seems to be roughly an order
of magnitude more deadly than human drivers. BY RYAN COOPER
Dow's River
<[link removed]>
On the Brazos River in Texas, one chemical company reigns supreme. BY
DELGER ERDENESANAA
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