Teamsters show support for tentative UPS agreement | Hot weather affecting productivity across industries | Freight recession lands trucking firms in troubled waters
The Teamsters local unions voted 161-1 in favor of an agreement with UPS that offers wage increases, an additional paid holiday, air conditioning in delivery trucks and ends forced overtime and a two-tier pay system. Rank and file union members are slated to vote Aug. 3-22 on the agreement, which Teamsters General President Sean O'Brien called "richer, stronger and more far-reaching than any settlement ever negotiated in the history of American organized labor."
Extreme heat is becoming more common and its impact on workers is felt across industries and the country, with new research showing factories, warehouses, restaurants, airlines and other industries are joining already affected sectors like agriculture and construction that experience challenges due to extreme heat. Heat exposure can lead reduced work hours, lower productivity and increased absenteeism, and its economic impact was estimated at $100 billion in 2020 but projected to reach as high as $500 billion annually by 2050.
Thousands of truck drivers are feeling the effects of a deep freight recession as demand for goods decreases from a 2021 pandemic peak and costs remain high, eroding trucking companies' profit margins. "I don't know that we've ever seen freight demand fall this far, so fast and for so long, without an accompanying economic recession," said David Jackson, CEO of Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings.
DHL Express plans to spend $192 million to expand a superhub at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport in Hebron, Ky., according to the office of Gov. Andy Beshear. The project at the superhub, one of DHL Express' three worldwide, comes after recent investment in facilities in Florida, Georgia and Missouri.
Burgeoning inventories and the ability to shave costs in 2022 helped fuel an 18.3% increase in year-over-year gross revenue for US third-party logistics firms to total $405.5 billion, according to Armstrong & Associates. That number was down from the 48.1% increase in gross revenues for 2021 but marked the fourth-highest growth year since Armstrong & Associates began tracking the figure in 1995.
"Supply chain risk events" in North America surged 57% year-over-year for the second quarter and accounted for more than $44 million in shipments, according to CargoNet. The research firm attributes most of the loss to shipment misdirection attacks and the movement of loads through multiple drivers and warehouses that's akin to washing dirty money.
Chatbots are the most relevant generative AI application for 83% of marketers, while data, text, search and synthetic data rounded out the top five functions, per Insider Intelligence. While image, audio and video ranked among the lowest AI functions, "eventually, tech like DALL-E, Sonix and Pictory could allow marketers to personalize campaigns at scale," writes Insider Intelligence's Sara Lebow .
Nearly 70% of marketing and PR professionals say business will improve next year and 58% are increasing their budgets, but 55% say they're more stressed now than in 2022, per to CommsCo PR research. AI is expected to drive increased productivity, say 65%, and 45% say it will yield more marketing investments, while 13% are apprehensive regarding AI.
The COVID-19 outbreak is but one example of why traditional strategic processes can break down, writes business consultant Marc Sniukas, an advocate for "agile strategizing." In this commentary, Sniukas outlines the process, which prioritizes action, progress and quick thinking over excessive analysis.
If AI is "the new electricity," as computer scientist Andrew Ng says, then it's our job as business leaders to work with our employees to switch it on together, says Tom Henson, the managing director at Emerge Digital. This important part of our future "requires a profound cultural metamorphosis, requiring understanding, acceptance and commitment from the most critical component of your organization: your employees," Henson writes.
