Monday morning musings for workplace watchers.
Behind the UPS Curtain|NLRB Injunctions Update
Ian Kullgren: UPS was racing behind the scenes to retrain 70,000 workers as strikebreakers last month as it negotiated with the Teamsters, according to an internal document obtained by Bloomberg Law.
The document, which offers a rare window into how UPS was preparing for the largest private-sector strike in the nation, shows that the shipping and delivery giant had trained just 38% of its replacement workforce as of July 23, two days before the company settled with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
It’s unclear whether the race to retrain workers influenced UPS’ decision to settle, but logistics experts say a shortfall of qualified workers could have tarnished the brand if it kept trying to deliver packages. “You have to know all the routes, all the people on the routes, all the practices for delivery,” said Michael Belzer, an economics professor at Wayne State University who specializes in trucking.
UPS spokesman Malcolm Berkley said in a statement that the company was on schedule to retrain 70,000 workers by Aug. 1, when the contract with the Teamsters expired, and it “did not influence decisions made at the negotiating table.”
The Teamsters have until Aug. 22 to vote on the tentative agreement, which would raise the minimum wage for workers to $21 an hour and provide across-the-board raises over the five-year agreement. It’s expected to pass despite some members...
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