UPS Admits Driver Buyouts Violate Teamsters Contract in Central Region
(WASHINGTON) – United Parcel Service (UPS) notified the International Brotherhood of Teamsters on Tuesday that it was withdrawing its latest driver buyout scheme in Central Region states after nearly 37 local unions filed grievances against the parcel giant for shamelessly violating the UPS Teamsters contract. This action will greatly undermine the company’s illegal pursuit of buyouts in other regions under the National Master Agreement.
The Teamsters Central Region encompasses 13 states from Nebraska to Ohio and is home to more than 68,000 rank-and-file Teamsters working at UPS. The latest buyout, which the company calls the Driver Choice Program (DCP), had asked drivers to accept a one-time lump sum payment in exchange for legally committing to never work for UPS again, to waive their rights to union representation, and to sacrifice a career’s worth of strong union wages, employer-paid health care, and guaranteed retirement benefits.
“By pulling out of more than a dozen states, UPS has conceded that its buyout programs are illegal. They are scams designed to fuel corporate greed. These programs violate the Teamsters contract and UPS knows it,” said Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien. “The Teamsters strongly urge UPS to take the next right step and dismantle its Driver Choice Program across the country. If UPS fails to do right by the men and women who deliver its packages and generate its billions in profit, the Teamsters will pursue our grievances nationwide and defeat UPS in arbitration. We are prepared to do whatever it takes to protect our members’ rights.”
In court filings earlier this year on the illegality of the DCP, the Teamsters detailed at least six violations of its National Master Agreement by UPS in the rollout of the buyout program, including direct dealing of new contracts with workers, elimination of union jobs when UPS contractually agreed to establish more positions, and erosion of the rights and privileges of union shop stewards.
These violations have been cited in grievances against UPS filed by rank-and-file Teamsters since the DCP was rolled out last month. The union has also pointed to contract language in the UPS Teamsters Central Region Supplement — one of 44 regional supplements to the UPS Teamsters National Master Agreement — that restricts UPS from directly offering incentive programs that are not voted on and approved by employees and the union.
Until this week, the DCP was being directly offered to all drivers at UPS regardless of length of service and outside of negotiations with the union, irreparably damaging the Teamsters’ right to representation. The letter of separation that workers would be forced to sign by management to complete enrollment in the program would be irrevocable, further damaging the union or any individual worker’s ability to grieve or arbitrate the terms of separation.
The scope of UPS’s latest buyout scheme is much broader than the payoff presented to workers last summer, when UPS marketed payouts to more tenured drivers nearing retirement. The earlier program, which UPS called the Driver Voluntary Separation Program (DVSP), was widely rejected by Teamsters nationwide, many of whom took to social media to shred and set fire to the insulting financial package offered by UPS to leave the company.
While recent payoffs dangled in front of workers have been larger, the DVSP and DCP programs are unmistakably similar. Grievances over contract violations inherent in the DVSP program are expected to be heard before an arbitrator in May.
“UPS’s actions to walk away from its own buyout program is an admission of guilt, plain and simple,” said Teamsters General Secretary-Treasurer Fred Zuckerman. “UPS wants to offload as many well-paid drivers as possible to boost its corporate earnings. The executives currently running UPS have no regard for the health, well-being, or future financial security of their workforce. The Teamsters are here not just fighting UPS to do the right thing but fighting for a better quality of life for the hardworking people who move America.”
UPS CEO Carol Tomé was paid at least $23 million in 2025, outearning average UPS employees by a pay ratio of 345-to-1. While UPS Teamsters have been offered insulting payoffs to walk away from the company twice in the last year, UPS awarded $38 million bonuses to senior managers in May to stay with the company, reporting at the time that awards of up to $1 million each were necessary to “retain and motivate [UPS’s] management team during a critical transition time.”
Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.3 million hardworking people in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on X @Teamsters and on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters.
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Smurfit Westrock Teamsters Launch ULP Strike in Massachusetts
(WAKEFIELD, Mass.) – Teamsters at Smurfit Westrock in Wakefield, Mass., launched an unfair labor practice (ULP) strike after the company failed to negotiate a new agreement in a timely manner. The 60 members of Teamsters Local 3 are demanding fair wages, affordable health care, and no cuts to retirement contributions. The current contract expired March 23.
“Smurfit Westrock is the worst kind of corporate bully, spending millions of dollars for executive compensation and golden-parachute buyouts but nothing for the workers who built and maintain this company,” said Steve Sullivan, President of Local 3. “Teamsters will not back down in this fight and will remain on the picket line 24/7 until this greedy employer comes to their senses.”
Teamsters produce pizza boxes for national brands like Dominos and Papa Johns. Smurfit Westrock is one of the world’s largest paper packaging companies, raking in $21.1 billion in revenue last year alone.
“I’ve been at this company for decades and the more money they make, the more they take from us,” said Pedro Ramos, a 35-year worker at Smurfit Westrock. “This company doesn’t respect workers. We are demanding that management return to the bargaining table and get serious about negotiating a fair contract.”
Teamsters Local 3 represents 400 printing and packaging workers in the greater Boston area.
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Minnesota IAM Union Members Unite to Advocate for Workers Statewide
IAM Union members from across Minnesota recently gathered at IAM District 77 for the Minnesota State Council — a three-day meeting that focused on issues that matter the most to working families. WATCH: Minnesota IAM Members Unite to Advocate for Workers Statewide The meeting opened with remarks from IAM International President Bryan Bryant, followed by
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Woodward MPC UAW Workers Outside Chicago Demand Respect and a Fair Contract
In a new video, Woodward MPC workers speak out as part of their fight for a fair contract after months of stalling from the employer. The video is available for the media and public to VIEW HERE. “Our work keeps planes in the air, maintains our nation’s defenses, and keeps Woodward making billions,” the workers share. […]
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Foundational Skills Program Prepares New IAM Union Staff to Build Member Power
At the IAM’s Winpisinger Center, new staff representatives are developing the foundational skills needed to effectively serve members through the union’s Foundational Skills program. The training focuses on core responsibilities like contract enforcement, member representation, legal issues, local administration, and modern communication—equipping a new generation of IAM leaders with the tools to succeed in the
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IAM Union District 776 Members Join Together to Support Unhoused Fort Worth Community
Even with contract negotiations looming for many members of IAM District 776, it will never mean they don’t have time to be a team for good in their community. Recently, those same members came together to provide vital food and other resources to those less fortunate – even drawing support from District 776 member and
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Women’s History Month Profiles: Alexandria Smith
Women’s History Month Profiles: Alexandria Smith
For Women’s History Month, we’re taking a look at a group of leaders who are currently active making women’s history across the labor movement. Check back daily for a new profile and meet some of the people working to improve not only their community, but also to improve conditions for working people across the country. Today’s profile is Alexandria Smith of the Heat and Frost Insulators (HFIU).
Alexandria Smith has shown remarkable dedication and has made an impact on Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Local 90. Her commitment to her craft, her steady leadership and the pride she brings to the trade have strengthened the local’s membership in meaningful ways. Her accomplishments reflect both her talents and her heart.
Kenneth Quinnell
Tue, 03/24/2026 – 10:19
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Women’s History Month
Service & Solidarity Spotlight: New Jersey Health Care Workers Vote to Join HPAE
Service & Solidarity Spotlight: New Jersey Health Care Workers Vote to Join HPAE
Working people across the United States regularly step up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our Service & Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
New Jersey health care workers at Samaritan Healthcare & Hospice and Inspira Health have both voted to join the Health Professionals and Allied Employees (HPAE), an affiliate of the AFT.In two separate National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) elections, registered nurse case managers at Inspira Health medical centers and registered nurses, nurse practitioners, social workers and other staff at Samaritan both won their votes to form unions.“These elections show tremendous solidarity and commitment,” HPAE President Debbie White said. “We congratulate them on the wins! Unions give workers a voice, and when healthcare workers have a greater voice in their workplace, patients always benefit.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Tue, 03/24/2026 – 10:13
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Organizing
IAM Union Demands Pay for TSA to Keep Airports Secure, Not Create Havoc with ICE
WASHINGTON, March 22, 2026 — As U.S. airports suffer long security delays, the IAM Union (International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers) joined with the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, Association of Professional Flight Attendants, and International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 135, to release the following statement: “Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers must be paid now.
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Striking Lorain County Job and Family Services Workers Escalate Call on Commissioners to Settle Labor Crisis as Critical Public Services Remain at Risk
After over a month on strike, UAW Local 2192 members at Lorain County Jobs and Family Services are escalating their call on the County Commissioners to settle the growing labor crisis triggered by the Commissioners’ unprecedented move to reject a neutral fact-finder’s report and illegal refusal to meet at the table, which has left critical public services at risk.
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