Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - UPS announced Thursday their plans to hire over 1,000 workers in Buffalo and 100,000 employees nationwide ahead of the holiday rush.
It is now even easier to apply and get hired, you don't even need to have a face-to-face interview, just 25 minutes from job application to offer online, "In 25 minutes or less, you can get a response from one of our HR people to offer you a role at one of our Buffalo locations," said Carmen Ballon, a UPS representative.
The United Parcel Service is filling full and part-time seasonal positions including primarily seasonal drivers, package handlers and driver helpers by offering competitive wages across multiple shifts in hundreds of locations across the country. Seasonal package car driver positions begin at $21 per hour. Seasonal tractor-trailer positions begin at $35 per hour.
“We have made our hiring process as easy as possible,” said Nando Cesarone, Executive Vice President and President, U.S. Operations. “UPS’s strength has always been our people, and we are excited about the opportunity to welcome new UPSers to our team as we deliver what matters for our customers this holiday season.”
Labor shortages are still a relevant issue in our nation as we come out of the pandemic, but UPS is not worried about finding help. They offer competitive wages and benefits, you also have to factor in working conditions and environment.
"Work rules, being able to stop to go to the restroom, being able to do other things are sometimes as important as the pay and the benefits that you have good working conditions. I think UPS, more so than FedEx or other providers have pretty good working conditions, or at least a chance to improve them. UPS is one of the biggest employers in the United States, they've been able to attract a decent workforce and hopefully they'll continue to do that. But like everybody says, it's getting tougher. Amazon is looking for drivers UPS is leisure talking about looking for drivers, FedEx, the Postal Service. So everybody's looking for more people to drive and there is a driver shortage nationally, which has been one of the causes of the supply chain disruptions," said Art Wheaton of the Worker Institute at Cornell.
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Seasonal opportunities are a proven pathway to a career at UPS – nearly 35,000 seasonal employees earned permanent positions following the 2021 holidays. UPS creates jobs that pay industry-leading wages and benefits, and rewards people who stay. A full-time UPS package delivery driver makes an average of $95,000 per year, plus an additional $50,000 in contributions to health, wellness and pension benefits. After four years, UPS drivers earn about $42 per hour, according the company.
"I came here as a part time employee, I worked hard and got up to full time and then I just got promoted to Account Executive. The opportunities at UPS are not just seasonal, you can start a career and a very successful one. Full time drivers can make $95,000 in a year. I think that's great incentive," said Michael Godoro, an Operations Account Executive at UPS.
The company also has an "Earn and Learn" program where eligible employees can earn up to $25,000 for their college tuition and expenses.
While UPS is hiring for the holiday season, there are some concerns of an impending strike that could happen with UPS and a majority of their workforce's union, Teamster.
"It's always possible, but it's also part of the collective bargaining process that they need to get whatever they agree to at the bargaining table, they need to get ratified by their union members. So they're going to try to get as much as they can at the bargaining table. If they can't get what they think the members will accept, then there could be a strike. But if there is a strike, I would not anticipate a really long strike, it would probably be a relatively shorter strike, because they do have a history," says Wheaton.