If unions are so wonderful, why is it that their membership rolls have been in a steady, relentless decline for over 30 years? It is funny how union leadership never can answer that. Also, UPS had to cough up $6 billion to wrest control from the Central States Pension Plan, the plan that Teamster leadership stole from, mismanaged, and spent into insolvency. The Teamsters don’t like to talk about that either.

This public singing of “kumbaya” by UPS and the Teamsters is hilarious. UPS has fought the union for years, and they are stuck with a labor cost disadvantage that they would now like to foist on FEDEX. Ridiculous! The Teamsters have been unsuccessfully trying to unionize on a national level at FEDEX for 15 years. The employees don’t WANT a union, because they work for a company that for 12 consecutive years has been recognized as one of America’s best places to work – you never find UPS in this category.

Unionization is a sickness, and UPS wants to infect FEDEX with this same disease.

And finally, Mr. Chapman, if UPS is such a wonderfully run company, why is it that since UPS went public 10 years ago, its shareholders have seen a cumulative negative 22% return vs a positive 35% return for the shareholders of FEDEX?

Though I clearly have issues with how UPS treats its hourly retirees, I must take exception to your statement as follows;

“And – more importantly to you, James Oberstar, and your paymasters at United Parcel Service and the Teamsters Union – it would force FedEx to unionize and end its competition with UPS (which, not so coincidentally, delivers 85 percent of its packages by truck and does rightly fall under the NLRA”

Just what percetage of FedEx deliveries are made by truck, as alluded to by the above statement? I don’t know where you got your stats, but 100% of UPS deliveries are made by vehicles licensed as commercial vehicles (trucks) not airplanes or Railroad Cars, the same as Fed EX.

Both should be governed under NLRA regulations. While I’m at it the USPS (United States Postal Service) delivers by truck and mail men/women and are unfairly subsidizing their package delivery system by 1st class mail.

Where is the level playing field here? One subsidized by the US Government, The other that started out operating airplanes then evolved into Fed Ex Package Delivery, and then Fed Ex Freight?

Fact is, i can sympathize with the FED EX Truck Drivers who are classified as Contractors, not employees with the exception of California whos Fed EX Contractors recently won a lawsuit against FED EX arguing just that. Meanwhile across the country Fed Ex Drivers Contractual wages are being kept artificially low and are barely making the sustenance they need to maintain a decent living.

Ironically everyone in the media and business argue that unions make businesses non-competitive, and put them out of business. If so, how can it be explained that UPS has had Teamster Union employees since 1950, and still be the number 1 package delivery multi-national company in the world. It proves to me that UPS is the better run Company, with the Best Employees.

Just my acute observation after 36-1/2 years a Teamster.

Douglas Page Chapman Sr
[edited out personal information and website link]
36-1/2 years member in good standing IBT Locals 705 & 710. Over 55 years experience UPS/BROWN, 30 years an employee, 18+ years when Dad was an employee, and retired Teamster 13 + years.