UPS to lay off 11% of pilots

By on May 20, 2010

For the first time in its 103-year history, UPS will furlough pilots, with the first 54 pilots being laid off on May 23rd

This is the first wave of a plan that UPS announced in February to layoff at least 300 of its airline pilots

Since April 2009, the 2,800 UPS pilots, represented by the Independent Pilots Association, had preserved these jobs through voluntary cost cutting programs

IPA president Captain Robert Thrush commented: "What makes this furlough truly unfortunate is that our pilots took it upon themselves to give-up pay and benefits to produce $117 million in guaranteed savings for UPS, enough to keep these 300 pilots employed well into 2011"

Under the Voluntary Jobs Protection Program, UPS pilots were able to generate cost savings for UPS by: taking reductions in flight pay guarantees; taking unpaid leaves of absence; participating in job sharing; taking military leave; contributing unused sick bank time; and taking early retirement

However, in January UPS told the pilots that the company needed $244 million in savings through 2015, and that its preference was for ‘compulsory savings' - ie furloughs

Captain Thrush said that the pilots were still willing to step-up, extend and expand the Voluntary Jobs Protection Program to cover UPS's demands and keep the 300 employed, but a month later UPS told the union that the company was unwilling to continue with current voluntary savings programs, or consider others, and began the furlough process