Anybody here work for UPS

....lookin into getting a job at UPS as a package handler??? anyone here ever done this before? just wondering what its like..is uniform still required? is it back breaking?

 

Based on the ups lady who comes by..yes..they can make decent money..but don't expect to be home much. I don't see how she does it..like 18 hr/day these days. Sorting no idea lol

 

Long hard hours. Repetitive routes. Working in the heat and cold. Uniforms. Carrying heavy sh!t all day. Never home.

Depends on what "decent" money is. If it's 6 figures, then maybe, depending on your home life. But it's not 6 figures. No thanks.

 

Roomate a few years back did it for the season. he was a hard worker so it didnt bother him much but it was a night shift type deal. like 2-5 am or something then hed jump in the truck and help deliver packages all day. made bank but again you arent home much. and dont expect much of a night life. (no matter how tough you think you are after a few days you give up on trying)

 

i'm just an unemployed full time college student...just need a few hundred to pay my share of rent and gas money...dont think the ups here is looking for drivers just package handlers...thanks guys for the input

 

I worked for UPS for 12 years.

If you are young and not afraid of hard work then it can be a good job if you stick it out for the long run.

Here is how it works in Ca.

- Spend 3 or so years working part time loading/unloading/sorting packages at $9 - $15 per hr. with full benefits. Working 3.5 to 6.5 hrs per night.

- After about 3 - 6 years of working in the hub you should have enough seniority to be a package car driver working full time making $22 - $26 per hr. working 9 - 12 hours per day. Most package car drivers make 60k - 75k per year.

- After about 15+ years with the company you will have enough seniority to be a Feeder driver. (Driving semi trucks) I know it doesn't sound like much fun being a truck driver but they have the easiest job, are home every night and make $34+ per hour. Most make 80k - 100k per year working 10 - 12 hours per day.

The teamsters union protect its members giving them a raise every year and backing them . I have never seen a teamster get fired at UPS for lack of performance. Only way to get fired is for stealing, fighting, drug use... Anything else the union will get your job back if the company fires you.

If you are in a "right to work state" I'm not sure how powerful the union is.

 

I agree with what Derek said above. I only have experience as a Fed-Ex Ground pkg handler for about 8 years. We didn't get the protection of a union, but maxed my pay rate at about $13.50. Big downsides to this type of job: half assed benefits- meaning basic health, dental, etc, but no life or disability insurance, no 401k option for non-management. Shitty hours- Sort would start at 3 or 4 PM and end at 6:30, then 7 to 10:30 or 11 PM. Sucked starting a work day when most normal folks are getting off work by that time. Hour limitation- Part timers were limited to like 28.5 hours a weel and "full timers" around 39 hours a week. But the only way to reach 39 hours would be to stay all night for a 3rd shift IF they needed help and you were friends with management and there was actually work to do (like holiday peak season). No material posessions allowed- many friends were fired because of confrontation at the guard shack. Not allowed cell phones, headphones, jewelry, anything that could be stolen from a box. Obviously some differences with UPS and their pay grade policy and union benefits but same concept. I finally landed a job as a switcher (driving semi's in the yard only, but required drug testing), and yes it was a post-injury drug testing workplace. Package handler is a bust ass sweaty position and can open doors to management positions down the road, it paid the bills at the time but the favoritism and other BS going on I am glad I left when I did.

 

anybody know how the tuition assistance works? does UPS give employees checks for tuition or do they just pay the school??

 

You have to pay for school then after you complete each semester you provide UPS with your grades and proof you got credit and they give you a check. But they tax the check like income so it's always about 70% of what you requested after taxes are taken out.

But if you do your income tax properly you will get the money back in your tax return.

 

i worked for dhll for 10 years. didn't pay as well as ups. best thing that happened was getting laid off 4 years ago. got much better job now i lucked out. dont miss it at all. especiallly this time of year

 

My buddy worked at Fedex for a few months as a package handler. He was making like 11 an hour but quit cause he was always working at night starting at like 6 and was there super late every night cause he got off whenever they were done. And he said there was no moving up and didn't wanna get stuck there. He had a day job already, full time. So the late nights were fucking him up.

Its not UPS but I would assume its similar.