Comment Overworked UPS Drivers and Lowly Paid Temps... (Score 1) 378
Not surprised at all. To digress a bit, many of the packages delayed were sent well in advance of the Christmas holiday - many reports mention packages sitting for over a week in trailers.
With that out of the way, UPS drivers are expected to make many more delivery stops than they used to. These days, 200+ is common with upwards of 300+ during holidays...
UPS drivers are still well paid, but are worked far harder. More specifically, in regards to the holidays, an ever increasing reliance on seasonal "driver helpers" (typically paid $8-$10 per hour), which is hit and miss; spotty attendance, delivery mistakes, rough handling, theft, etc.
To put it simply, the drivers are spread thin. Very little extra delivery capacity to pick up the slack than in the past.
This incident will further push Amazon and other large retailers to contract out more delivery to smaller regional / local companies; more leverage to negotiate better pricing / service levels with the big name shippers.