Following months of negotiations with Teamsters, UPS announced in June that it would install air conditioning in new trucks starting next year. The company said it would send new trucks to the hottest parts of the country first, if possible. The company also said it would retrofit its existing package cars with cab fans, exhaust heat shields, and cargo area ventilation.
“While these improvements will make a difference in the months and years ahead, we had to fight like hell to secure them,” the Teamsters union said in its social media post Thursday. “Chris Begley should still be alive to experience them. All companies, including UPS, need to remember that their past failings to protect workers can have deadly serious consequences in the future.”
Chris Bagley should still be alive and it’s a damn shame the Teamsters failed to protect him from social murder. Only new trucks? Only next year? They drove trucks without fans, heat shields, and ventilation? What the fuck.
The Teamsters could have, at the very least, demand a total halt on driving trucks without fucking fans. “Oh but that’ll cause package delays!” Well I guess we just have to murder drivers for the sake of logistics.
If anyone tells me how great and historic the new contract is one more fucking time I’ll fucking lose it.
So UPS will only put ac in new trucks, sometime next year, and possibly get them to the hottest parts of the country, and old trucks will get “cabin fans” (?).
I know negotiations must be really difficult. I know everyone is relying on their jobs and paychecks to survive. But it seems like too often these corporations get away with half measures and vague promises because even when we revoke our labor, they’re still the ones in control. Workers from a company like UPS seem like they should have more control than most though. Shutting down deliveries across the US indefinitely is a pretty big threat. So maybe they could have gotten better results.
The responsibility ultimately lies with UPS, though
The union has a responsibility to protect workers from UPS.
No, they have a responsibility to fight for protections for workers. They can’t implement it, UPS has too. Put your emphasis on UPS.
A responsibility they failed because they gave up the fight instead of striking.
Again, it’s UPS fault ultimately. It’s absurd to blame the union for not forcing UPS to do something over UPS not doing it in the first place.
The union exists to force the company to do anything in the first place! That’s their only job! If UPS murders drivers it’s because the union didn’t strike and force them to stop.
More drivers will die because they didn’t strike and force UPS to make its fleet safe.
You’re blaming the Union for UPS killing drivers.
Take a step back and think about that.
I’m blaming the union for not striking.
This comment acknowledges that UPS is doing the oppression, yet still somehow blames someone else
Amazing
The Teamsters share the blame for selling out instead of striking for safe working conditions. Deal with it.
I may agree that they share the blame, but their share is significantly smaller.