January 23, 2013: UPS has told the Negotiating Committee it wants to expand into same-day deliveries. The Postal Service is experimenting with same-day delivery of online orders in San Francisco, with a new service called Metro Post. Amazon, eBay and Wal-Mart are also testing same-day delivery.
In order to deliver a package on the same day it's shipped, the Post Office will have to get the pick-up request from the company between 2:00 and 3:00 p.m. Home delivery is promised between 4:00 and 8:00 p.m.
The model is based on the driver doing pick-up and delivery without returning to a building for sorting.
It makes sense for UPS to get into this market. But what will the contract terms be? No doubt, UPS will want to use air-drivers or part-time drivers at a reduced rate of pay.
But same-day deliveries are parcels, not envelopes.
This is a growing market and UPS will charge a premium for the service. The work should be done by Teamsters getting paid top-rate with union benefits.