United Parcel Service has notified the International Brotherhood of Teamsters that it is withdrawing the latest iteration of its driver buyout program for employees covered by the Teamsters Central Region, the union said on Tuesday.
The program in question had been marketed by the company as the Driver Choice Program (DCP). According to the Teamsters, the DCP proposed a one-time lump sum payment of $150,000 in exchange for drivers' legally binding agreement to never work for UPS again.
This development arrives after a month in which UPS had signaled it would move forward with the buyout offers, following a federal judge's decision to reject the union's request to block the company's workforce-reduction plan on the grounds of contract violations. The timeline of public actions also includes a February 9 lawsuit filed by the Teamsters challenging UPS's January 27 announcement.
In that January 27 notice, UPS said it planned to eliminate as many as 30,000 positions and to close 24 facilities as part of a strategic shift away from millions of low-profit deliveries made for Amazon.com, identified in company commentary as its largest customer. The Teamsters sued over that announcement, alleging violations tied to union contracts.
The Teamsters Central Region covers 13 U.S. states and includes more than 68,000 rank-and-file UPS employees represented by the union, the union statement said. The union framed the withdrawn DCP as a program that required drivers to accept a substantial one-time payment in exchange for a permanent legal bar on future employment with UPS.
The union notice did not provide details on whether the company plans to reintroduce a similar program in other regions or to modify its broader workforce and facility plans. The public record available in the union statement limits what can be confirmed about next steps.
Context and clarity
The union's announcement states the withdrawal relates specifically to the DCP in the Teamsters Central Region. Other elements referenced in the public exchanges between the parties include the previously stated $150,000 payment amount, the company's January 27 plan to cut up to 30,000 jobs and shut 24 facilities, and the February 9 lawsuit initiated by the Teamsters challenging that plan.
At this time, the union notice is the primary source for the details on the DCP withdrawal in the central states, and it does not expand on the company's broader operational intentions or the status of related legal proceedings beyond the facts it identifies.