UPS Plans Buyouts to Cut Higher Positions -- WSJ
September 18 2020 - 2:02AM
Dow Jones News
By Paul Ziobro
This article is being republished as part of our daily
reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S.
print edition of The Wall Street Journal (September 18, 2020).
United Parcel Service Inc. is planning to offer buyouts to some
management employees, according to a person familiar with the
matter, as Chief Executive Carol Tomé aims to trim payroll costs at
the delivery giant.
The Atlanta-based company is expected to present the buyouts to
qualifying management in non-operations roles on Friday, the person
said. The workers would leave in two phases: by the end of 2020,
and mid-2021, the person said.
A spokesman for the company confirmed it was offering buyouts,
but declined to say who was eligible and how many jobs UPS was
looking to shed.
"UPS is providing voluntary severance offers to some employees
as part of its transformation," the spokesman said. "Aligning our
talent with the needs of our company and customers is critical to
becoming a stronger, more agile UPS."
UPS had nearly 500,000 employees at the end of last year,
including 87,000 in management positions. UPS last offered buyouts
to workers in 2018, an initiative that cut about $200 million in
annual expenses.
Ms. Tomé, a longtime UPS board member who recently served as
Home Depot Inc.'s finance chief, has been trying to cut costs and
run the company more efficiently. On last month's earnings call,
she spoke of making the company "better, not bigger," including
eliminating some services drawing little demand.
"We have initiatives underway," Ms. Tomé said on the company's
earnings call last month. "We're calling it Transformation 2.0 and
3.0 to drive continued productivity and efficiency in our
company."
Demand for UPS's shipping services has surged since the
coronavirus pandemic struck, as shoppers stayed home and bought
more products online -- and a reduction in international passenger
flights increased business for UPS's air network.
To offset some of the increased costs from processing
holiday-like volumes throughout the year, UPS has sought to extract
higher rates through surcharges on large shippers.
UPS is now entering the busiest part of the shipping season
ahead of the holidays and is hiring around 100,000 workers to
handle the expected surge before Christmas.
Write to Paul Ziobro at Paul.Ziobro@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 18, 2020 02:47 ET (06:47 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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