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UPS strike: Talking but no talks
August 13, 1997Web posted at: 1:48 p.m. EDT (1748 GMT)
Latest developments:
- No formal talks scheduled
- Pension proposal debated
- Related stories and sites
(CNN) -- With each side losing millions of dollars on the 10th day of a nationwide strike, United Parcel Service and the Teamsters union were talking Wednesday -- but not to each other.
Labor Secretary Alexis Herman was in touch with both sides by telephone, but there were no negotiations scheduled. She is expected to renew those contacts later in the day, a Labor Department official told CNN.
See CNN's entire interview with Kelly and Williams:
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The union and the company were eager to resolve the impasse, "but they both need to find a way to do it and save face," a senior White House aide said Tuesday.
The AFL-CIO federation of 78 unions is offering millions of dollars to help Teamsters in their strike, while the company says it's losing money at the rate of $200 million to $300 million a week and warns of thousands of job losses if the strike isn't resolved by the end of the week.
| UPS Chairman James Kelly talks about a secure pension plan | |
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160K/10 sec. AIFF or WAV sound |
Representatives from each side pressed their case in separate live interviews on CNN Wednesday morning. Asked to sum up the status of negotiations, UPS Chairman James Kelly replied: "I would characterize them as being at an impasse."
The major issues in the strike, which began August 4, four days after the old contract expired, involve part-time work, pensions and subcontracting. Talks broke down Saturday. Since then, the company has unsuccessfully sought President Clinton's intervention.
Pension proposal debated
Kelly defended a company proposal to create a single pension plan for all UPS workers and withdraw from the multi-employer Teamsters pension plans to which UPS contributes. UPS says its aim is to stop subsidizing the pensions of thousands of Teamsters retirees from other companies.
The union accuses UPS of trying to take over the pension plan, a charge Kelly denies. "Our pension proposal would provide much better benefits for our people," he said.
"We're currently in multi-employer plans. We want it to be a single employer plan. It would be administered by both the Teamsters and UPS and our people would get the benefit of the dollars we're spending for their pensions and it would be a much more secure pension for them," Kelly said.
| Teamsters Spokesperson Gaye Williams talks about the UPS pension plan | |
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352K/28 sec. AIFF or WAV sound |
Teamsters negotiators are fighting to keep UPS in the multi-employer plans. From the union's standpoint, if a company belonging to the current pension plan goes bankrupt, contributions can still be drawn from other companies.
UPS proposed pension plan would increase benefits by 50 percent, according to the company, and UPS would match benefits for any worker who may be earning more than under the company proposal.
Interviewed later, Teamsters spokeswoman Gaye Williams said she considers the UPS pension proposal a "grab for power."
"Our Teamster pension funds can meet or exceed what UPS is offering," she said.
In related developments:
- Someone broke into a UPS distribution center in Baldwin
Park, California, and vandalized 11 trucks early Tuesday by
slashing tires and cutting brake lines, police said.
Another incident of tire slashing was reported at the center Tuesday afternoon. Baldwin Hills is about 10 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.
- Message Board: Can UPS and Teamsters reach an agreement?
Related stories:
- Teamsters gear up for long fight with UPS - August 12, 1997
- Teamsters: UPS strike will cost them $10 million a week - August 12, 1997
- Labor secretary urges UPS, union to resume talks - August 11, 1997
- Strike talks break down between UPS, Teamsters - August 9, 1997
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