How Does the UPS Grievance Procedure Work Step by Step?

If UPS violates your contract — skips your seniority, cuts your pay, disciplines you unfairly — the grievance procedure is your formal tool to fight back. Understanding each step, and every deadline, is the difference between winning and losing your case. Here's how the process works under the 2023–2028 contracts.

The Big Picture: No Strikes Before You Grieve

Before any strike, picketing, lockout, or legal action, both sides are required to exhaust every step of the grievance process first. Article 27, Section 1 of the Western Region Supplement makes this explicit: the Union and the Employer agree to act "promptly and fairly in all grievances," and the right to process and settle grievances is exclusively governed by the contract's own procedures ^[12]. The National Master Agreement reinforces this, requiring all monetary grievance settlements to be paid by separate check to the grievant within ten (10) working days of settlement, with panel-decision awards paid within ten (10) business days of the written decision ^[3].

Who Can File a Grievance?

The Union — not individual employees — is the official party to the grievance procedure. Under Article 27, employees have no independent right to invoke grievance procedures on their own ^[12]. The Union acts as your exclusive representative throughout the process, including at hearings and before arbitrators ^[12]. In practice, this means you work through your Union Steward or Business Agent, who guides and files on your behalf ^[16].

Step 1 — Talk to Your Supervisor First

The very first step is an informal discussion. Under the Western Region Supplement, any dispute should first be discussed with the employee's immediate supervisor, or with the aggrieved employee, the Union Steward, and/or the appropriate Union representative and the employee's immediate supervisor present ^[1]. Generally speaking, this is the stage where many problems get resolved quickly and informally — a principle common to most union grievance systems ^[15].

Key deadline: If the issue is not resolved in that conversation, the grievance must be filed in writing with the Company within 20 calendar days of the date you knew (or should have known) about the problem ^[1][10]. Missing this window means your grievance will be deemed untimely and dismissed ^[10].

Under the Local 705 Agreement, the same informal first step applies — the employee or the steward/Business Agent discusses the issue with the appropriate supervisor or manager ^[2].

Discharge and suspension cases are treated differently — see the section below.

Step 2 — The Formal Written Grievance and Local-Level Hearing

If the informal discussion doesn't resolve the issue, the written grievance is filed and a formal local-level hearing is scheduled.

Under the Western Region Supplement (Article 28, Section 1):

• Within 45 calendar days of the Company's receipt of the written grievance (or the Local Union's written notification), the appropriate management representative, the Union Steward and/or Union Representative, and the grievant must meet to discuss all facts, disputes, and claims ^[1].
• The Employer must, upon written request, provide the Local Union or designated steward with documents and information reasonably related to the pending grievance (based on NLRA standards) ^[1]. Don't overlook this — information requests are a powerful tool for building your case ^[17].
• Both sides must make a good-faith effort to resolve the grievance at this step ^[1].
• The 45-day timeframe can only be extended by mutual written agreement of the District Labor Manager and the Local Union Business Representative, with exact start and end dates specified in writing ^[1].
• Automatic default: If either party fails to comply with this time limit (including any written extension), an automatic default decision is entered against the party that failed to comply ^[10].

Under the Local 705 Agreement:

• The steward and/or Business Agent files a written grievance with the Employer, with a copy retained by the Business Agent, within 30 calendar days of the occurrence (or knowledge of it) ^[2].
• For discharge or discipline grievances under Local 705, the filing deadline is 15 calendar days from the notice of discipline ^[2].
• Importantly, all warning notices under Local 705 are deemed automatically grieved and protested, and will only be heard at the time of a subsequent suspension or discharge ^[2].

Step 3 — Panel Review (Labor-Management Committee)

If the grievance is not resolved at the local level, it is submitted to the appropriate Joint Labor-Management Committee (also called a "panel").

• Panel filings under the Western Region Supplement must be submitted within 30 calendar days of the first local-level hearing, but not before that hearing ^[10].
• A majority vote of the Labor-Management Committee is final and binding on both parties, with no appeal — unless the Committee itself agrees otherwise ^[7].
• Under the Western Region rules, only one postponement by mutual agreement is allowed once a case is docketed; further postponements require Co-Chair approval and only in cases of extreme hardship ^[10].
• Under the Local 623 Supplement, a grievance must be submitted to the panel administrator 13 days before the scheduled committee meeting; grievances not received by that deadline will not be heard ^[11].
• The Local 623 panel is composed of an equal number of Employer and Union committee members (minimum 2 each, maximum 3 each), and the majority decision is binding ^[11].

Under the Local 705 Agreement, unresolved grievances go to the UPS/705 Grievance Committee, which is composed of an equal number of members selected by each party ^[2]. Discipline cases (including discharge and suspension) are heard before contract interpretation grievances each month ^[2]. A permanently-assigned impartial arbitrator sits as the fifth member of the UPS/705 Grievance Committee and renders a bench decision only if the Committee deadlocks on a discipline grievance ^[2].

Step 4 — Arbitration (If the Panel Deadlocks)

When a panel cannot reach a majority decision, the grievance can proceed to arbitration.

Western Region / Alaska:

• Deadlocked discharge and suspension cases are heard by a Sitting Arbitrator ^[7].
• Under the Alaska Rider, the co-chairs of the Alaska Area Parcel Grievance Committee select the arbitrator; if they cannot agree, the matter goes to the WRT-UPS Labor Management Committee co-chairs, who must select an arbitrator within 7 calendar days ^[13][14].
• The arbitration hearing is intended to occur no later than 45 days from the conclusion of the Grievance Committee panel, and the arbitrator must render a decision within 30 days of the conclusion of the arbitration or post-hearing briefs ^[13][14].
• Arbitration decisions are final and binding ^[13][14].

Local 705:

• The Union has up to 60 calendar days to notify the Company of its intent to arbitrate any contract interpretation grievance deadlocked by the UPS/705 Grievance Committee ^[5].
• Contract interpretation arbitrators are selected from a panel of 7 arbitrators furnished by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) ^[5].
• No attorneys are allowed at the UPS/705 Grievance Committee itself; attorneys may participate in contract interpretation arbitration cases ^[5].
• The loser pays the arbitrator's fees and expenses in contract interpretation cases ^[5].
• Any backpay remedy ordered must be paid by the Employer within 10 days of the decision ^[5].

Step 5 — National Grievance Committee (For National Master Language Disputes)

If a grievance involves interpretation of the National Master Agreement itself, and it cannot be resolved at a lower panel, it goes to the National Grievance Committee.

• Deadlocked cases involving only National Master language are submitted directly to the National Master Panel ^[6].
• The National Grievance Committee is composed of an equal number of Employer and Union representatives ^[6].
• A majority vote of the National Grievance Committee resolves the dispute, and that decision is final and binding on all parties ^[6].
• Under Article 8, Section 5, any grievance that does not raise a National Master interpretation issue must be resolved through local, state, and area grievance procedures — not the National Committee ^[9].
• A docketing fee applies when a case is submitted to the National Grievance Panel ^[6].

Discharge and Suspension: Special Protections

Discharge and suspension grievances follow special rules that are more protective of employees.

• Under the National Master Agreement, an employee facing discharge or suspension shall be allowed to remain on the job, without loss of pay, unless and until the discharge or suspension is sustained through the grievance procedure — except for cardinal infractions under the applicable Supplement ^[3].
• Under the Western Region Supplement, off-roll discharge grievances trigger an expedited local-level hearing: the Company, Union, and grievant must meet within 15 calendar days of the Company's receipt of the grievance ^[8].
• If the Company fails to comply with that 15-day deadline, an automatic default decision is entered against the Company, and the Union's claim prevails ^[8].

Pay Error Penalties: Know Your Rights

If UPS makes a payroll error, the National Master Agreement provides specific penalties. For full-time employees, a payroll error not corrected within two pay periods carries a penalty; for part-time employees, the penalty starts at four (4) hours' pay and increases to five (5) hours if not corrected within two pay periods ^[4]. Errors under $50 for full-time or $25 for part-time employees are corrected in the next paycheck ^[4]. Any grievance settlement not paid within 10 working days entitles the grievant to an additional penalty payment ^[4].

Technology as Evidence in Grievances

Be aware that UPS uses technology — GPS, telematics, DIAD data — to build disciplinary cases. The National Master Agreement contains provisions addressing the misuse of technology for disciplinary purposes ^[3]. Conversely, your steward can request company records, time cards, and electronic data as part of an information request to support your grievance ^[5][17].

Key Deadlines at a Glance

Step	Deadline
File written grievance (general)	20 calendar days from known occurrence [1][10]
File written grievance (Local 705, general)	30 calendar days from occurrence [2]
File written grievance (Local 705, discipline)	15 calendar days from notice of discipline [2]
Step 2 local hearing (Western Region)	45 calendar days from Company receipt [1]
Off-roll discharge local hearing (Western Region)	15 calendar days from Company receipt [8]
Panel filing (Western Region)	30 calendar days from first local hearing [10]
Local 623 panel submission	13 days before panel meeting [11]
Notice of intent to arbitrate (Local 705)	60 calendar days from deadlock [5]
Grievance settlement payment	10 working days from settlement [3][11]
Arbitration hearing (Alaska)	No later than 45 days from panel conclusion [13]
Arbitrator's decision (Alaska)	30 days from conclusion of hearing [13]

What to Do Next

Talk to your Union Steward immediately — the moment you believe a contract violation has occurred. Deadlines begin running from the date of the known occurrence, and missing them can kill an otherwise valid grievance. Your steward can help you document the facts, file the written grievance, request company records, and navigate each step of the procedure. You can also select your Supplement in TeamstersGPT and ask follow-up questions specific to your Local and region.