Your Rights as a UPS Teamster: Western Region Guide

Whether you are brand new to UPS or a longtime driver, knowing your contractual rights is the first step to protecting yourself on the job. This guide walks through the most important rights established under the Western Region of Teamsters UPS Supplemental Agreement 2023–2028, which covers employees in Alaska, Arizona, Southern California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Southern Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Washington ^[14].

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1. Your Right to Seniority Protections

Seniority is the backbone of your contract rights. As a new full-time employee, you attain seniority once you have worked 30 days within a 120-consecutive-day period ^[9]. If you were hired into the package car classification, you may have up to an additional 10 working days at the start of your probationary period—meaning your total probationary period could be up to 40 worked days within 120 consecutive days—provided those extra days are spent in classroom training ^[9].

Key probationary protections:

• Before seniority is established, you can be discharged without that discharge going through the grievance procedure—but the Employer cannot fire a probationary employee to evade contract terms or to discriminate against union members ^[9].
• Once you complete your probationary period, your seniority date goes back to your first day worked within that 120-day window ^[9].

Employees hired between October 1st and December 31st are considered seasonal and do not accrue seniority or service credit during that period. However, any full-time employee hired before October 1st continues to accrue seniority throughout the seasonal period ^[13].

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2. Your Right to Bid on Jobs and Schedules

Feeder Drivers

All feeder schedules are bid on a seniority basis every calendar year ^[13]. Schedules are posted for five working days, and the annual feeder bid is awarded and becomes effective the first full week of May ^[13]. Posted bids must include a brief description of the job, including the workday, workweek, start time, destination, and type of equipment ^[13].

• Permanent vacancies that open up after the annual bid must be posted within five days and remain posted for five working days. The successful bidder is awarded the schedule on the Sunday following the expiration of the posting period ^[13].
• Extra peak season feeder schedules established before the second full week of December must first be offered by seniority to regular feeder drivers, then to backup feeder drivers, before peak season hires can fill them ^[13].

Trial Period After a Successful Bid

If you win a bid that moves you into a higher-paid classification or job, you are entitled to up to a 30-working-day training and trial period to demonstrate your ability ^[1]. During this period:

• All testing and job-measurement skills must be reasonable and non-discriminatory ^[1].
• A weekly progress meeting must be held between management, a shop steward, and you to keep you informed of your progress ^[1].
• If you are disqualified, the Employer must notify the Local Union of the reasons ^[1].

Feeder driver qualification: If you fail to qualify as a feeder driver, your name goes back on the list in your rightful seniority spot, and you get an additional opportunity to qualify six months after the date of disqualification (applies only in areas without separate feeder work rules covering this topic) ^[1].

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3. Your Right to Transfer

Package car drivers who want to transfer to another facility have specific rights under the Master Transfer Roster process ^[4]:

• Package car drivers may select up to four buildings when requesting a transfer ^[4].
• By December 1st of each year, all center lists are combined into one Master Transfer Roster ranked by package car driver seniority, with copies sent to all signatory Local Unions ^[4].
• You have 30 days from December 1st to protest the accuracy of your seniority date on the final roster. Failure to protest within that window means the date is considered accurate ^[4].
• Part-time employees have the right to fill full-time positions within their Local Union jurisdiction before transfers from the Master Transfer Roster are accepted—on a 6-for-1 basis per facility ^[4].
• When a transfer opportunity opens, you must accept or reject it in writing within 24 hours. Failure to respond removes you from the list ^[4].

Important transfer notice: When transferring, it is your responsibility to verify all benefits at the new location. Medical, dental, vision, retiree medical coverage, and pension rates may differ—or may not exist at all—in certain locations. Contact the Local Union in the area you wish to transfer to ^[1].

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4. Your Right to a Fair Workday and Workweek

Feeder Drivers

The regular scheduled workday for feeder drivers is eight consecutive hours, with an established start time and an unpaid meal period of either 30 minutes or 1 hour (as provided in your local Addendum or Rider) ^[3]. The regular workweek is five consecutive days, Monday through Friday or Tuesday through Saturday ^[3].

• Some areas maintain a 4-day, 10-hour workday schedule; those arrangements stay in effect for the term of this Agreement ^[3].
• A Monday start time may be established between 9:00 p.m. Sunday and midnight without triggering premium or overtime pay ^[3].

Meal and Rest Periods

Your meal period must be scheduled and completed between the 4th and 6th hour of an 8-hour workday, or between the 5th and 7th hour of a 10-hour workday, and must be uninterrupted ^[12]. Rest periods, as defined in your local Addendum or Rider, must also be uninterrupted ^[12].

Start Times

Start times must be posted by the prior Friday for the week in which they apply and must be consistent throughout the week. If the Employer fails to post start times, you cannot be disciplined for tardiness ^[12].

Overtime

The Company is required to continue its efforts to reduce overtime when requested. If the review shows no progress, you have the right to file a grievance if the Company continually causes you to work more than 9.5 hours per day ^[3]. This does not apply during the peak season of November and December ^[3].

Delayed Start Times

The Employer may delay your start time due to inclement weather, earthquakes, civil unrest, floods, or other Acts of God—but only if you are notified at least two hours in advance of your scheduled start time. Delays of less than one hour are not permitted under this provision ^[12].

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5. Your Right to Protection from Unjust Discipline and Discharge

This is one of your most critical rights. In general, no employee can be suspended or discharged without first receiving a written warning notice that clearly sets out the facts behind it ^[8]. Warning, suspension, and discharge letters must accurately list all relevant dates, articles, and violations ^[8].

Offenses That Can Lead to Immediate Discharge (No Warning Required)

The contract recognizes a limited list of offenses that can result in discharge without a prior warning letter ^[8]:

1. Proven dishonesty (note: failure to recall details during an investigatory interview, bona fide errors, or simple methods errors do not constitute proven dishonesty) ^[8]
2. Drinking alcoholic beverages while on duty ^[8]
3. Recklessness resulting in a serious accident while on duty ^[8]
4. Carrying unauthorized passengers ^[8]
5. Unprovoked assault on an employee or supervisor while on duty ^[8]
6. Selling, transporting, or using illegal narcotics while employed ^[8]
7. Willful, wanton, or malicious damage to the Employer's property ^[8]

The parties also agree that failure to follow methods, procedures, or instructions is NOT proven dishonesty ^[8].

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6. Your Right to File a Grievance

Your right to grieve is protected throughout the contract. Under the grievance machinery ^[5]:

• The Union and the Employer agree there shall be no strikes, picketing, lockouts, or legal proceedings without first exhausting all means of settlement provided in the Supplement ^[2].
• The Union and Employer agree to act promptly and fairly on all grievances ^[2].
• The Union is the exclusive representative of employees in the processing, disposition, and settlement of any grievance, including hearings and final decisions ^[2].

Your Local Union Shop Steward plays a central role. Front-line management (center managers, hub sort managers, preload managers, etc.) must meet regularly with your designated Shop Steward(s) to process and resolve grievances. They are encouraged to meet weekly but must meet no less than every two weeks ^[6].

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7. Your Right to Maintenance of Standards

The Employer agrees that all conditions of employment—including wages, guaranteed hours of work, overtime differentials, and general working conditions—shall be maintained at no less than the highest standards in effect at the time this Agreement was signed ^[5]. Conditions can only improve from there; the Employer does not have the right to impose wages or hours that fall below what the contract provides ^[5].

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8. Your Rights Around Health, Welfare, and Pension

Health & Welfare

• Part-time and full-time employees covered by a Teamster Health and Welfare Fund continue to be covered by those funds ^[7].
• Employees covered by the Teamsters Western Region and Local 177 Health Care Plan receive employer health and welfare contributions for one full year if injured on the job ^[7].
• For illness or off-the-job injury, employer contributions continue for four weeks, with the Teamsters Western Region and Local 177 Plan covering the remaining weeks up to a maximum of 26 weeks ^[7].
• Employees transferring from a Taft-Hartley Trust Fund plan to an area with a Company-administered plan are eligible for health care benefits on their first day worked at the new location ^[1].

Pension

• Pension contributions into the Western Conference of Teamsters Pension Trust Fund are paid for every hour of compensable work, up to a maximum of 2,080 hours per calendar year, for both full-time and part-time employees ^[11].
• Pension contribution increases of $1.00 per hour are scheduled each year from August 1, 2023 through August 1, 2027, in accordance with Article 34 of the National Master Agreement ^[11].
• During the probationary period (up to the first 90 calendar days of hire), the Employer pays a reduced hourly contribution rate of $0.10 per hour (including $0.01 for PEER/80 for full-time and PEER/84 for part-time employees). Once the probationary period is completed, the full standard contribution rate applies ^[6].

Retiree Medical

Any eligible employee who retires on or after January 1, 2014 receives retiree medical benefits through the Teamsters Western Region and Local 177 Health Care Plan ^[7].

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9. Your Right to Time Clock Accuracy

If your hub or center employs five or more drivers, the Employer must install time clocks when requested in writing by the Union ^[10]. Those time clocks must be maintained and kept in accurate working order ^[10]. A daily time record must also be maintained by the Employer at its place of business ^[10].

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10. Your Right to Contract Supremacy

The Employer cannot enter into any agreement or contract with employees—individually or collectively—that conflicts with the terms of this Agreement. Any such side deal is null and void ^[10].

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What to Do Next

If you believe any of these rights have been violated, talk to your shop steward right away—time limits on grievances are strict. If you are unsure which rights apply in your specific hub, center, or area, ask your steward to pull your local Rider or Addendum, since some provisions (like rest periods, utility driver rules, and certain overtime rules) are set at the local level. You can also ask TeamstersGPT with your specific supplement selected to dig deeper into any topic covered here.