# UPS driver. US $170k per year? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 20, 2023, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813 "2023-08-20T01:43:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/41 "2023-08-26T14:28:04Z")
> [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](#): > > Several companies that I’ve worked for have tried to help me “better understand my total compensation”. Sometimes that’s education to justify the state of things. Sometimes it’s an excuse for increased “cost sharing” for health care. I get it. > > But some of the benefits provided simply don’t apply to me. I already have a financial planner, so their service doesn’t help me. I don’t want kids, so the fertility service doesn’t apply. And so forth. So trying to sell me on the total compensation package doesn’t make sense to me. > > I care about my salary and I care about my benefits. I don’t care about the benefits that I don’t want, other than how it might make for a better work environment because my co-workers are happy. I agree including benefits you don’t use doesn’t help you understand your total compensation. Mine has an employee-specific summary that only includes the benefits I’m signed up for (e.g., health) or are automatic (base level life insurance.) Which is useful to understand what we’re billing clients for. And also for comparing job offers. FWIW my wage compensation was\* 86% of my total compensation. So if the company were claiming $170k, that would work out to $146k in wages to me for ~1800 hours of work after vacation and holidays. I have no idea how much the $170k UPS driver is working. \*they don’t update it in real time and it doesn’t reflect some recent changes ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/42 "2023-08-26T14:55:34Z")
> [@Ruken](#): > > to me for ~1800 hours of work after vacation and holidays. I have no idea how much the $170k UPS driver is working. The actual pay portion is considerably less and assumes full time work 52 weeks a year (so forget those vacations and holidays - or at least make up those hours somewhere). > [@UPS](#): > > Drivers also receive $50,000 in benefits “that include health, welfare and pension contributions,” the spokesperson said. > **[UPS says drivers to make $170,000 in pay and benefits following union deal](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ups-drivers-170000-pay-benefits-compensation/)** > > The carrier's new labor contract will increase full-time drivers' compensation roughly 17% over five years, UPS' CEO said in an earnings call. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/43 "2023-08-26T15:23:11Z")
> [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > The actual pay portion is considerably less and assumes full time work 52 weeks a year (so forget those vacations and holidays - or at least make up those hours somewhere). > > > [@](#): > > > > Drivers also receive $50,000 in benefits “that include health, welfare and pension contributions,” the spokesperson said. So it looks like non-wage benefits compose a larger percentage of their compensation. It’s probably been noted but I’m only now noticing this is an increase over 5 years, up from a supposed $145k now (inclusive of benefits) which works out to about a 3.2% increase each year. Lower than average inflation over the last five years. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/44 "2023-08-26T15:28:30Z")
> [@pullin](#): > > Do I have time to get one more delivery before I leave for WalMart? Can I finish this neighborhood and not have to return? It’s a minute-by-minute risk analysis along with a kind of mental linear algebra as you plan routes. I’m surprised they don’t have more centralized route planning and optimization. But just like my imagination likely doesn’t capture how hard the job is, I also likely don’t understand how intractable the traveling driver problem is. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/45 "2023-08-26T16:17:01Z")
I’m sure they do have more centralized planning but you can’t always plan for everything in advance and if you have to be somewhere at or by a certain time even five minutes of traffic can make a difference - if the UPS driver got to my office at 4:30, he wasted his time because no one was there to let him in. So there might have been plenty of "Can I get to Doreen’s office by 4:25 if I make this stop? Or should I go there and then come back to the other stop? " ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/46 "2023-08-26T16:53:02Z")
I was thinking more in terms of real-time updates that take live traffic into account to take this out of the drivers’ hands entirely, but I’mout of my depth re: technology capabilities. ---
**Author:** ![ColdBrew50](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9a140/32.png) [@ColdBrew50](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ColdBrew50)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/47 "2023-08-26T21:57:43Z")
Yeah, I doubt their navigation/itinery software gives ideal routes, much less plans for last-minute traffic updates. I am surprised they bring back _nothing_ when they Return-to-Station. So many problem stops: business closed, invalid entry code, dogs, goats, or feral children/adults… So, if they’re bound by that compact, then they’ve got a bunch more restrictions than some other last-mile logistics companies, so AFAIC, they’re earning every penny. Plus their vehicles are, it seems to me, not ideal, especially for downtown “parking” nor narrow streets. Basically box trucks, not something like a Ford Transit large van…not easy to manœuvre, I’d suppose. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/48 "2023-08-26T22:10:55Z")
> [@ColdBrew50](#): > > I am surprised they bring back _nothing_ when they Return-to-Station. So many problem stops: business closed, invalid entry code, dogs, goats, or feral children/adults… I’m skeptical of this idea. What happens if I’m supposed to receive a package that requires a signature but no one is home? Do they just leave it without a signature? ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/49 "2023-08-26T22:16:35Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > This is the problem. I assume that UPS has a monopoly on the delivery of letters, which is a rapidly declining market. UPS = United Parcel Service. They deliver packages, and charge the extortionate brokerage fees USPS = United States Postal Service. These are the people who deliver letter and also packages without the extortionate brokerage fees. ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/50 "2023-08-26T22:18:29Z")
> [@ColdBrew50](#): > > I am surprised they bring back _nothing_ when they Return-to-Station. So many problem stops: business closed, invalid entry code, dogs, goats, or feral children/adults… Logistically it makes sense. The truck is the closest point to the delivery location and it is going to be nearby every day. Sending it back upstream moves it father away and costs money. Obviously there are exceptions: wrong address, delivery denied, location gone, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/51 "2023-08-26T22:22:51Z")
It’s _possible_ that the policy means the undeliverable parcels remain in the truck overnight. ---
**Author:** ![ColdBrew50](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9a140/32.png) [@ColdBrew50](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ColdBrew50)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/52 "2023-08-26T22:23:29Z")
> [@CaveMike](#): > > Logistically it makes sense. Yes. > [@CaveMike](#): > > Sending it back upstream moves it father away and costs money. Obviously there are exceptions: wrong address, delivery denied, location gone, etc. Also, yes. I’ve never worked for UPS, but I work in logistics for a different company. We have a routine debrief whenever our drivers return parcels to station, which account for these various reasons for failed deliveries. I don’t know if UPS has a way to transfer those parcels returned to station back to a cluster, but it’s not unusual for us to scan back a returned parcel and send it out as part of a “special delivery,” whether very early in the morning, before normal truck dispatch goes out, or sometimes rather late in the evening. ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2023, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/53 "2023-08-26T22:24:16Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > [@ColdBrew50](#): > > > > I am surprised they bring back _nothing_ when they Return-to-Station. So many problem stops: business closed, invalid entry code, dogs, goats, or feral children/adults… > > I’m skeptical of this idea. What happens if I’m supposed to receive a package that requires a signature but no one is home? Do they just leave it without a signature? IME, they leave a sticker and take it back to the truck to try again tomorrow. After about 3 tries it goes back to the station and you have to either pick it up or arrange to sign for it. I think there are different levels of security as well. I think for some packages you can sign the sticker and leave it. The next time they try to deliver, they will take the sticker. I’ve also seen the status the package is out for delivery, but it doesn’t show up until the next day. It must have sat on the truck all night. Put another way, if the package is eventually going to be delivered from the truck, then there’s no point in taking it off the truck. ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2023, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/54 "2023-08-27T11:11:13Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > [@ColdBrew50](#): > > > > I am surprised they bring back _nothing_ when they Return-to-Station. So many problem stops: business closed, invalid entry code, dogs, goats, or feral children/adults… > > I’m skeptical of this idea. What happens if I’m supposed to receive a package that requires a signature but no one is home? Do they just leave it without a signature? Remember that my experience is decades old. Back then, all packages required signatures, and we were expected to roam the neighborhood until finding someone to sign for it. Today most stuff is just left on the porch, but back then you could only leave packages with a printed “release number” on the shipping label. Bringing back “nothing” was the goal, but obviously there were exceptions. At the time they still handled COD packages, and there was nothing we could do if the receiver wasn’t home. (Or more commonly, didn’t have the money. It was surprising how much Ronco and K-Tel junk never got paid for.) > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > It’s _possible_ that the policy means the undeliverable parcels remain in the truck overnight. Nothing was allowed to stay on the truck. Again, this is from the past; UPS washed every truck, every night, thoroughly spraying inside and out. As such they all were emptied beforehand. At the beginning of the evening shift, everything in every truck was emptied onto a moving belt behind it. Failed deliveries went into the main sort along with newly picked-up packages – eventually arriving back at the truck again. During this interval, the truck was put on the wash rack, fueled and returned to its spot. I don’t know if this is still done. I suspect environmental concerns may have reduced their fanatical washing schedule. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2023, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/55 "2023-08-27T12:26:30Z")
> [@pullin](#): > > I suspect environmental concerns may have reduced their fanatical washing schedule. More likely a concern over lost profits. ---
**Author:** ![dogbutler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dogbutler/32/428_2.png) [@dogbutler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dogbutler)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2023, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813/56 "2023-08-27T15:59:01Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > More likely a concern over lost profits. Yah, only time I see the trucks actually washed washed is right before a corporate visit. And as far as the trailers, we just found somebody’s paycheck from another job, dated June 16. _2020_. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ups-driver-us-170k-per-year/988813.md?page=2)