UPS CEO Tomé Says Two Teamster Contracts Give Her A 'Distinct Advantage' For 2028 Talks
The CEO said the union deal expires August 1, 2028, and pointed to the Driver Choice Program dispute as a model for working with Teamster leaders.
UPS Chief Executive Carol Tomé said on the company's third-quarter earnings call Tuesday that negotiating the 2023 Teamster contract gives her a head start on the next round, which comes due on August 1, 2028. UPS, the package delivery and logistics company, raised its full-year outlook on the same call.
Two contracts, one rare résumé
An analyst asked what courage-requiring decisions UPS must make over the next two years, echoing Tomé's closing line that "real change takes courage." Tomé said she suspected the question was really about the Teamster contract, which she said expires on August 1, 2028.
"Except for our founder, Jim Casey, I believe I will be the only CEO who has negotiated two Teamster contracts," she said. She said that "gives me a distinct advantage" because of lessons learned in 2023, though she said she would not go through them on the call.
Tomé said UPS invited the Teamsters into the company over 100 years ago and aims for a constructive relationship with union leadership.
The buyout the union disliked
She pointed to the Driver Choice Program, an offer earlier this year to buy out drivers so they could retire. Teamster leadership was "pretty vocal about their displeasure," Tomé said, "principally because it was so well oversubscribed." The two sides then reached what she called a mutually satisfactory outcome.
CFO Brian Dykes said the program's final phase wrapped up in the third quarter, with approximately 1,500 participants leaving, mostly at quarter's end. Asked about the cost, he said it is $1.4 billion this year. Later he referred to roughly 1,600 people in the driver buyout finishing their exit at the end of the third quarter.
A raised outlook behind the remarks
UPS reported third-quarter revenue of $22.9 billion, up 6.7% from last year, and operating profit of $2.1 billion. It now expects 2026 revenue of about $92.6 billion and operating profit of about $8.75 billion, which Dykes said implies earnings of about $7.28 a share.
Tomé said UPS will not give 2027 guidance until the end of the fourth quarter, as it always does.
The Teamster contract expires August 1, 2028; Tomé called that "a ways out," but within the next couple of years.
Sources
- UPS (UPS) Q3 2026 earnings — CNBC
- UPS raises outlook in sign of strength for holiday season - TT — ttnews.com
- UPS beats Q3 expectations, raises full year guidance (UPS:NYSE) | Seeking Alpha — seekingalpha.com
- UPS Raises 2026 Outlook Amid Better-Than-Expected Q3 Report — Here’s What Investors Need To Know — Yahoo Finance
- UPS Expected to Post Higher 3Q Revenue, Though Fuel May Weigh on Profit -- Earnings Preview — MarketWatch
