How I Increased My Pay to Almost $100K at UPS

• A UPS worker says he started out making $9.50 an hour and now earns $100,000 at the company.
• He says seniority is very important at UPS and he’s been with the company for 21 years.
• The delivery driver says new drivers may be disappointed since it takes years to earn the top wage.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with a 39-year-old UPS delivery driver from Arizona. They were granted anonymity for professional reasons, but Insider has verified their identity, employment, and salary with documentation. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

I’ve been working at UPS for 21 years. I started as a warehouse worker in 2002 at 18 years old making $9.50 an hour and eventually got promoted to a delivery driver making about $100,000 a year — the maximum $44 an hour wage.

Working at UPS has helped me provide for my family and go on vacations around the world. It’s a physically demanding job, and there are some corporate practices that make it difficult at times, but I’m grateful to have been able to work here.

Working in the UPS warehouse was a tough job

In 2002, fresh out of high school, I went to college to become a teacher or coach. While taking classes, I began working at UPS as a warehouse worker. It was tough because we didn’t have the technological devices we have now.

We were given charts full of street names, and we had to write the corresponding load numbers on boxes, then place them onto the appropriate truck. To make sure we didn’t fall behind, we’d memorize the street names and which truck to load up. Luckily, the drivers helped me out while I was learning the ropes.

I’d go straight to class from work and shower at my friend’s dorm on campus to save time. A few months in, I learned that my girlfriend —now wife — was pregnant. The increased family demands made my job even harder. My performance began to decline, and I was showing up late to work. I began sleeping in my car at work so I wouldn’t be late. Eventually, I dropped out of school.

Even though I was struggling at work, my managers knew I was a good worker. My union helped me negotiate a more-favorable work schedule and avoid getting fired. When I asked to switch to a night shift, my managers agreed. I was able to balance my family responsibilities and work much better with this shift.

After 3 years at UPS, my pay went from $9.50 an hour to $30 an hour

I soon began to get offers to drive a delivery truck, but I had to wait until I was 21 to take up the job. Seniority is very important at UPS. After three years, I accepted the offer, and the new role came with a pay raise to about $30 an hour.

Being a delivery-truck driver has its own demands. We’re known as “industrial athletes” because our jobs require physical labor. Delivering to businesses is usually a more-strenuous route than delivering residential packages. Also, driving through neighborhoods in a big truck with many blind spots takes a lot of skill.

When I began driving, our trucks had a manual transmission, which led to knee injuries for drivers because of the extra pedal-pumping movements. Luckily, the trucks got automatic transmissions a little after I started. I didn’t injure my knees, but I did injure my shoulder lifting packages. My shoulder still acts up sometimes, but I was able to get good medical care for it.

Things are changing at UPS, but I still enjoy my job

Drivers are required to take a weeklong driving class where we learn safety precautions, delivery practices, and how to dress. The dress code at UPS is like the military in some ways. We have to be clean-shaven and wear crisp, brown uniforms.

When I began working at UPS, it felt more like a family. My manager was helpful and taught me how to drive a manual transmission. My coworkers and I felt more like a team, but things are changing. Most of my coworkers feel like puppets for the higher-ups. The managers have a lot more pressure from the top as well, so they’re more business-focused.

Sometimes management gets to wear a certain color shirt to celebrate a company milestone, and we’re left out of those team-building moments. It doesn’t feel like a family anymore, but I still enjoy my job.

I love driving around to different neighborhoods and receiving my work benefits

I was a swing driver for 13 years. This meant I was placed on a different route each day. That was a challenge because it was stressful to learn a new route every day, but it was worth it because I had good pay and benefits.

I was able to take my family on weekend trips to Disney World and travel around the world. Since my job is so physically demanding, it comes with great health insurance. I also have benefits such as a 401(k) and discounted stocks that I can buy.

I got discounts on hotels and car rentals on our vacations as well. Our pay raises and benefits were all thanks to my union. It negotiated better contracts for us over the years and made sure UPS took care of our health with good insurance.

I’ll make about $100,000 this year without a college degree, and I’m grateful

I’ve dedicated 21 years of my life to UPS, and with my seniority, I now get to deliver on a route that I love. I deliver packages to a small residential community where I’ve gotten to know the people. I’ve made friends with them and watched their kids grow up along with mine. I even gave them my personal phone number in case they needed help.

If you add up all our benefits and salary, we get close to $170,000 a year, but you won’t see that on my paycheck. When people apply to become a UPS delivery driver, they may be disappointed because it takes years of hard work to make anywhere close to that amount.

I’m thankful for my job and for my union

The only regret I have is being a workaholic. When I finished my shift, instead of going home and spending time with my wife and kids, I’d ask managers if they needed help with anything else. It was a blessing and a curse. I missed spending time with my family, but it taught my kids to work hard.

I’ll make about $100,000 this year, and I’m grateful that I’m able to do that without a college degree. Physically, I have about another 10 years left in me. After that, I may consider going into management for a few years or retire early.

Editor’s note: A UPS spokesperson sent the following statement to Insider:

• UPS drivers have planned workdays with reasonable overtime. Our planning considers normal volume fluctuations by day of the week and time of the year, which has enabled us to keep our delivery drivers’ average paid day to about 9 hours. We need to remain flexible to meet the changing needs of our customers, but we also want to consider our employees’ desired number of work hours. We make adjustments where possible to improve our drivers’ work/life balance while continuing to reliably deliver essential services to the communities that depend on us.

• Nothing is more important to us than the safety and well-being of our people. That’s why we invested more than $343 million in the U.S. in 2022 on safety training, involve our front-line employees in the process, and are proud to be an industry model in the use of technology and safety training.

• We are one UPS, regardless of position in the company or location around the world. We promote camaraderie and connections through several activities, which include highlighting employee stories on aboutUPS.com, recognizing and celebrating excellence, and creating opportunities for all UPSers to come together around community connections and volunteerism. Teamwork is in our DNA with an 86% promote from within rate.

Are you a UPS driver with an interesting story? Contact Manseen Logan at [email protected].