100,000 temporary employees hired last year
CHICAGO (Reuters) — United Parcel Service Inc plans to hire up to 95,000 workers to handle additional business during the holiday season this year, the package delivery company said on Tuesday.
Analysts and investors will watch closely to see how the Atlanta-based company performs this year after two disappointing peak-season performances in a row.
Shares of UPS were up three per cent at US$99.93 in morning New York Stock Exchange trading.
In 2013, a late surge in e-commerce packages and severe winter weather caught UPS by surprise, leaving more than one million packages stranded on Christmas Eve. Main rival FedEx experienced problems the same year but on a much smaller scale.
Last year, UPS invested more than US$500 million in its network to prepare for the peak season and worked closely with retailers to forecast package volumes. The company also hired 100,000 temporary employees for an anticipated package surge that failed to materialize, hurting fourth-quarter earnings.
Memphis-based FedEx did not report any problems for its 2014 peak.
UPS has said it is working this year with retailers to improve forecasting and will introduce surcharges for residential packages during the peak season.
The peak package season starts in November in the run-up to the holidays and ends in January after a slew of post-Christmas returns.
