[4] President Ron Carey had followed in his father's footsteps to become a UPS driver, and Union member.
Thousands of workers were motivated by a comprehensive contract campaign coordinated by union president Ron Carey.
UPS air operations were grounded when the Independent Pilots Association respected the picket lines, despite their history of disagreements with the Teamsters.
The Teamsters Union said that part-timers were underpaid, did not receive benefits, and had less opportunities for full-time work.
This may include data showing that 60% of UPS workers were part-timers at the time, which was a significant cause of friction for the union.
[14] In preparation for the strike, UPS workers who had joined the Teamsters completed questionnaires designed to determine key grievances.
Pre-strike rallies were held, and a petition with 100,000 signatures of Teamster members supporting the new contract negotiations and demands was completed.
Efforts were made to ensure that both part-time and full-time workers' demands were being included, and therefore that they would continue to support each other.
[1][7] Management's Reaction and Public Messaging Ahead of the strike, UPS management launched a vigorous public relations campaign to discredit the Teamsters as irrational and out of touch in an attempt to weaken the union's efforts.
[8] This statement expressed management's opinion that the strike would end because there would be insufficient support from the workforce.
[7] The breakdown in negotiations, coupled with the union's months of preparation and mobilization, set the stage for the nationwide strike that began just days later on August 4, 1997.
[15] Almost 100 percent of UPS workers who were members of the Teamster Union were involved in the strike.
"[18] During the strike, the Teamster Union had paid out around $10 million to workers manning the picket lines.
[18] After 15 days, the Teamsters and UPS came to a five-year contract agreement that ended the strike.
[6] The way in which the union was structured meant that all Teamsters would receive synonymous benefits, regardless of what company they actually worked for.
[19][3] UPS agreed that they would from now on be required to discuss any future package weight limit increases with the Teamsters.