The International Brotherhood of Teamsters union is ratcheting up pressure on Sandy Springs-based UPS in labor contract negotiations, with threats of a strike Aug. 1 if the two sides don’t reach agreement.

The Teamsters said their negotiators walked away from the bargaining table Wednesday and are demanding a last, best and final offer from the shipping giant by this Friday.

UPS said it submitted a proposal last week, and this week submitted a “significantly amended proposal to address key demands from the Teamsters.”

“We’re working around the clock to reach an agreement that strengthens our industry-leading pay and benefits ahead of the current contract’s expiration on August 1,” UPS said in a written statement. “We remain at the table ready to negotiate.”

But the Teamsters said UPS’s counter-proposal offered “miniscule raises and wage cuts to traditional cost-of-living adjustments.”

With the union demanding another proposal by this Friday, the Teamsters said UPS “risks putting itself on strike by August 1 and causing devastating disruptions to the supply chain in the U.S. and other parts of the world.” Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien said in a written statement: “The largest single-employer strike in American history now appears inevitable.”

Teamsters members earlier this month voted to authorize a strike if the two sides do not reach agreement on a new contract. That does not mean a strike will happen, but is a common negotiating tactic by unions.

“Come August 1, it’s going to be damn hard for UPS to ignore us any longer,” said Teamsters General Secretary-Treasurer Fred Zuckerman in a written statement on Wednesday.

About the Author

Keep Reading

In this 2005 photo, Waffle House founders Joe Rogers Sr., left, and Tom Forkner pose in front of a restaurant in Norcross. The Southern diner chain began 70 years ago this month. (Ric Feld/AP)

Featured

This image from video provided by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement via DVIDS shows manufacturing plant employees waiting to have their legs shackled at the Hyundai Motor Group’s electric vehicle plant, Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025, in Ellabell, Ga. (Corey Bullard/U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement via AP)

Credit: Corey Bullard/AP