ROCK ISLAND, Illinois — The holiday countdown is on, and as the temperatures continue to drop, companies are ramping up their seasonal hiring. Amazon is looking to bring on a quarter of a million workers, and the U.S. Postal Service is adding another 10,000 employees.
UPS wants to hire more than 100,000 employees to serve the 2023 holiday rush, including around 400 in the Quad Cities region.
Just two months ago, the union representing 340,000 UPS workers voted to approve a new five-year contract which would increase wages and benefit costs.
The company is hiring seasonal full-time and part-time positions, primarily delivery drivers, Commercial Driver's License drivers and package handlers. Hourly pay starts at $21 for package handlers and driver helpers, while driving jobs start at $23. People can fill out an online application, and nearly 80% of seasonal positions don't require an interview, according to UPS.
"Your average driver will have 60, sometimes 100 more stops than they normally do. And we're pretty full as it is," said Paul Hoffman, a UPS delivery driver in Rock Island. "Depending on the route, you will have someone with you. It definitely saves your back, because there's two of you doubling up and getting rid of all the heavy stuff together versus one person."
Hoffman has worked for UPS for 35 years. He likes to think of the people living on his route as part of his extended family.
"This particular route that I am on now, I've been on this route longer than any other driver in the history of our center," he said. "I've seen children grow up, I've seen grandchildren, I've seen graduations, people married, unfortunately those who have passed, but my customers really make it. They make my job everything ... the excitement when someone says 'my package has arrived, and it's actually early!' And I'm like, 'yes, I did something right today.'"
Hoffman got his start as a seasonal hire as well. He worked the holiday season in 1987 as a driver helper. He ended up spending the following six years working part time and was hired as a driver in 1994.
"That was the winter that we got all the snow, so it was definitely a tedious task," Hoffman said. "But I enjoyed it. I enjoyed it enough that 35-plus years later, I'm still here."
According to UPS, in the last two years, nearly 50,000 seasonal employees have received permanent positions.