Hello FedExWatcher,

FedEx Express Pension Gone Overnight

For most of the 35 years at Federal Express, the hard work and dedication of the Express workforce delivered the profits that fueled the so-called “People-Service-Profit” slogan.  But something happened between 1998 and 2000 when Federal Express became “FedEx” and the company bought RPS/Caliber.  Those people – the workers at Express – who delivered all those years of profit saw more and more money going to acquisitions and less and less money put into their wages and workplace benefits like health care and pension.

The acquisitions have only quickened since 2000.  FedEx Express profits funded the $1.2 billion purchase of American Freightways, the $2.4 billion purchase of Kinko’s (now something called FedEx Office????) and the $760 million purchase of Watkins.  FedEx Express profits funded the $1.8 billion build-out of the Ground network.  FedEx Express profits funded the purchase of ANC in England, the purchase of DTW in China and the purchase of PAFEX in India.

Then, one day in early 2007, that “People-Service-Profit” promise was broken forever when the company took away the Express employees’ pension.  And as of June 1, the FedEx Express pension was gone overnight.

This pension grab impacts nearly all FedEx Express employees – young or old, courier or mechanic.  Only the pilots – the UNIONIZED pilots – won’t be impacted because their pension is part of their collective bargaining agreement.

At the new www.FedXMX.com web site, log on to the video of Chris Kelly, a 30-year employee who is a certified Aircraft Maintenance Technician at the Memphis superhub. Chris talks about how the pension grab affects him, affects all those he sees working around him and affects the future of the FedEx workers and families.

The Teamsters are proud to be working closely with Chris Kelly and hundreds of loyal Express employees like him as we try to bring a strong Teamster contract to the mechanics at Express.