UPS Announces Job Cuts Amid Strategic Shift
United Parcel Service (UPS) revealed on Tuesday that it will eliminate around 30,000 jobs this year. This follows significant workforce reductions last year, as the company moves away from its partnership with Amazon as part of a major cost-saving initiative.
According to CFO Brian Dykes during a conference call with analysts, the Atlanta-based delivery giant aims to cut its business hours by approximately 25 million by scaling down its dependence on Amazon.
“We anticipate a decrease of up to 30,000 operational roles from a variable cost standpoint,” Dykes mentioned.
He also noted that UPS will offer a second voluntary redundancy program targeted at full-time drivers. Additionally, the company has identified 24 facilities that will close in the first half of 2026, with the possibility of more closures later in the year—93 buildings were shut down last year alone.
Dykes indicated that the company plans to enhance automation throughout its operations.
Last year, UPS notably reduced its workforce by 48,000, split between 34,000 in operations and 14,000 in management roles.
The announcement on Tuesday was unexpected; initially, the company had planned for a reduction of 20,000 jobs in 2025.
This shift is part of a multi-year turnaround strategy under CEO Carol Tomé, who became the first woman and outsider to lead the company in 2020. She has been facing mounting pressure from investors and staff who are dissatisfied with UPS’s performance and its stock price, which lags behind competitors like FedEx and Amazon’s logistics services.
Tomé acknowledged the company made strides last year. “2025 was a year of substantial progress for UPS as we enhanced our earnings quality and developed a more agile network,” she stated Tuesday. “As we look ahead to 2026, when the transition from Amazon is finalized, it will mark a pivotal moment for executing our strategy aimed at achieving growth and sustainable profits.”
Even though Amazon has been UPS’s largest client, the two firms are working towards ending their joint venture.
UPS expects to save about $3 billion by terminating its business relationship with Amazon.
Following the announcement of the layoffs and reporting fourth-quarter profits that exceeded Wall Street forecasts—featuring an adjusted profit of $2.6 billion and consolidated sales of $24.5 billion—UPS stock saw a 3% increase on Tuesday.
