- Global courier UPS is cutting 20,000 jobs and automating hundreds of facilities as it tries to boost profitability in the midst of a massive overhaul of its delivery network. Earlier this year, the company announced an ambitious plan to decouple from Amazon in favor of more profitable packages—just before Trump’s tariff announcements sent global trade volumes plunging.
United Parcel Service made waves earlier this year when it announced a breakup with the world’s largest ecommerce retailer. Amazon, a competitor as well as a customer bringing in over one-tenth of UPS’ revenue, had turned unprofitable for the shipper, and in January of this year, UPS announced plans to slash the volume it delivered for Amazon by 50% in about a year and a half.
“They are our largest customer, but they are not our most profitable customer,” UPS CEO Carol Tomé said in an interview with Bloomberg Television , describing the move as “taking control of our destiny.”
Three months later, that destiny has become clearer as UPS announces plans to slash 20,000 jobs, close 73 facilities, and retool its shipping network to use less human labor—changes the shipper said were “in line” with the Amazon volume it was losing, but also set it up to be more profitable going forward…