UPS has shut down its Dubai-based district office for the India subcontinent, Middle East and Africa (ISMEA) regions as part of a restructuring plan that has left many jobless, a source told Arabian Business.
The source said that between 100 and 120 employees were laid off at the delivery giant’s Dubai district office. When reached for comment, UPS did not confirm the figure but stated that they were “constantly evolving” their business.
The source said the staff were informed about the decision in early July when they were handed their one-month notice period.
The shutdown means that the company will merge their ISMEA operations with the Eastern Europe headquarters in Prague, Czech Republic, but its second office in the UAE, which handles pickup and delivery, will remain open, Arabian Business understands.
“We’re constantly evolving our business in response to the needs of our customers and changes in the global economy. These efforts have resulted in changes in the jobs and responsibilities of some of our people in the UAE, including redundancies and migration of roles,” a UPS spokesperson told Arabian Business in an emailed statement.
“These changes are not a reflection on the work or dedication of our people, and we are focused on providing support to those impacted. We are making these adjustments to the business to ensure our continued success for the long term.”
To compensate the terminated staff during this time, UPS has offered to cover their medical insurance and visa for two months and provide two months’ worth of severance pay, one former employee told Arabian Business under the condition of anonymity.
“I do want to point out that although this happened, I feel [UPS] was very fair with the exit process, the exit has been smooth,” they said.
Some staff were given the opportunity to move to the Prague office, they said, but with a 60 percent pay cut.
Teamsters union ratifies new deal, eliminates costly US strike risk
The decision came after US-based UPS workers under the trade union International Brotherhood of Teamsters said they planned to go on strike in June. The strike would have reportedly included over 330,000 UPS workers under the union, and would have cost the US economy around $7.1 billion had it lasted 10 days, CNN reported, making it the costliest strike in US history.
Of the $7.1 billion, the strike could have resulted in direct losses for UPS of $816 million.
As a result, the union ratifed a new five-year contract to close the door on the potential strike, promising to raise pay and eliminate a two-tier wage system for UPS drivers in addition to the end of forced overtime, among other new benefits, and added air conditioning to new models of the company’s delivery trucks starting next year.
The ex-UPS staff member said that they believe the restructuring was a direct effect of the potential Teamsters strike.
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