Nearly every country, the United States included, has a government-funded shipping company that provides hundreds of thousands of jobs.
So, is working at UPS considered having a federal job, and what else should you know? If you’d like to find out, continue reading to see what I discovered!
Is UPS a Federal Job In [currentyear]?
UPS is not a federal job, as UPS is not a government agency, but a public employer in [currentyear]. However, UPS became a public company once it began selling stocks publicly in November 1999. UPS is an American company that was founded by James Casey and Claude Ryan in 1907 in Seattle, Washington.
There’s a lot more to understand about UPS, and the type of employer and company it is, so be sure to keep reading to learn more!
Is UPS a Government Agency?
UPS, or the United Parcel Service, is not a government agency, which also means it’s not a federal employer.
The government agency responsible for shipping and courier services is the United States Postal Service, or USPS.
USPS and UPS are commonly confused for a number of reasons, but mainly because of their similar acronyms, and the fact that it offers similar services in the same industry.
Working for USPS in any capacity other than volunteering means you have a federal job, which comes with perks such as federal benefits.
However, working for UPS is the same as working for any other privately-owned company.
UPS arranges benefits and perks for its employees outside of the limitations of federal standards, in terms of life insurance, health insurance, etc.
This also means that while UPS must comply with federal employment laws, there are fewer regulations concerning who the company can hire.
Government agencies and other federal employers tend to have their employment parameters set by Congress or another government agency.
However, since UPS is not a government agency, managers can hire anyone, provided that their hiring practice falls in line with employment laws from the US Department of Labor.
If you’d like to read more on the employment laws that UPS (and every other American company) must follow, you can check out this page of the US Department of Labor website!
Is UPS a Private Employer?
UPS is a public company, as it trades in the stock market. However, the fact that UPS is a publicly traded company does not negate that it’s a private employer.
What this means is that the company is owned by a private citizen.
So, as the owner of the company, UPS can choose to employ anyone as a private citizen, without having to worry about certain federal restrictions.
There are, of course, still regulations and laws that dictate the rights of these employees and rules to protect them from discrimination, but those are the only rules UPS is required to follow.
Otherwise, UPS can decide what else dictates an applicant’s eligibility for a given role.
For example, if UPS wanted every employee to hold a doctorate degree, the company could decide that and hire based on that prerequisite.
This differs from federal agencies/employers in several ways, but the biggest difference is the people who decide on these rules and prerequisites for employees.
For federal positions, there are certain prerequisites that are decided on by the government, such as age and citizenship requirements, and an applicant’s ability to pass drug tests and background checks.
Private employers, however, can decide whether or not someone’s age, citizenship, drug usage, or background is pertinent when determining employment eligibility, provided whatever they decide also falls in line with federal regulation/law.
Therefore, the person who decides on the rules/prerequisites for a given role for private employers is up to the business itself.
It could be the CEO, or a corporate leader, or the company could leave it entirely up to the hiring manager, who would be directly responsible for whatever role is being hired for.
Is UPS an American Company?
UPS is an American company, and was started by James Casey and Claude Ryan in Seattle, Washington in 1907.
After the two teenage boys set up shop in a cellar under Ryan’s uncle’s tavern with $100 in capital, they began the process of starting the business.
Less than 10 years later, the company had opened a second office, merged with a competing delivery service in the area, and began delivering packages via a converted Model T Ford truck.
Today, UPS is a household name in the shipping industry, offering regular services and competitive prices for first-class in more than 220 countries and territories around the world.
UPS is also ranked number 35 on the Fortune 500 list, which lists the largest United States corporations by their total revenue.
You can also consider UPS an American company by looking at its employee numbers.
Out of a total of around 444,000 employees, 362,000 are employed out of the United States, which is a whopping 90.5% of its employees.
To know more, you can also read our posts on UPS leave of absence policy, if it is easy to get a job at UPS, and if UPS drug test.
Conclusion
UPS is not a federal job, as UPS is not a government agency. UPS is a privately owned, publicly traded company that operates as a private employer.
This means that UPS is not held to many government employment regulations, except for the basic labor laws and discrimination regulations that every company is held to.
