Carriers facing uphill challenge during holiday, virus crunch
This year has already been a challenging one for the people who make sure mail and packages arrive at your door.
The COVID-19 pandemic not only has pushed more folks to opt for online shopping to avoid crowds, resulting in record volumes of mail going through the system, but the coronavirus has also taken a toll on the workers themselves. And then came the midweek snow storm that blanketed the Northeast.
Meanwhile, the approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine means shippers like FedEx and UPS will also be responsible for carrying those deliveries in addition to their regular shipments.
On its website, FedEx noted that “record high volumes of e-commerce orders, COVID-19 closures and weather events may cause delivery delays.”
The U.S. Postal Service also warned that it is “experiencing unprecedented volume increases and limited employee availability due
to the impacts of COVID-19. We appreciate your patience and remain committed to delivering the holidays to you.”
Delivery companies are bearing down for the peak delivery season. The Postal Service expects its busiest time to crest through Monday.
“While every year the postal service carefully plans for peak holiday season, a historic record of holidayvolume compounded by a temporary employee shortage due to the COVID-19 surge, and capacity challenges with airlifts and trucking for moving this historic volume of mail are leading to temporary delays,” the Postal Service said. “These challenges are being felt by shippers across the board.”
The surge in shipments ahead of Christmas isn’t a surprise.
Retailers have been urging consumers to shop early this year to help tamp down on large Black Friday crowds and avoid a delivery bottleneck in December.
Instead of “cyber week” (Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday), Adobe Analytics called November and December “cyber months,” as shopping was spread out among the homebound.
Adobe predicted that U.S. online holiday sales will total $189 billion, breaking previous records with a 33% year-over-year increase — equal to two years’ growth in one season.
Atlanta-based UPS said it hired about 100,000 seasonal employees and about 39,000 permanent employees between April and June. It also built 20 facilities and added 14 aircraft for the peak season to the approximately 500 owned and leased planes in the company’s global fleet, the private carrier said.
The Postal Service hired more than 50,000 seasonal workers, added transportation and packaging tracking, and expanded Sunday deliveries for cities with especially high volumes, The Washington Post reported this week. FedEx hired more than 70,000 seasonal workers and moved to seven-day operations, among other steps.