A lifelong UPS driver has a $150,000 decision

Richard Ponder, a senior UPS driver with over 20 years of experience at UPS, first heard of the company offering an early retirement buyout a few weeks ago, he was extremely excited about it because he had declined the last one and regretted it.

United Parcel Service

Ponder logged onto the UPS website to see if the news was true and it was. Now in just a few clicks of a button he can change his life. “This isn’t the first time UPS has done something like this,” Ponder said. “But this time I was really considering my options.”

Senior UPS drivers all around the world are currently being given the opportunity for a huge amount of money, so that they can retire early from the company. This is because UPS plans to reduce their costs and change UPS. This is a difficult decision for a lot of the workers at UPS because they must choose between money and their job.

“The offer is definitely really tempting for a lot of us, because of how much money is being offered as well as other benefits,” Ponder explained. “I just do not know if I am ready for that change yet. I have worked here for over half of my life and leaving is a lot harder than I thought it would be.”

This is a challenging situation to be in, in Ponder’s case and many of his friends in the company are facing the same thing “It’s a hard decision when companies offer early retirement packages” Ponder explained. “But it can lead to a lot of good things like new hobbies, traveling more and spending more time with my family.”

For others, though, the situation might not be so straightforward because of their loyalty to UPS and passion for their job including Ponder, he is extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to work at UPS and get all the great benefits they have.

The buyout package that UPS offers includes one payment based on the number of years worked along with health care benefits for a certain number of years as well as a monthly check for a retirement. For Ponder, this means he will get a remarkably good check every month if he takes the steel and retires.

Employees only have a month to consider the offer so they must decide quickly. “A lot of the other drivers are struggling to decide,” Ponder said. “But at the end of the day everyone knows it’s really about what’s best for your family.”

For Ponder, this is a very emotional choice because he has spent decades driving through early hours in the morning, too late at night, traveling long distances, and even working through holidays and has rejected this offer once before. But because he has worked so many years at UPS this offer is very great in his case.

Ponder has made so many friends throughout his years at UPS, and accepting this buyout does not mean he cannot be friends with them anymore. It would just mean financial security as well as ending a career that he has had for most of his life.

“I’m thinking about my family and what I wanna do next,” Ponder said. “Whatever choice I make I know it’ll be the right one and my family will support me.”

For employees like Ponder, retirement, savings, pensions, and the buyout package are all things that need to be balanced against living expenses. Emotional considerations are another important part of the routine and his interactions with coworkers are still important to him.

“Decisions like this aren’t just made overnight,” Ponder explained. “Some employees are really excited, and others are nervous but that’s to be expected”

Ponder’s friends at the company are going through the same feelings. Although some have already accepted the offer and are encouraging him to do the same thing, saying they were excited for the freedom of not having to go to work every day. If ponder decides to take the buyout offer, he plans to continue his friendship and even hanging out with his old friends outside of work now.

“As the deadline gets closer and closer, I continue to weigh my options,” Ponder said. “It’s definitely a lot to consider, but I want to make the decision that’s right for me and my family.”

Despite his unsureness, Ponder ended up taking the buyout offer. Ponder, like many others did not have an opportunity to go to college so with his newfound time off, he is planning to take classes at TMCC and bettering his education.

“This isn’t just about leaving work and getting money,” Ponder said. “It’s about spending more time with my family and getting to do the things that I want to do now like being outdoors and hiking and camping as well as going back to college, I’m gonna enjoy these years.”

(This story was written by Asia Teixeira, a freshman at the Reynolds School of Journalism at the Universiry of Nevada Reno.)