Three Gallons of Water. Ten Hours of Heat. Zero Relief from UPS.

UPS workers train like athletes to survive Zone 1 summers

By Ryan Luu

I drink three gallons of water a day, never drink soda or alcohol, and I’ve never lit a cigarette. I meal prep on Sundays, wake up at 5 a.m. sharp, and go to the gym five times a week to keep my body functioning like a well-oiled machine. I stretch and prioritize sleep like it’s part of my job, because in many ways, it is. But I’m not an athlete. I deliver packages.

The average American household receives approximately 167 packages per year which translates to about three packages a week. The total number of packages shipped daily across the United States is 61.3 million. Twenty-one percent of the total package volume in the U.S. is delivered by UPS — and that’s where I come in.

From Tuesday to Saturday every week, for around 10 hours a day, I am in and out of a brown truck — called a package car — making deliveries for UPS. In the middle of a Texas summer, my package car feels like an oven. The interior averages about 20 degrees hotter than outside air. On a 100-degree day, I’m working in 120-degree heat. Just doing my job makes me sweat through my shirt in the first half hour, burn thousands of calories without setting foot on a treadmill, and dehydrate faster than I can drink those three gallons of water.

I shouldn’t have to do all that. I don’t want to prepare like I’m training for a decathlon just to do a job that should be safe. This level of preparation isn’t noble, it’s necessary, because UPS has failed to do what they promised.

In 2023, 340,000 workers like me at UPS — all represented by the Teamsters Union — came together to demand real change. As a part of our new national contract, UPS made a commitment to deploy 28,000 new air-conditioned vehicles. This isn’t a nice-to-have — it’s a lifeline. We endure brutal temperatures every single summer day, especially in states like Texas where UPS agreed to deploy air conditioning first.

Before I started working at UPS, I was a dance instructor. I’ve always stayed in shape as part of my daily routine, but I never imagined being fit would become a survival measure. This job isn’t just physically demanding — it’s relentless. I lift, carry, squat, sprint, climb, and hustle for hours without a break. This is a job that demands discipline, endurance, and a mindset that most people reserve for marathon training or boot camp.

My fitness is not for aesthetics. It’s functional, and it’s necessary. It’s the reason I can make it through a 200-package day without collapsing. It’s the edge that keeps me sharp, consistent, and most importantly, safe. No one should have to train like an athlete just to make it home alive from work.

Last year, UPS finally agreed to Teamsters demands to expedite the delivery of air-conditioned vehicles by retrofitting 5,000 package cars with A/C for the hottest delivery zone in the country, which includes my state. Now UPS must finish the job and make sure every driver can face the summers ahead with the protection, dignity, and safety we deserve.