Amazon beware: FedEx and UPS have a plan to compete on the weekend
FedEx and UPS have a plan to compete with Amazon on the weekend.
The two shippers recently announced they will offer pickup and delivery services seven days a week, but there's a catch. They will be turning to lower-paid workers on the weekends, according to the Wall Street Journal.
In this Dec. 15, 2014, file photo, employees pull boxes from a conveyor belt and fill their trucks for deliveries at a FedEx sorting facility in the Bronx borough of New York.
FedEx will hire independent contractors through its Ground unit who make less than drivers for its Express unit, while UPS will deploy lower-paid workers on weekends, the Journal said. Lower-paid workers will help the companies' margins as the weekend delivery tends to be more residential, which is more costly than deliveries to businesses.
Both FedEx and UPS have been looking for ways to take back market share from Amazon, which has been beefing up its logistics network over the last several years.
Amazon Air was launched in 2016 and has helped the company's logistics network expand at a rapid pace.
In February 2018, Amazon rolled out delivery for third-party sellers.
And earlier this year the e-commerce giant said it was taking sizable stakes in two aircraft leasing companies. Amazon announced plans to acquire a 40 percent stake in Atlas Air Worldwide and a 33 percent position in Air Transport Services Group. It also announced plans to lease 15 Boeing 737s from Atlas.
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Even with those deals, Amazon's fleet is still much smaller than the 250 and 650 aircraft at UPS and FedEx, respectively.
