UPS hiring buildup

Add comment November 7th, 2007

The UPS sorting hub at the Chicago Rockford International Airport is making its annual push for seasonal workers. It needs to hire 40 people a week to hit its targets, employment supervisor Kevin Doolian told me.

That means if you want to make a little Christmas money, can work in the middle of the night and can lift up to 70 pounds — you might consider this job. Shifts start between 10:30 p.m. and 2 a.m. Package handlers work between 15 and 20 hours a week between now and January.

I used to load packages at the hub — in fact, I was February 1996 Employee of the Month for the Blue Belt. At one time I knew almost every ZIP code in Iowa and Nebraska. I’ve never been able to find another venue to use that knowledge, except for the time I drove a friend nuts on a cross-country road trip by rattling off the five-digit numbers for every town that appeared on the exit signs on Interstate 80. Probably not a good use of such trivia…

But I digress. Seasonal employees earn $8.50 an hour and if they prove themselves and the company needs them, they could be hired on a permanent basis after the holiday rush. Permanent workers get medical benefits and tuition reimbursements.

Every holiday season, the hub grows its work force by hundreds to handle the rush. The week before Christmas is a mad house, but I kind of enjoyed the pace. I remember working 8 hours one night while we waited for a storm-stranded plane to arrive. This year, the hub needs nearly 2,000 total workers to handle its volume, Dulian said.

To apply, visit this site and click on “Rockford,” then on “Inquire About Opportunities Now.” You can enter all your contact information, answer a few questions and reserve a time to visit the UPS employment office for an interview. The openings are immediate, so if you’re interested and qualified, you could be working within days.