UPS Pilot Furloughs Begin

by Stephanie CrosbyFurloughs have begun for 54 UPS pilots. They are the first in a two-year series of layoffs at the shipping giant, whose air hub is located in Louisville.The layoffs were originally announced in February. Independent Pilots Association spokesperson Brian Gaudet says the union offered to save the company money through a series of concessions.“Our point is: the other 25-hundred members of this union were willing to pay out of their pockets to keep these guys employed," saus Gaudet.But UPS spokesperson Jackie Blair says the original cost-savings estimate was too low, and they preferred furloughs.“We, bottom line, have too many crewmembers to fly the aircraft we have currently in service," says Blair.Twenty-three of the pilots now furloughed are based in Louisville.Blair says by the end of next year, they expect to furlough a total of 300 pilots, 30 of them in Louisville.