UPS investigates after driver collapses

TYLER – UPS announced on Monday that they’re investigating allegations that Tyler workers were told not to call 911 for heat-related incidents, after a local driver collapsed from heat recently, according to our news partner, KETK.

In a video shared to the Teamsters Local 767‘s social media pages, local president and principal officer Dave Reeves stopped by the UPS warehouse in Tyler last week to remind workers to call 911 immediately if they experience the symptoms of heat illness.

Reeves said that on June 26, a UPS driver collapsed from heat and another driver had to call 911 to get them help. Reeves claimed that management had previously informed workers not to contact 911 immediately in the case of a heat-related incident.

“If we eat lunch together and y’all walk in and y’all see this guy’s lying on the ground and he’s puking on himself in a convenience store, get your phone out and dial 911,” Reeves said in the video. “No more bulls**ting around with these guys, we have it in a message where they’re saying don’t call 911.”

KETK News has contacted UPS about this incident and a company spokesperson said they are doing an investigation into these serious allegations, since they train their management to call 911 in cases like this.

“The health and safety of our people is our number one priority. We take these allegations seriously and are investigating the incident,” a UPS spokesperson told KETK News on Monday. “We train our management team and employees to call 911 for anyone experiencing signs of heat exhaustion or heat stroke. Any deviation from our policies will be promptly addressed.”