Texas UPS Drivers Suffer from Heat Effects with No A/C

Climate & Comp

Bell County, Texas (WorkersCompensation.com) – One UPS driver is dead and another is lucky to be alive after suffering heat emergencies, officials said.

Officials said Luis Grimaldo, 37, a Bell County delivery driver, died on Aug. 15 in what co-workers have said is a heat-related incident. The United Parcel Service (UPS) confirmed Grimaldo’s death, but indicated there was “no indication of heat stress.”

“We are saddened by the loss of our delivery driver Luis Grimaldo and extend our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends,” UPS said in a statement. “We are working with authorities as they conduct their investigation. At this time, there has been no indication of heat stress. Our people are our top priority. We have industry-leading training and protocols in place to help ensure all employees are safe while on the job and we respond swiftly when concerns come to our attention.”

A statement on a GoFundMe page in Grimaldo’s honor, said he had worked as a UPS driver for four years, and gave everything to the service of his customers.

“The career brought him joy from the people he worked with and to the customers he would meet on the road,” the GoFundMe page said. “The best part of his job was seeing the happy faces on customers when he handed them their packages.”

Just days after Grimaldo’s death, another UPS driver was caught on video passing out due to the heat and wrecking a company truck in McKinney, Texas. A union representative said the incident on August 16 was heat-related.

Representatives with Teamsters Local 767 said the driver survived the crash after losing consciousness at the wheel.

"The company continues to place packages over people," the union said in a Facebook post. "This is the third incident in the McKinney building alone. Do not trust the company to do the right thing for your health and safety."

According to the National Weather Service, the high in McKinney was 101 degrees on Friday.

The union said the driver overheated while driving to help another driver in another city. Officials said the driver began to vomit and fell ill. The union said the driver asked for help but was told by his manager to bring the truck back to the facility. Union officials said the manager should have advised the driver to pull over, and then called 911 to assist the driver who was sick.

Video of the event showed the truck driving off the road and into a tree.

Officials said the driver was taken to the hospital and is now recovering at home.

Union officials put the blame for the accident on UPS.

"The company once again did not follow their own Recharge guidelines and asked the driver to drive himself in," the union said in a statement to media outlets in Texas. "This is UNACCEPTABLE. The driver passed out while driving and was involved in the accident."

Union representatives have said UPS has failed to address heat-related injuries in their delivery trucks, despite promises to do so. In June 2023, UPS agreed with the Teamsters that it would address heat issues by equipping all newly purchased small package delivery vehicles with air conditioning starting in Jan. 1, 2024. The company said that when possible it would allocate those new vehicles to the hottest parts of the country first.

The company said it would also install cab fans in its package cars to provide additional airflow for drivers, to install exhaust heat shields in cargo floors, and to put forced-air induction systems into vehicles to bring fresh air from the front of the vehicle into the cargo area.

According to CBS News, UPS spends up to $400 million annually to protect its drivers from heat. Still, however, many of the trucks are not properly equipped with air conditioning.

The teamsters said they hope to sit down with UPS soon to see what can be done to protect employees during the hot weather.

OSHA fined UPS $13,260 in 2019 after a UPS employee suffered heat-related injuries near its Riviera Beach, Fla., facility. OSHA said the driver suffered from heat-related illness after temperatures exceeded 99 degrees.

Last year, in Texas, a UPS driver reportedly died from extreme heat. Chris Begley died after collapsing while delivering packages in McKinney in September 2023. Begley collapsed while delivering a package to a local business on August 23, when the temperature was 101 degrees, with a heat index of 108. Employees of the business took care of Begley and notified a UPS supervisor, who drove their personal vehicle to where the driver had collapsed.

UPS said in a statement that Begley refused medical attention “multiple times” and that the supervisor drove Begley home at his request. The driver was given several days off work, but went to the hospital on Sunday, where he later died.

“We are cooperating with the authorities as they continue to investigate the cause of death,” UPS said in a statement at the time. “We train our people to recognize the symptoms of heat stress, and we respond immediately to any request for help.”

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