Central States pension fund says UPS Teamsters plan is 98.1% funded

Central States Pension Fund said in a July 6 notice that the UPS Teamsters pension was 98.1% funded as of Jan. 1, 2025, putting the plan in what it called excellent financial condition. For long-service package handlers, drivers and hub workers weighing retirement dates, that is the number to watch: it suggests the fund is close to full health, but it does not guarantee every benefit issue is gone.

The notice says the fund is on track to become fully funded in the near future and that all assets are invested in highly secure U.S. Treasury and investment-grade corporate bonds. It also points to $35.8 billion in financial assistance, a reminder of how far the plan has come from the crisis years that once put Central States at the center of Teamsters pension fights.

That turnaround matters because the same plan was still described as in critical status for the plan year beginning Jan. 1, 2025, in a March 31, 2025 Department of Labor notice. Teamsters for a Democratic Union has described the fund’s recovery as a jump from 14.5% funded and critical and declining status to 97.5% funded and healthy condition. Central States’ latest notice puts the plan at 98.1%.

For UPS workers trying to map out retirement, the practical next step is not just to check the funding percentage. Central States posts benefit notices, check schedules and member communications that affect retirement dates, survivor benefits and direct deposit. The fund also says a new texting program is available, a useful option for workers who miss mailings because they change phone numbers, move, or spend long hours away from a computer.

The 2026 pension benefit schedule says direct deposit is generally made on the first day of the month unless that falls on a weekend or bank holiday. The schedule lists deposits on Jan. 2, Jan. 30, Feb. 27, April 1, May 1, June 1, July 1, July 31, Sept. 1, Oct. 1, Oct. 30 and Dec. 1. Central States lists its administrative office at 8647 West Higgins Road in Chicago, Illinois 60631, and its toll-free number is 1-800-323-5000.

One detail can change how UPS workers read the rest of the paperwork: the summary plan description says participants whose last hour of service while employed by UPS was before Jan. 1, 2008 are covered by a different SPD. That matters because pension rules are not identical for every UPS employee, and a few months of service or a missing form can affect the final calculation.

The fund’s recovery also sits inside a longer UPS labor history. A 2007 report said UPS management proposed removing UPS Teamsters from Central States and that withdrawal liability would have been about $4 billion. A 2023 UPS-Teamsters contract story said the carrier could pay $6.1 billion to leave the union’s Central States Health & Welfare and Pension Funds, while Teamsters materials said more than 60,000 full-time UPS Teamsters in the Central Region, South and the Carolinas won pension increases of up to $1,000 a month under the new contract.