FedEx

Reasons to avoid

1. FedEx agreed in February 2026 to pay $8.5 million to settle a class action covering approximately 97,795 hourly workers at 17 New Jersey warehouses who were not compensated for time spent on mandatory pre- and post-shift security screenings. Workers were required to be on FedEx property, passing through security checks and walking to and from time clocks, before they were ever allowed to clock in.nj.com2026-02-20
2. FedEx announced a major 2023 restructuring that would shift its entire delivery network toward contracted workers with no drivers on the company's payroll, explicitly choosing a model that makes worker unionization harder. The plan is designed to cut $6 billion in costs by 2027 by stripping out the employment protections, benefits, and labor rights that come with direct employment.bloomberg.com2023-04-10
3. Between 2014 and 2018, FedEx spent $837,000 on union-avoidance consultants and required workers to attend mandatory anti-union meetings as the Teamsters sought to organize its drivers. Workers were subjected to sessions where managers and outside consultants delivered anti-union messages and, in some cases, misleading information about labor organizing.theguardian.com2020-01-14
4. FedEx paid zero federal income tax on $1.2 billion in U.S. pretax income in 2020 and received a $230 million tax rebate, according to an analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. The company was among 55 major corporations that avoided federal taxes that year by exploiting breaks expanded under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.itep.org2021-04-02
5. FedEx spent more than $11 million on federal lobbying in 2023, with priorities including labor law, trade, and taxation, according to OpenSecrets. The company's lobbying team includes around 50 former government officials, including ex-chiefs of staff to top congressional leaders.opensecrets.org2024-01-01
6. A FedEx worker at the company's Memphis hub died in February 2022 after supervisors failed to address her reports of defective equipment, and Tennessee OSHA fined FedEx only $26,000 despite finding six serious safety violations. FedEx's Memphis facility has recorded multiple worker deaths since 2017, earning the company a spot on the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health's 2023 "Dirty Dozen" list of the most dangerous U.S. employers.progressive.org2023-04-26