External Environment and Threats to FedEx: two articles

UPS, FedEx worlds apart on labor law - Chris Frates - POLITICO.com
By CHRIS FRATES

6/28/10 4:13 AM EDT Text Size- + reset
A brutal labor law battle between the companies could be headed for a showdown this week.
Reuters
A brutal labor law battle between UPS and FedEx could be headed for a showdown this week as Congress faces a deadline to make a move in the bitter, long-running dispute.
The two shipping giants have been engaged in a down-and-dirty lobbying campaign over a proposal that would make it easier for labor to organize FedEx.
Memphis-based FedEx has spent millions of dollars, and its chief executive has even threatened to cancel an order of new Boeing planes if the proposal passes. UPS has been quieter about its lobbying but is getting support from the Teamsters, who represent many of its employees.
The 230-word provision making it easier to unionize FedEx is part of the House Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization legislation but is absent from the Senate version. And the difference has become a major sticking point in finishing the bill before the current law expires Saturday.

use the link to Politico.com above for full story.

See also, more recent article from PBS on this topic:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-to-know/economy/the-ground-war-between-fedex-and-ups/3095/

This issue is one of the factors to consider in evaluating the external environment for FedEx, as something that poses a threat.