Holiday shopping is in full swing for many New Yorkers and Americans. So is the holiday crunch to ship and deliver packages on time. Major shipping companies are working hard across the U.S. to meet consumer demands after the pandemic, including at a UPS facility in Poughkeepsie.

The countdown to Christmas is on, with gifts of all shapes and sizes coming down conveyer belts. This month, the UPS employees who preload packages are acting as Santa’s helpers.

“All year round, we deliver what matters, but this time of the year, we know we’re delivering gifts for the holiday season to people and families in the Hudson Valley,” said Sean Rizzotto, an on-road supervisor at UPS. “You see that the volume pops and it gets really packed in these trucks.”

UPS says the daily volume usually doubles in its facilities across the U.S. during the holiday season.

“It looks like we’re on track for a pretty record-setting year here in Poughkeepsie,” Rizzotto said.

It’s a forecast that may suggest that this year is the first post-pandemic holiday season, even as 40-year, record high inflation continues to squeeze American consumers.

“I don’t find it shocking,” Rizzotto said. “We tend to see when the economy dips a little bit, people tend to order more online where they can shop for more deals than they can at brick and mortar stores.”

Corey Slater has been a driver with UPS for about five years. To meet consumer demand, he and others with the shipping company are working six days a week until Christmas.

“I’m excited to get gifts to the kids,” Slater said. “Service all the people around and get home to my family safely at the end of the night.”

Christmas came early for Slater.

“I just recently had a newborn two months ago, definitely life-changing,” Slater said. “One day he’ll be excited for Christmas just as I was as a kid, and all the other kids around the town that we deliver for.”

Slater says the long hours are worth it. It’s a chance for him to spread holiday cheer to the community during “the most wonderful time of the year.”

“I see some of the same kids and same family members every day. And, they’re excited when I reach out to them or get their attention if it’s a gift, so they can hide it from the kids, or their wife, or father, family member,” Slater said. “It’s definitely an exciting part about the job on the long days, you know, putting smiles on peoples’ faces.”

UPS says it’s hiring part-time and full-time seasonal drivers, as well as inside employees, to deal with high demand right now, adding that its operations team is fully prepared for a successful holiday season.