NS plans more employee furloughs
Railroad operator Norfolk Southern Corp. said Wednesday (Jan. 28) it has reduced the number of its train and engine service employees by 6 percent in the last eight months through furloughs and a hiring slowdown, and more job cuts are likely, according to the Associated Press.
Norfolk Southern said Tuesday its fourth-quarter profit rose 13 percent as higher shipping prices and lower fuel costs offset tumbling demand for goods.
The company has cut its train and engine service crew from a high of 12,380 in April to 11,622 as of last week, Chief Operating Officer Stephen Tobias said in a conference call with analysts.
About 400 of those employees were furloughed and the rest of the reduction was the result of a hiring slowdown.
Norfolk Southern expects to furlough more train and engine employees - including 100 in the next month. Tobias also said reductions in other areas are possible, such as mechanical, as engine crews are reduced.
Norfolk Southern has also reduced shifts at some terminals. It cut shifts at its Buckeye terminal in Columbus, Ohio, to one from three, and its Sheffield, Ala., terminal, now has two shifts instead of three. The company has also has fewer workers at its terminal in Reading, Pa.
Norfolk Southern also reduced the number of scheduled trains it operates by almost 44,000 and put 60 trains out of service as a result of deteriorating demand. The reductions began in October.
Norfolk Southern shares rose $1.50, or 4 percent, to $39.15 in morning trading.
(This item was distributed Jan. 28, 2009, by the Associated Press.)
