(The following story by Walt Frank appeared on the Altoona Mirror website on April 25, 2009.)
ALTOONA, Pa. — After a dismal first-quarter financial report, Norfolk Southern is laying off 58 employees – primarily machinists and sheet metal workers – at the Juniata Locomotive Shop.
The furloughs are a result of the economy, Norfolk Southern spokesman Rudy Husband said.
“Fewer trains are running. That means there is less need for locomotives and maintenance requirements are less,” Husband said. “What we do is based on the economy. When the economy is booming our business is booming. When it is really soft, our train counts and traffic are down. We are always adjusting our workforce to meet the demands of our service.”
The majority of those laid off have less than six months of service as layoffs are based on seniority, Husband said.
The layoffs reduce total employment at the shop to about 900, Husband said.
An additional 34 train service personnel, those who work outside of the shop, have been laid off in the Altoona area since December, Husband said.
Norfolk Southern Corp. announced this week for the first quarter of 2009 net income of $177 million, compared with $291 million for the first quarter of 2008.
First quarter railway operating revenues were $1.9 billion, down 22 percent, compared with the first quarter of 2008, primarily as the result of a 20 percent reduction in traffic volume and lower-fuel related revenues.
“Current economic conditions were clearly reflected in Norfolk Southern’s first quarter results,” CEO Wick Moorman said.
Norfolk Southern has cut about 4 percent of its workforce since December, about 1,100 employees, mostly through furloughs and attrition.
Husband said employment has been steady at the Juniata shop.
“One of the things Norfolk Southern pledged to do when it took over from Conrail (June 1999) was to stabilize employment at Juniata. Under Conrail large layoffs were not uncommon. I can’t remember the last time we had large layoffs at Juniata,” Husband said. “It is all a function of the economy. We believe eventually it is going to get better.”