Con-way Freight cuts 1,450 jobs, business sinks to 2003 levels

Con-way Freight cuts 1,450 jobs, business sinks to 2003 levels Trucking and logistics company Con-way said it has cut its workforce at its less-than-truckload unit Con-way Freight last Friday by about 8 percent, eliminating 1,450 jobs.
   The job cuts bring its workforce in line with lower tonnage volumes, which were down 3.8 percent in October and 9.2 percent in November, respectively, from last year’s levels.
   The cuts were spread across most of the company’s 303 operating locations in North America and included elimination of 78 staff positions at Con-way Freight’s Ann Arbor, Mich., general office and 60 positions at an administrative center in Texas.
   John G. Labrie, president of Con-way Freight, said with U.S. manufacturing activity at its weakest levels in 26 years, and consumers continuing to restrain retail purchasing, the effect on freight volumes has been dramatic.
   “The declines in shipping activity, which we first saw at the end of the third quarter, steepened in October and November, and are continuing in December,” Labrie said. “Comparable business volumes are now at roughly 2003 levels, when we had a workforce of about 17,500 employees.”
   The company also said Con-way’s other two principal business units, Menlo Worldwide and Con-way Truckload, have instituted expense-curtailment initiatives.