JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — On the same day Gov. Rick Scott visited the River City touting job creation, one of Jacksonville’s largest employers is warning of more layoffs.
The CEO of CSX said the railroad company could lay off as many as 700 additional employees by the end of the year.
CSX is one of the largest employers in Jacksonville and has plans to downsize again.
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The company announced there will be a round two of layoffs during a phone conference Wednesday morning.
“If you’re a head-count person, I think the head count, as we stand today, we stand today about 2,300,” said CSX President and Chief Executive Officer Hunter Harrison.
CSX spokesperson Rob Doolittle said that’s how many employees they have laid off already this year, and they plan on eliminating 700 more positions by the end of the year, to add to the 2,300 already gone.
“That’s not something we’re trying to set some record with,” Harrison said.
Doollittle said CSX operates in 23 states across the country and those layoffs could impact any of those offices, not just in Jacksonville.
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CSX leaders said this will be a tough move to make, but they said it’s in the best interest of the future of the company because they are changing the way the railroad operates to improve efficiency.
Doolittle said that means fewer trains are moving more freight faster, which means fewer employees are needed to run things.
“The change, the change is the cultural change. That’s difficult for an organization to go through,” Harrison said.
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