Bankrupt trucking company Yellow reveals Wisconsin job cuts

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) – Embattled trucking company Yellow Corporation revealed the number of layoffs that have happened in Wisconsin. While the company cut jobs all over the state, the hardest hit areas were in Winnebago and Milwaukee counties, the Dept. of Workforce Development website showed.

The layoffs were reported to the state labor agency on Tuesday, according to DWD’s list of new job cuts. Yellow stated the cuts had occurred approximately two weeks earlier, toward the end of July.

Oak Creek and Neenah both saw job losses in the mid-eighties, the company reported, and a total of 46 positions were cut in Tomah. In south-central Wisconsin, nearly a dozen jobs were lost between Madison and Portage. In all, Yellow eliminated 261 jobs in Wisconsin.

Last week, the trucking company declared bankruptcy after years of financial struggles and growing debt. It marks a significant shift for the U.S. transportation industry and shippers nationwide. The Nashville, Tennessee-based company had 30,000 employees across the country.

The Chapter 11 bankruptcy filed Sunday arrives just three years after Yellow received $700 million in pandemic-era loans from the federal government. But the company was in financial trouble long before that.

Industry analysts have pointed to poor management and strategic decisions dating back decades. Experts say former Yellow customers and shippers will face higher prices as they take their business to competitors, including FedEx or ABF Freight.

Yellow historically offered the cheapest price points in the industry.

Copyright 2023 WSAW. All rights reserved.