AMARILLO - As many as 2,500 furloughed unionized Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway workers around the country thought they'd be back to work by now, or by April 12, Easter, at the latest, the Amarillo Globe News reports.
But officials for the Fort Worth-based cargo rail company recently have extended the furlough period, saying traffic volumes have declined and that they aren't expected to improve right away. There is no time line for when the furloughs will end, the company said.
"Like many other companies and industries around the nation ... we're being impacted by the current downturn in economic conditions," said BNSF spokesman Joseph Faust. "Because we don't anticipate that volume increasing ... those employees have not been called back."
Roughly 800 people work at BNSF's intermodal facility in Amarillo, the convergence point of two important rail lines that provide direct service to major cities, including Chicago, Los Angeles, Denver and Dallas.
BNSF announced furloughs in January and February, typically slow months in rail trade. The action affected all employees, including machinists, train yard workers and engineers.
Officials had hoped to lift the furloughs by now, but instead opted to continue the furloughs because demand hasn't rebounded, Faust said.
It is not clear how many workers in Amarillo are off their jobs.
Under union rules, employees with seniority can take jobs held by lesser-tenured workers during a furlough period.
(This item appeared April 1, 2009, in the Globe News.)
