AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT DILLON LOGISTICS

Burr Ridge, Illinois-based Dillon Logistics, doing business as Dillon Transport, a dry and liquid bulk transportation company, abruptly shut down operations on August 31, 2021.

According to an anonymous executive, “The decision was made by our private equity owners.”

According to a September 1, 2021, a lawsuit (8:21-cv-02107) was filed over the company's failure to provide sufficient notice of layoffs under the WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification ) Act in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, the plaintiff, a mechanic, received an email that explained that the "company was going to be sold to another business but 'that transaction will not be going forward' and Defendant was 'left with no reasonable alternative other than to liquidate the business.'”

The lawsuit notes that the company employed 342 drivers and owned or leased 450 tractors, and 700 trailers.

It is believed that private equity firm Dallas, Texas-based Cotton Creek Capital acquired a majority stake when the company recapitalized Dillon Transport to support the company’s continued expansion efforts in January 2017.

Little more is known about the closure or the company at this time

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT RELIANT TRANSPORTATION (SCHOOL BUSES)

Dallas, Texas-based Reliant Transportation, a subsidiary of MV Transportation and a contractual supplier of school transportation services, has announced the loss of a major school bus transport contract with the Northwest Independent School District for services in Denton and Tarrant counties.

The contract loss will impact 357 employees commencing May 29, 2021. According to published reports, the school district has projected a $3 million-plus annual savings by bringing transportation services in-house.

According to a spokesperson for the school district, "Northwest ISD is transitioning to in-house transportation services for the 2021-2022 school year."

It is unclear who currently owns Reliant after an announcement that New York City was purchasing the company from its owner MV Transportation in 2021. Some say as a political favor to its top executive.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? IS THE HANDWRITING ON THE WALL AT KANSAS CITY SOUTHERN LINES

Kansas City, Missouri-based Kansas City Southern Lines a transportation holding company with railroad investments, is being acquired by the Calgary, Canada-based Canadian Pacific Railway, the iconic Canadian railway for approximately $29 billion.

Kansas City Southern CEO Patrick Ottensmeyer is attempting to reassure the Kansas City community leadership and its own employees that jobs are secure.

"I know Kansas City over the last decade or so has been the net loss of jobs because of mergers and other types of transactions. Kansas City is going to be an incredibly important part of this network as you look at the map, it’s really dead center in the network connecting Mexico, Canada and the U.S.”

Unfortunately, pronouncements that fall short of promises always seem to fall by the wayside as the surviving organization reduces redundancies, managementm functions, and infrastructure. While transportation hubs and operations tend to be in strategic fixed location. However, managerial staff and support personnel can be located almost anywhere.

While Kansas City Southern's headquarters in downtown Kansas City and Kansas City is expected to become the U.S. headquarters for Canadian Pacific, Canadian Pacific’s current U.S. headquarters is in Minneapolis, which will remain a base of operations for Canadian Pacific Kansas City.

The benefit for both rail systems is there is no overlapping trackage and shippers can deal with a single company for rail transportation from Canada to Mexico through the United States.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?