The closing of Preston Trucking Co., a little more than 12 months after being sold off to company management by Yellow Corp., came as a shock to its 5,500 employees, Teamsters union officials and industry analysts.
“It wasn’t totally out of the blue, but it was pretty much unexpected,” said Paul R. Schlesinger, a trucking analyst with Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette. “They didn’t have a balance sheet that gave them a lot of breathing space. But there was no sense they were tottering. The timing of this was a total surprise.”
More than 4,000 Teamsters at 61 terminals in 21 cities lost their jobs when Preston folded its tent, said Bret Caldwell, spokesman for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
The union is working with the company on a closure agreement to resolve outstanding benefits issues.
Preston’s closing “is an ominous sign for workers who deserve adequate pay and benefits, and it is a concern that management is turning to workers they can take more advantage of,” Caldwell said. “We are still trying to figure out why Preston went out of business.”
The nation’s 28th-largest trucking company closed its doors without notice July 27 after it was unable to get additional cash advances from its lenders, Preston officials said.
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