UPDATE: Nov. 11, 2022: Approximately 650 workers have been notified of layoffs as part of a move to control costs at C.H. Robinson, a company spokesperson said in an email.
C.H. Robinson is preparing to lay off some workers as the company looks to control costs.
The Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based firm is still "in the process of having those conversations with our impacted colleagues," Maria Lettman, a spokesperson for the firm, told Transport Dive in an email. The company declined to disclose the number of job cuts nor what positions would be eliminated.
The firm also referred Transport Dive to its Q3 earnings from last week, where it noted changing market conditions put C.H. Robinson in a position to cut costs. The carrier has focused on scaling digital processes in an effort to improve efficiencies and generate savings.
“As a result, we’re eliminating some positions at C.H. Robinson,” Duncan Burns, chief communications officer said in an emailed statement. “These are not easy decisions, because we recognize the significant contribution of the impacted employees.”
Burns said the company approached the job cuts, “with as much respect and empathy for our former colleagues as possible and are providing transition assistance.”
Workforce costs had surged for the company in Q3, according to its latest earnings report.
C.H. Robinson's personnel expenses for the quarter increased 9.4% YoY to $437.5 million. The costs were partly due to an increased employee headcount, which was 13% higher than in Q3 2020. By September 30, 2022, C.H. Robinson employed 15,482 workers, according to its 10-Q.
