Associated Press Published

Railroad Company CSX Lays off 70 at West Virginia Facility

CSX

Railroad company CSX says it has cut 70 jobs at a locomotive shop in West Virginia, while 270 others continue to work at the facility.

Company spokesman Rob Doolittle says the shop in Huntington will remain open and keep servicing locomotives. Affected employees are eligible to seek positions at other nearby CSX facilities.

CSX and Norfolk Southern, the two major railroads operating in West Virginia, have continued to post profits while shedding personnel, idling equipment and cutting overhead during the downturn in Appalachian coal production the past few years.

Both reported upticks in hauling West Virginia coal in the first quarter of this year.

CSX closed administrative offices in Huntington last year.

According to Jacksonville, Florida-based CSX, the company’s management is reviewing operations aimed at improving efficiency, safety and service.