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Updated Wave of Pink Slips Hit As Amazon Cuts Ties With Local Companies - Offers New Jobs

Hundreds of delivery drivers will be laid off in the coming months as small logistics companies are dropped by mega-online retailer Amazon.

Industry experts say as many as 7,000 lay-offs could be announced in relation to Amazon using fewer delivery contractors.

Industry experts say as many as 7,000 lay-offs could be announced in relation to Amazon using fewer delivery contractors.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

In this round, Courier Distribution Systems, LLC, will layoff or reduce the hours of 238 employees across its Milford, Dedham, and Everett facilities, according to a WARN letter filed with the Massachusetts Rapid Response Team.

In July, Systemized Logistics of Bristol, Connecticut, announced 50 employees would be laid off due to a decline in orders from Amazon, the company owner said in a WARN letter. The company made another 70 layoffs between its Massachusetts and New York firms.

In August, Sheffield Express, which had a branch in Bristol, too, said it will lay off 95 employees

In 2018, Amazon contracted with small delivery companies across the nation as the corporation scaled-up sales and its own in-house delivery service. As more blue Amazon vans hit the streets, fewer contracted delivery couriers are needed.

While there are jobs being cut, Amazon is also adding new employment opportunities to Connecticut.

In June Amazon announced that it will create a new delivery station at 90 Old Sherman Turnpike in Danbury - the site of the former Scholastic distribution center. 

Amazon is hiring for its in-house delivery service in Danbury. Partnered with DanburyWORKS, Amazon is hosting virtual, information sessions about how to obtain employment at the company's new delivery station. DanburyWORKS seeks to improve employment among the community's Black, brown, and immigrant populations.

*The first two sessions will be on Wednesday, Aug. 26, 1-2 p.m.; and Thursday, Sept. 10, 6-7:30  p.m.

Industry experts said there will be more Amazon-related layoffs to come - many more. Cuts in delivery orders have caused 1,200 layoffs to be announced across the U.S. in the package delivery industry, according to industry publication Freight Broker Live. Experts suggested that the number of layoffs could rise to as many as 7,000 workers across the U.S. in the coming months.

According to Freight Broker Live, other companies around the country that have announced Amazon-related layoffs include (company name, state, number of layoffs announced):

RCX Logistics: Texas - 500 employees; Florida - 72; Alabama- 66

Bear Down Logistics: Ohio, Virginia, Minnesota, Illinois - up to 280

Express Parcel Services: Florida - 267; Georgia, 74 …

The list goes on and includes facilities in North Carolina, Washington, and Maryland.

*Correction: The date and time have been updated. 

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