Paccar, Peterbilt & Kenworth

Paccar companies Perterbilt Motors Company & Kenworth Truck Company started handing out the first round of pink slips last November. Since the companies refuse to issue specifics, layoff numbers are from leaked information. The companies submit mass layoff notices to the BLS, these numbers are public information if any reporter in the area has the energy to go get them.

Perterbilt Motors Company has plants in Denton, Texas and Madison, Tennessee listed on their web site. But 4News in Nashville wrote that they laid off 154, just after the first of the year, at a plant in LaVergne. Tenn. 4News also reported that 667 layoffs took place at their Madison, Tenn. Plant. The Denton Record-Chronicle reported that the Denton, Texas plant had lay offs in early February.

Kenworth Truck Company has plants in Ste.Therese, Quebec, Chillicothe, Ohio and Renton, Washington. The best layoff information I have come across is also from the 4News article and states that the Madison, Tenn. And Denton, Texas facilities are cutting down to one shift. No lay off numbers have been available.

Finally, some good news.

In a Paccar Inc. May 11, Press Release Kenworth is building a $400 million powertrain plant in Columbus, Miss. This plant should be ready for the sales boost of 2009 trucks, that truck manufacturers anticipate to take place just prior to the next round of EPA emission standards that become effective in 2010.

From the Press Release:

“…shared Jim Cardillo, executive vice president. "The facility will initially hire approximately two hundred employees and it is anticipated that there will be five hundred employees as production increases over time. Additional employment opportunities, which will generate significant economic benefits to the region, will be created during the construction phase and as a result of suppliers expanding their capacity in the area," added Cardillo.”