A well-known Canuck company will be disappointing hordes of Canadians this year as it plans to cut around 1,000 jobs over the next 12 months – despite posting record profits for 2015.
Canadian Pacific Railway said the majority of cuts, which equate to about $400 million in savings, would come mid-year as a result of attrition on an older workfoce.
While disappointing, the news shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise, considering the Calgary-based rail company has already cut 6,000 to 7,000 positons since 2012 – almost 2,000 of which were made last year.
Last year’s cuts were so severe, it amounted to about 12 per cent of its workforce – the company now employers just 12,800 people across both its Canadian and U.S. operations.
The company made the announcement yesterday after releasing its fourth-quarter and year-end results - while profits slipped 29 per cent in the three months before December 31, CP actually posted record profits.
The railway had $6.71 billion in revenue and $1.35 billion in net income in 2015 – both record highs but still lagging behind analysts’ expectations.
“There is still more to accomplish," said CEO Hunter Harrison said during a conference call yesterday.
Harrison has become renowned for his drastic cut-the-fat approach which extended beyond staff – the company has been selling off real estate and side-lining hundreds of locomotives as it strives to become the most efficient rail operation in North America.
“I think this model of ours outperforms the competition, maybe even more in hard times than it does in good times,” Harrison added.
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