Yellow is ‘on verge of closing,’ company tells Biden in plea for mediation

Yellow Corp., after decades of losses in excess of $1 billion, is asking for presidential assistance in helping solve what it calls an “ongoing, intractable labor dispute” with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) union over a new contract that doesn’t expire until the end of next March.

In a letter to President Joe Biden signed by Yellow CEO Darren Hawkins and Yellow Board Chairman Matt Doheny, the 100-year-old company says it has “worked closely” with the White House, Department of Labor and the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service to resolve this matter, save jobs and “prevent an already fragile supply chain from breaking.”

“Despite support from your Administration, these efforts have proven unsuccessful at getting both sides to the table to discuss a way forward,” Yellow’s letter says.

Yellow also is suing the Teamsters for $137 million during negotiations for a contract that does not expire until March 31, 2024. But it is getting hammered on Wall Street; its stock is selling for roughly 89 cents a share, at press time.

Yellow says that for eight months, the IBT has refused to meet with Yellow to discuss the company’s long planned modernization effort known as “One Yellow.”

“In April, the IBT suggested that we open our contract early and our Board of Directors agreed, yet the IBT still will not meet to negotiate a contract that includes pay raises for workers,” Yellow’s letter says. “IBT leadership says they’re too busy with UPS, something that doesn’t sit well with our 30,000 employees who are concerned about their livelihoods.

“As a result of union intransigence, Yellow’s business plan has been frozen,” the company says. “The company has lost market share and has been unable to secure additional lending for day-to-day business operations.”

The Teamsters deny what it calls “baseless allegations” made by Yellow in its “frivolous” lawsuit.

“Yellow Corp.’s claims of breach of contract by the Teamsters are unfounded and without merit,” Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien said in a statement.

“After decades of gross mismanagement, Yellow blew through a $700 million bailout from the federal government, and now it wants workers to foot the bill. For a company that loves to cry poor, Yellow’s executives seem to have no problem paying a team of high-priced lawyers to wage a public relations battle—all in a failed attempt to mask their incompetence,” the Teamsters say.

White House interference with Yellow’s operations is nothing new. In the closing weeks of the Trump administration, Yellow secured a $700 million loan in exchange for the government’s 30% equity stake in the company.

“股票会被抹杀,应该伴随矩阵y go out of business,” Yellow said in its letter.

This would mean:

• The loss of 30,000 jobs, 22,000 of which are union jobs;

• The loss of U.S. taxpayers’ equity investment in Yellow Corp.; and

• A clogged American supply chain.

的影响超越了黄色。黄说,续ributes $34 billion in additional economic activity per year based on its annual revenue of $5.2 billion and creates an additional 57,390 American jobs. It also has $1.5 billion in outstanding debt, including the government loan. Yellow has paid approximately $66 million in interest on the loan, but it has repaid just $230 of the principal owed on the loan, which comes due next year, according to theNew York Times.

Yellow holds roughly an 8.8% market share in its sector of the less-than-truckload (LTL) business. Yellow says “there is no industry precedent for a failure this large.”

That could be debatable. Consolidated Freightways was a $2 billion LTL carrier when it suddenly closed on Labor Day 2002. At the time it filed for bankruptcy, the company had 15,000 employees.

If Yellow closes its doors, Teamsters’ leadership has said they would “find new jobs” for our employees.

“But our 22,000 Teamster employees most likely will not be absorbed into an industry increasingly dominated by non-union carriers,” Yellow told the White House.

“The notion that another union job is waiting for them—one with full family benefits, and the same seniority, shifts and routes—is simply not credible,” Yellow says, calling the outcome “catastrophic” for the venerable Overland Park, Kansas-based company.

On June 27, Yellow filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas that alleges breach of contract and loss of enterprise value due to the union’s ongoing refusal to negotiate.

“我们已经清楚,然而,我们做好准备to negotiate any time and any place,” Yellow’s letter said. “Strengthening union jobs remains a top priority for your administration and it’s a goal we share.”

Yellow noted that its CEO Hawkins played an important role on the White House Supply Chain Task Force and as a Registered Apprenticeship Ambassador to the Department of Labor. It says it also has trained nearly 3,000 skilled apprentices through its company-owned Driving Academies and hopes to have the opportunity to continue training more commercial truck drivers in the years ahead.

“Knowing of your strong commitment to union jobs, we are formally requesting your assistance in getting Yellow and the Teamsters to the table,” Yellow said. “We firmly believe that negotiating and working together always yields the best results. It’s what’s right for our workers’ jobs, America’s fragilesupply chain and American taxpayers’ investment in Yellow.”

Since 2019, Yellow has been executing One Yellow to transform Yellow from several regional carriers into a single, streamlined super-regional carrier. By integrating its operating companies and network into a super-regional carrier, Yellow will strengthen jobs while greatly improving its competitive position in a marketplace increasingly dominated by non-union carriers. One Yellow will enable Yellow to process higher freight volumes more efficiently, reduce operating expenses and enhance its profitability for the benefit of all Yellow stakeholders, including he 22,000 Teamsters it employs.