Houston, Texas-based Waste Management, a comprehensive waste, and environmental services company, has announced plans to significantly reduce its workforce by embracing automation and reducing the company's reliance on physical labor.
The company's automation initiative will result in approximately 5,000 positions, with continuing job losses in 2025. It is estimated that "about 1,000 positions will be impacted in 2025 eliminating about 650 trucking positions by modernizing its fleet. Upgrades to its recycling plant in 2025 will reduce that workforce by 350."
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any plans to shed employees by replacing its two-man old-style rear loader with a new-style one-man automated side loader.
According to a company spokesperson, "There has been a long-term plan to not backfill specific vacated roles. By 2026, we’re anticipating that will lead to the reduction of about 5,000 positions. At the same time, increased automation is reducing the demand for these types of labor-intensive roles."
Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. We see good people being laid off through no fault of their own. Just because something terrible hasn't happened yet doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. While many employees can read the writing on the wall, why do most assume it’s targeted at someone else? Are you now wondering, Am I Next?