ROMEOVILLE – Comcast is transitioning operation of a Romeoville warehouse that handles equipment storage and repair for the greater Chicago region to a private company.
Comcast is moving operation of the warehouse, 1551 W. Normantown Road in Romeoville, to logistics provider Genco, said Jack Segal, vice president of communications for Comcast's greater Chicago region.
"They will continue to manage our customer equipment for this region from the warehouse in Romeoville," Segal said.
The 112 employees who work at the warehouse were informed of the move last November, Segal said, and Genco has committed to hiring more than half of those employees once the change takes place.
"They're going to transition more than half and that should happen around mid-September," Segal said.
Other employees at the warehouse also have found jobs within Comcast. Segal said the company is unsure what the net loss of jobs will be resulting from the change, since the full transition has not taken place yet.
"That will happen in a little more than a month," Segal said. "We're working with additional employees to determine if there are positions that match their skills."
Comcast informed the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity of the change on July 15. The state agency included notice of the change in its July WARN report, which notifies the public of pending layoffs and company closures.
Logistical operations are not Comcast's core business, Segal said. It believes it can better serve customers by having Genco take over operations at the warehouse, which receives, repairs, tests, cleans and stores Comcast equipment, including cable boxes and modems.
The hub warehouse then works with smaller local warehouses throughout the region in getting equipment out to customers. Comcast will continue to handle operations at the local warehouses, Segal said.
The cable company has initiated similar changes in other regions of the country, Segal said.
"The idea is to really effectively manage the equipment," Segal said. "If we do a really good job of managing the equipment, it's a positive impact for the customer."
The news comes after last week’s announcement that NRG Energy intends to cut about 250 jobs as it cuts operations at its Romeoville facility and converts Joliet to natural gas.
The workforce reduction will come in two waves – one in April and another in April 2016 – at the New Jersey-based company's coal-fired power plants in Joliet, Romeoville, Waukegan and Pekin.
Most of the job cuts will come from Joliet and Romeoville, according to Doug Vedas, business representative with IBEW Local 15, which represents about 425 of the 600 workers at all four plants.
About 50 employees will lose their jobs or take severance packages when a generating unit in Romeoville closes in April, while another 25 will do the same at the Joliet plant, Vedas said.
The biggest hit overall will be at the Joliet plant in April 2016, when NRG will cut about 120 jobs as it begins to convert that plant to natural gas, Vedas said. Coal-fired plants converted to natural gas typically require less manpower, he said.
The remaining layoffs will come from the Waukegan and Pekin plants, Vedas has said.
ROMEOVILLE – Comcast is transitioning operation of a Romeoville warehouse that handles equipment storage and repair for the greater Chicago region to a private company.
Comcast is moving operation of the warehouse, 1551 W. Normantown Road in Romeoville, to logistics provider Genco, said Jack Segal, vice president of communications for Comcast's greater Chicago region.
"They will continue to manage our customer equipment for this region from the warehouse in Romeoville," Segal said.
The 112 employees who work at the warehouse were informed of the move in November, Segal said, and Genco has committed to hiring more than half of those employees once the change takes place.
"They're going to transition more than half and that should happen around mid-September," Segal said.
Other employees at the warehouse also have found jobs within Comcast. Segal said the company is unsure what the net loss of jobs will be resulting from the change, since the full transition has not taken place yet.
"That will happen in a little more than a month," Segal said. "We're working with additional employees to determine if there are positions that match their skills."
Comcast informed the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity of the change on July 15. The state agency included notice of the change in its July WARN report, which notifies the public of pending layoffs and company closures.
Logistical operations are not Comcast's core business, Segal said. It believes it can better serve customers by having Genco take over operations at the warehouse, which receives, repairs, tests, cleans and stores Comcast equipment, including cable boxes and modems.
The hub warehouse then works with smaller local warehouses throughout the region in getting equipment out to customers. Comcast will continue to handle operations at the local warehouses, Segal said.
The cable company has initiated similar changes in other regions of the country, Segal said.
"The idea is to really effectively manage the equipment," Segal said. "If we do a really good job of managing the equipment, it's a positive impact for the customer."
The news comes after last week’s announcement that NRG Energy intends to cut about 250 jobs as it cuts operations at its Romeoville facility and converts Joliet to natural gas.
The workforce reduction will come in two waves – one in April and another in April 2016 – at the New Jersey-based company's coal-fired power plants in Joliet, Romeoville, Waukegan and Pekin.
Most of the job cuts will come from Joliet and Romeoville, said Doug Vedas, business representative with IBEW Local 15, which represents about 425 of the 600 workers at all four plants.
About 50 employees will lose their jobs or take severance packages when a generating unit in Romeoville closes in April, while another 25 will do the same at the Joliet plant, Vedas said.
The biggest hit overall will be at the Joliet plant in April 2016, when NRG will cut about 120 jobs as it begins to convert that plant to natural gas, Vedas said. Coal-fired plants converted to natural gas typically require less manpower, he said.
The remaining layoffs will come from the Waukegan and Pekin plants, Vedas has said.