About 2,000 truck drivers, warehouse and dock staff, and office personnel of Humble, Texas-based U.S. Logistics Solutions (USLS), formerly Forward Air Solutions, say they were blindsided late Thursday after they were notified via conference calls or by text messages that the corporate was ceasing operations and that they’d not receive paychecks Friday.
Eric Culberson, former president of USLS, confirmed the closure in a LinkedIn post on Saturday, stating that hundreds of staff were without jobs after the corporate’s owner, private equity firm Ten Oaks Group, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, shuttered operations.
“Attributable to the abrupt decision by our private ownership group to shut our doors at the identical time business was surging, I’m completely devastated and heartbroken for the 2000+professionals I’ve had the pleasure of working with,” Culberson wrote. “The timing of this closure didn’t give me the prospect to thank my team for his or her commitment and support to our customers and to one another.”
Ten Oaks Group has not issued a press release in regards to the closure. Curtis Griner, managing partner and general counsel for Ten Oaks Group, didn’t reply to FreightWaves’ request in search of comment about when the previous USLS staff should expect to receive their final paychecks and paid day without work.
On the time of its closure, the corporate had undergone several rounds of layoffs prior to now few months, in keeping with multiple sources acquainted with the matter.
USLS, a logistics company that provided last-mile handling and distribution of time-sensitive products, had 500 drivers and 732 power units, in keeping with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s SAFER website. The FMCSA database shows the corporate’s insurance coverage stays energetic and its safety scores are far below the national averages for each drivers and vehicle inspections. The trucking company had one fatal crash, five injuries and 12 tow-aways over the past 24-month period.
In February 2021, FreightWaves reported that Forward Air was selling its Pool Distribution unit to Ten Oaks Group for $20 million. The unit consisted of $8 million in money and as much as a $12 million earn-out dependent upon financial performance.
In response to its website, USLS was Ten Oaks Group’s first transportation acquisition. After acquiring Forward Air Solutions of Greeneville, Tennessee, the firm renamed it USLS and moved its headquarters to Humble.
Some former USLS employees, who spoke to FreightWaves on the condition of anonymity, said they were notified by payroll company ADP in regards to the closure. In addition they said Ten Oaks Group was struggling to acquire further financing with its lenders, which forced the private equity firm to abruptly close USLS.
In response to the Texas Workforce Commission website, USLS had not filed a notice of its impending closure prior to closing on Thursday. The corporate’s website is not any longer working.
Employers with greater than 100 employees are required to notify staff as a part of the federal Employee Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act. WARN requires employers to offer their employees with a 60-day notice of an enormous layoff.
USLS operated 19 terminals, mainly on the Eastern side of the country, prior to shuttering operations.
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