Dollar Thrifty Announces Reorganization

Thursday, August 2nd 2007, 4:38 pm

By: News On 6

Thursday was the last day of work for dozens of employees at Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, located on 31st Street near Yale. The company handed out pink slips to more than 70 people, 25% of its management and some support staff. The employees got the news on Thursday, but one employee says many people knew it was coming, still, News On 6 anchor Latoya Silmon reports it wasnâ€™t any easier to deal with.

Signs of its success are everywhere.

â€œYeah it's been a good, very good company to work for,â€ Dollar Thrifty employee Tim Dailey said.

But for 75 of his coworkers it's the end of the road. Dollar Thrifty announced on Thursday that it has to let 25% of its management and support staff go.

â€œEverybody is on edge just because we've heard the rumors and now itâ€™s taken place,â€ said Dailey.

â€œIt's difficult in that they're not being furloughed for any type of productivity reason, or any kind of performance reason. They're being furloughed because the structure is being changed to make us more competitive and leaner, so that's a difficult thing to say to somebody,â€ Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group CEO Gary Paxton said.

But CEO Gary Paxton says the company had to let them go. He says the cost of its fleet rose 25% last year and another 25% this year.
â€œSo what you're seeing is a little bit of a margin squeeze. We're still a profitable company, but the amount of our profits are being squeezed, so it's our duty to see how we operate our company for our shareholders and all the employees, and operate as efficiently as we can,â€ said Paxton.

Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group says it will continue benefits, and offered severance packages for those who were laid off Thursday.

Watch the video: Dollar Thrifty Layoffs