Fort Worth GE locomotive plant to lay off 250 workers

The GE locomotive plant in Fort Worth is preparing to lay off hundreds of workers.

About 250 workers received layoff notices last week, roughly one-third of the plant's workforce.

The plant, which opened in 2013, has been rolling out nine to ten locomotives per week. However, GE says the rail market is going through a challenging time, and freight transport is down significantly year to year.

"Freight rail volume has dropped 4.5 percent year-over-year and more than 15 percent of the nation's freight locomotive fleet remains parked,” a spokesperson said. “As a result, production volume is down at the GE Manufacturing Solutions facility in Fort Worth, requiring only 50 percent of the site's available capacity.”

The job cuts will begin in April. GE says it will also scale back work hours, from 40 hours a week to 32, for other plant workers in June.