Amtrak to Shutter Riverside Reservation Center

Editor's Note: A previous version of this story indicated that all employees would be laid off, but representatives have since clarified that's not the case.

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA - Amtrak will close its Riverside reservation center in January, eliminating hundreds of jobs, though some positions will be transferred to the company's Philadelphia hub, officials said Thursday.

The company announced the closure in a message emailed to workers Wednesday. Operations in Riverside will cease Jan. 18, according to Amtrak.

The company's executive vice president, Tom Griffin, said in the message that operations in Riverside will be consolidated with its main reservation center in Philadelphia.

Griffin wrote that about 90 percent of Amtrak's customers now book their travel online and that over the past five years, the number of calls received at contact centers has declined by close to 3 million. He wrote that "at our busiest time, only 25 percent of our agents are on the phone at the same time."

Workers and union leaders who represent Amtrak employees, however, claim Amtrak has contracted with a third-party operator in Florida and are paying workers there less money, according to published reports. The minimum wage in Florida is $8.25. Griffin's email did not mention the outsourced operation.

The memo said that Amtrak will sell the Riverside facility. Spokeswoman Olivia Irvin acknowledged that an undisclosed number of managerial positions will be eliminated entirely, but the company will offer some Riverside call center employees an opportunity to relocate to Philadelphia and work out of that space.

More than 500 people are employed at the Riverside call center.

Sal Rodriguez, president of Local 2511 of the Transportation and Communication Union, which represents Amtrak workers in Riverside, said employees earn between $15 and $28 an hour.

— By City News Service / Image via Shutterstock