Elizabeth, N.J.-based New England Motor Freight, Inc. says that it could lay off as many as 1,690 workers as it undergoes chapter 11 bankruptcy, NJ.com reported. The company — which provides small freight or less-than-truckload shipping services in the United States and Canada — sent the state a WARN notice saying that the job losses would be effective on Feb. 15, four days after it and 10 related entities filed for chapter 11 protection. It’s unclear if those layoffs have already occurred. New England Motor Freight was purchased by Myron P. Shevell in 1977 from Farmland Dairies. Since then it has grown from 55 units and five terminals to more than 10,000 pieces of equipment and 40 terminals throughout the Northeast, Midwest and Puerto Rico, according to its website.
