These reductions are unfortunate and I agree that an 18% reduction in a company that size is significant.
Having many unionized employees, I am not sure of their ability to get rid of those employees who don't perform well....many successful companies will cull the bottom 5-10% on a regular basis.
I never have issues with wait times, but I know that others do. I hope this does not get worse, but I am not sure how it can't.