The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TRV), a Hartford, Conn.–based insurance company that operates a field office in Syracuse, on July 23 announced plans to cut 450 positions nationwide, including about 180 in the Syracuse office.
A company spokesman said he couldn’t speculate on what the job cuts might eventually mean for the future of the local office.
The layoffs began this week and will continue through late 2014, the Travelers spokesman said.
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The positions are part of Travelers’ personal-insurance business, which includes auto coverage, the spokesman said.
The Syracuse field office is located in the The Galleries at 440 S. Warren St.
Even with the cuts, Travelers will “continue to have a presence” in Syracuse, but the spokesman wasn’t able to provide the number of employees that will remain in the local office.
The Travelers will still employ about 2,600 at locations in New York state and about 30,000 nationwide, the company said.
Travelers executives made the job-cut announcement during the firm’s July 23 earnings conference call.
The firm provided The Central New York Business Journal a short transcript of what was discussed in that call regarding the staff reductions.
The personal-auto marketplace is changing, Brian MacLean, president of The Travelers Companies, said during the conference call.
“We remain committed to offering a product that is both competitively priced and delivers an appropriate return for our shareholders and accordingly, we are taking expense reduction actions that will allow us to improve both pricing competitiveness and product returns,” MacLean said.
The Travelers expects to reduce its claims and other insurance expenses by $140 million by 2015, according to MacLean.
“The majority of the savings will be driven by staff reductions, primarily through attrition. But we will also be giving notice to approximately 450 employees this week. We expect to take a restructuring charge of about $16 million, $10 million of which is expected to be incurred in the third quarter of 2013,” MacLean told company investors.
The Travelers Companies earned $925 million, or $2.41 per diluted share, for the second quarter that ended June 30, the company said.
That compares to $499 million, or $1.26 per diluted share, in the same quarter a year ago.
Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com
