Layoffs Announced At Several Connecticut Companies As State Continues To Shed Jobs

As the country created more than 2 million new jobs, Connecticut lost a total of 200 jobs in 2016.

Private sector employment in the state grew, but that was offset by a large number of public sector layoffs, according to the state Department of Labor.

The state did get off to a good start this year with an additional 5,700 net jobs being added in January.

“The annual benchmark revision process indicates we saw fairly strong job growth in the first quarter of 2016, followed by a sharp decline in the second quarter,” said Andy Condon, Director of the Office of Research. “Third quarter job growth was modest while the fourth quarter was slightly down, ending the year essentially flat. January jobs were up sharply giving us a good start on the new year.”

Connecticut’s unemployment rate in January (most recent month available) was 4.5 percent, according to the state Department of Labor. Last year at the same time the state's unemployment rate was 5.5 percent.

Connecticut could potentially be looking at another mass layoff of state employees that would be much larger than any single private sector layoff. Negotiations are ongoing with state employee collective bargaining units. Gov. Dannel Malloy’s budget proposal assumes a $700-million savings from concessions, but has a contingency plan for more than 4,000 layoffs if that savings isn’t realized.

Recent Layoff Announcements

Several companies in Connecticut have completed or in the process of collectively laying off workers.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company will close its Wallingford site by the end of 2018 and many of those roles will go to other U.S. locations. The total job loss will be greater than 700 positions.

Verizon will close its Wallingford and Meriden call centers, which will result in the loss of 558 Connecticut-based employees. The jobs are being transferred to other areas of the country, according to the New Haven Register.

Marriott International cut about 165 jobs in February and another 50 positions are being cut by the end of March. The move comes after Marriott acquired Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide. Laid off workers can apply for other jobs within the company.

The Royal Bank of Scotland will lay off another 21 positions by March 21. The company has laid off about 270 Stamford positions since May 2015.

Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals in Ridgefield plans to eliminate 119 positions through August 2017 and Fortune Plastics in Old Saybrook will have 93 layoffs by April 23.

It’s not all bad news though. Sikorsky Aircraft will keep and grow to approximately 8,000 positions through at least 2032 and agreed to nearly double its spending for in-state suppliers as part of an incentive deal with the state.

Germany-based Henkel Corporation will relocate its Laundry & Home Care and Beauty Care headquarters, which could create up to 266 new jobs.

Brick and Mortar Stores Could Close Locations
A few large brick-and-mortar stores have recently announced plans to close locations across the nation. Staples plans to close 70 stores in North America by the end of the year after declining sales. It hasn’t announced what locations will close.

Macy’s is closing 68 stores across the country, but none were in Connecticut. JCPenney could close as many as 140 stores over the next few months. The list of closed stores is expected this month.

Radioshack declared bankruptcy for the second time in two years and plans to immediately close 200 stores and evaluate the future of the rest, according to CNN Money. It closed about half its stores in the last bankruptcy