Liberty Mutual, a global insurer headquartered in Boston, has confirmed that it will reduce its workforce in the United States by approximately 850 employees, which represents 2% of its total workforce.
850 More Layoffs Announced by Liberty Mutual
These job cuts will impact various departments within the company, with many of them taking effect by the end of the year. The affected areas include Liberty’s Retail Markets and Global Risk Solutions business units, as well as technology and other corporate groups. According to a company spokesperson, this move is part of a multi-year transformation aimed at ensuring the company’s future success and addressing the growing challenges presented by emerging risks. Liberty Mutual plans to reevaluate its business operations with a focus on efficiency and effectiveness, prioritizing its efforts to deliver the most value to its customers, agents, brokers, and partners.
These 850 layoffs at Liberty Mutual are in addition to the 370 jobs lost in the U.S. due to a restructuring in August.
In the first half of 2023, Liberty Mutual reported a net loss of $650 million, a significant contrast to the $156 million gain during the same period in 2022 and the more than $1.6 billion gain for the first half of 2021.
This reduction in workforce at Liberty Mutual follows a trend in the insurance industry, where other companies have also announced staff cuts. For instance, GEICO recently disclosed its plans to lay off 2,000 associates, or approximately 6% of its workforce, with the aim of becoming more agile and efficient while maintaining customer service.
Similar actions have been taken by other insurers as well. American Family Insurance and Farmers Insurance both confirmed staff reductions, with Farmers letting go of 11% of its workforce (about 2,400 employees) in response to industry challenges related to natural disasters, inflation, and rising costs. Additionally, various insurtech companies, including Branch Insurance, Corvus Insurance, and Pie Insurance, have also announced layoffs. This trend of downsizing has been observed in the insurtech sector, with several companies reducing their workforces in recent years, including Thimble, NEXT, Lemonade, Hippo, and Root.
