Insurance company Kemper lays off 339 workers, including 39 Alabama employees, citing inflation

[Algernon Moncrieff]

Source: Advance Local

Insurance company Kemper Corporation confirmed Thursday it has laid off 339 employees, including 39 in Alabama, citing “the longer-term economic impacts of the pandemic—primarily significant prolonged inflation.”

“Like most insurance carriers, particularly those who write personal lines, the longer-term economic impacts of the pandemic—primarily significant prolonged inflation—have required us to make changes to our businesses which have led to a lower volume of policies in-force,” Chicago-based Kemper said in a statement to AL.com. “That reduced volume means we have to respond accordingly, including making some tough but necessary decisions to adjust our employee count.”

“Nationwide, we laid off just over 3 percent, or 339 employees, including 39 employees in Alabama,” the statement went on to say.

Read more: https://www.al.com/business/2022/10/insurance-company-kemper-lays-off-339-workers-including-39-alabama-employees-citing-inflation.html

[Botany]

1. Or just maybe laying off employees right before the election will get people to blame Joe Biden for

inflation and then they vote GOP.

I might be wrong too. I wonder how much the CEO of Kemper makes?

[Lonestarblue]

6. That was my first thought.

The CEO of Kemper is Joseph P Jr., who has a salary of nearly $9 million as President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director at Kemper. His political donations have been to the Insuring America PAC, which I assume supports Republicans. Their site requires an email to view, so I refused.

[Botany]

7. Yup! "Did you hear how Jim lost his job down @ Kemper because of Joe Biden's inflation?"

Joseph P Jr. could scrimp by @ 5 million per year and keep all those people's jobs too.

The very wealthy understand that by making "the little people" hurt and controlling the
media they can keep the republicans (aka their partners) in power.

[melm00se]

10. Insuring America

https://www.transparencyusa.org/pa/pac/american-property-casualty-insurance-association-political-action-committee-insuring-america-pac-pac-9900142/

Don't need a login here.

[IronLionZion]

16. Alabama is not very competitive

it's a dark red state

[Chainfire]

2. I wonder how much of their business decline has come about by people like me

who told insurance companies that "I am mad as hell and I am not going to take it any more" and told the insurance companies to go pound sand. Insurance companies in hurricane zones ride the customers hard and put them up wet, and most of the customers have to take it and ask, "Sir, can I please have more abuse?"

What the insurance company is doing is reducing the workforce to increase profits. The surviving employees will just have to take up the extra work or face a pink slip. Employees are disposable.

[AllaN01Bear]

3. or give raises to its ceos im glad i am retired :)

[XanaDUer2]

8. What did you say to the insurance company?

I'd like to tell them off

[Chainfire]

9. I simply told the agent that I had been dealing with for 20 years, where he could put his proposal.

He smugly told me that I couldn't just "drop" my insurance. I dug into savings, paid off my mortgage and let the policy lapse. If my home is blown away or burns, I have a workable plan of where I will spend my last few years.

[Captain Zero]

4. WHERE did they reduce their policy exposure?

He states they have reduced the number of policies they carry and makes sure they state they laid off 39 in Alabama and then seems to say oh it's the inflation. So they must have reduced the number of policies in Alabama. I wonder if they laid of more in other states ? And that would indicate where they are refusing or cancelling policies. Well I certainly don't believe hurricanes due to global warming could be the long-term trend or cause here. No not for a minute.

[bucolic_frolic]

11. Hurricanes ... you nailed it /nt

[dembotoz]

5. worked in and around telecom for years...this is about the time ATT would always do their big rif

and as i look around the telecom news currently there are multiple layoffs.

if you could make it thru the witching hour you would be safe for another year.

Understand it has to do with union rules...ability to bump folks with less seniority, Folks using up sick time and vaca time,
Not having to pay holiday time off or bonus....

It was also true that there was a lot of shuffling going on with folks with new job assignments who hadn't a clue what the hell they were doing.
If you were going to have a legendary install disaster it would probably be from now til the end of the year. and I would not even mention billing

[Algernon Moncrieff]

14. It's also enough distance from Christmas to avoid a "Scrooge" charge

They'll argue with holiday hiring, these folks will be fine.

Social media posts said there was no warning/notice of the RIFs. Those RIFed could apply for other open jobs in the company, which translates to me as "accept a relocation and/or a demotion."

[melm00se]

12. Looking at Kemper's financials

they have not turned a profit in the last 4 rolling quarters

Net income in quarter ending 9/30/2021 - ($75,300,000)
Net income in quarter ending 12/31/2021 - ($105,800,000)
Net income in quarter ending 3/31/2022 - ($94,800,000)
Net income in quarter ending 6/30/2022 - ($74,700,000)

Also, it is expected that they will report a loss for Q3 which will be announced on November 2 after the market closes. The expectation is they will show a loss of $0.43/share which would put the Q3 loss at $25,000,000 or so.

[iluvtennis]

13. RIFs and Layoffs are what corporations do when they can't turn a profit. They can't blame President

Biden for that.

[pnwmom]

15. They owed too much in Florida, so they're pretending the layoff are due to inflation. n/t

[Quanto Magnus]

17. And the executives

will get huuuuge bonuses for 'innovative thinking' and 'taking bold action' or some such nonsense...

[MacKasey]

18. How about the people at the top cutting their salaries by at least 10% before any layoffs

The people in charge should be reducing their salaries first before raising prices or layoffs.