Hartford Business Journal

4 Hartford Business Journal • November 13, 2017 • www.HartfordBusiness.com Briefs Report: Immigrants contribute $1.2B to CT economy Immigrants in Connecticut generated $1.2 billion in business revenue in 2014, according to fresh data from the Washington, D.C.-based American Immigration Council. Immigrants represent 17.6 percent of the state's labor force and support Connecticut's economy across sectors, comprising more than 25 percent of all computer and math sciences employees, the report states. A third of immigrant-residents work in building and grounds cleaning and maintenance, the council reports. Connecticut immigrants also contributed $3.3 billion in federal taxes, $1.8 billion in state and local taxes, and spent $13.8 billion to bolster the state's economy, according to the American Immigration Council, which obtained its statistics using U.S. Census data and other sources for all 50 states. MetLife laying off 61 in Bloomfield MetLife, which has major operations in Bloomfield, said it is restructuring operations there and terminating 61 employees, effective Dec. 31. In a letter to the state Department of Labor, Beth Noonan, MetLife's human resources director for global operations, said the restructuring "is expected to be permanent." Four-hundred employees will remain at the Bloomfield location after the layoffs are complete, said MetLife spokesperson Kayla Goodwin. "After evaluating how to service a portion of our business we will not be retaining, the decision was made to eliminate the roles currently servicing this business," Goodwin said in an email. "These decisions are not a reflection on the valuable contributions of the affected employees, and all will be eligible for severance pay and benefits, including outplacement services." About a third of the layoffs will impact claims and case specialists, the company said. B of A closing downtown Hartford branch Bank of America said it's closing next summer its CityPlace II branch, one of two left in downtown Hartford, bowing to changing customer habits. The nation's No. 3 bank in assets and the biggest in Connecticut by deposits recently mailed out customer notices alerting them to the impending closing of the first-floor branch at 185 Asylum St., effective Aug. 28, 2018, the bank notice said. After that, B of A's two nearest branches will be downtown at 30 State House Square, and at 147 Washington St., in the South End. In all, only six B of A branches will continue operating within the city limits out of 46 that will remain in the Greater Hartford region, said spokesperson Tara Burke. Burke said declining foot traffic at the CityPlace branch fueled the decision to shut it. She said more customers prefer to bank online via personal computers, smartphones and other mobile devices. ITEP: Republican tax plan benefits CT's top 1% the most The federal tax-cut proposal unveiled last month by Republican House leaders would treat Connecticut's wealthiest more generously over time, according to a new state-by-state analysis of the plan. The gist is that lower rates, a higher standard deduction and a new tax credit — all benefits for the middle class — are designed to expire or become less generous over the next decade, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). Meanwhile, benefits for wealthy residents, such as a shrinking estate tax, become more generous by 2027. In all, the richest 1 percent of Connecticut residents will see their share of the proposed tax cut grow from 31 percent in 2017 to 50 percent in 2027, the ITEP analysis said. That's an average cut of $53,480 that grows to an average cut of $66,020 over the decade. Democrats have criticized the plan for having a disproportionate benefit for the wealthy at the expense of the federal deficit. Democrats also don't like that the plan eliminates the ability to deduct state and local taxes on federal tax returns. That deduction is worth $8.7 billion a year to Connecticut taxpayers, according to Department of Revenue Services Commissioner Kevin Sullivan. Bradley welcomes seasonal Spirit airline service to Florida Spirit Airlines is ramping up daily, nonstop seasonal service from Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks to Florida's Gulf Coast. The service, which began Nov. 9, will take passengers from Windsor Locks to airports in Tampa and Fort Myers, the airline said. Mark Kopczak, Spirit Airlines' vice president of network planning, said "ultra-low cost options" are in demand as the cold descends on the Northeast. The airline operates several daily flights from Hartford, including service to Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Myrtle Beach, Fort Myers and Tampa. Bradley joined Spirit's network earlier this year. Week in Review TOP STORY Lembo, employers urge end to HHC/Anthem standoff C omptroller Kevin Lembo and several major employers sent a joint letter to Anthem and Hartford HealthCare last week calling for a resolution to their acrimonious contract negotiations, which they said are causing financial distress for their employees. The letter, also signed by the Mohegan Tribe, the mayor and town manager of West Hartford and Bob Tessier, the executive director of the CT Coalition of Taft-Hartley Health Funds, took Anthem and Hartford HealthCare to task for failing to resolve contract negotiations that have left thousands of patients without insurance coverage for some services rendered by HHC, which owns numerous hospitals, urgent-care clinics and other facilities in Greater Hartford. Contract negotiations broke off Oct. 1 and have been continuing on and off since that time. Lembo and the letters' other authors said they were writing on behalf of "some of the largest employers in Connecticut and the region" with approximately 300,000 people covered by the insurer or served by the hospital. Their employees are experiencing "heightened frustration" with both parties, the letter said. BY THE NUMBERS $1.2B The business revenue generated by immigrants in Connecticut in 2014, according to the American Immigration Council. $15,187 The annual average cost to provide a private-sector employee health benefits in Connecticut, according to a survey by Mercer. 61 The number of employees insurer MetLife will lay off at its Bloomfield office. 113,100 The number of women-owned busi- nesses in Connecticut, which is up nearly 1 percent from a year earlier, according to a new report. TOP 5 MOST READ On HartfordBusiness.com • 1. Lembo, Mohegans, others urge end to HHC/Anthem standoff • 2. Former United Healthcare CEO to take over Anthem's top post • 3. Worker's comp rates to drop 14% • 4. UConn, URI and EB set up undersea technology institute • 5. Report: Demand for CT cybersecurity workers strong STAY CONNECTED For breaking and daily Greater Hartford business news go to www.HartfordBusiness.com HBJ on Twitter: @HartfordBiz HBJ on Facebook: www.facebook.com/HartfordBiz HBJ on Linkedln: www.linkedin.com/company/ the-Hartford-Business-Journal Daily e-newsletters: HBJ Today, CT Morning Blend www.HartfordBusiness.com/subscribe Weekly e-newsletters: CT Green Guide Weekly, CT Health Care Weekly www.HartfordBusiness.com/subscribe Comptroller Kevin Lembo is urging Anthem and Hartford HealthCare to end their contract stalemate. PHOTO | HBJ FILE Spirit Airlines is adding flights out of Bradley.

• Cover