CVS Health to cut deeper into CT employment as dozens more to lose jobs [Hartford Courant]

HARTFORD — CVS Health Corp. will cut deeper into its corporate workforce in Connecticut with dozens of additional layoffs on top of those that already began this month — a move that will take a further toll on employment at its Hartford health insurance business.

Rhode Island-based CVS told the state labor department in a filing Friday that it will cut 70 additional corporate jobs by the end of this year, pushing up to nearly 600 the number of layoffs that are either in Connecticut or tied to CVS’ Aetna unit in Hartford. CVS acquired Aetna, the Hartford-based health insurer, in 2018.

Of the 70 positions, 30 are based in Hartford, bringing the total number of corporate job cuts at the Aetna unit in the city to 336 in two waves of layoffs tied to a nationwide workforce reduction of 5,000 announced earlier this summer, a CVS spokesman said, in a statement.

The 336 jobs in Hartford are part of a larger workforce reduction that now stands at 561 and includes employees who “reside/work remotely in other states but report to someone located in Connecticut,” CVS has said.

The remaining 40 jobs disclosed Friday fall into the latter category, CVS said.

The first wave of layoffs began last week, and the job cuts disclosed Friday are targeted for Dec. 30.

“We remain committed to supporting impacted colleagues,” the CVS  statement said, “and they will receive severance pay and benefits, including access to outplacement services.”

In Hartford, the CVS layoffs have raised concerns about the affect on shops and restaurants that depend on the lunchtime and afterhours trade from the city’s big corporations. The job cuts also stoke worries about the future of Aetna’s massive headquarters building on Farmington Avenue.

Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin, who also received a copy of the layoff notice filed with the state, did respond to a request seeking comment.

In announcing the nationwide layoffs this summer, CVS Health said it is cutting expenses and shifting investments into health care delivery and technology that will drive future growth.

At that time, CVS said, “We do not expect there to be any impact to our customer-facing colleagues in our stores, pharmacies, clinics or customer services centers.”

When CVS acquired Aetna in 2018, its agreement with Connecticut insurance regulators included a promise to keep employment at Aetna and its subsidiaries at 5,300 for at least four years. The four years ended in 2022.

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CVS also agreed to keep Aetna’s headquarters in Hartford for a decade and create a center of excellence for CVS’ insurance business

In 2020, CVS confirmed that it laid off some Aetna workers, saying it was cutting a “very small percentage” of workers in Hartford. CVS also would not say which areas of Aetna were affected by the layoffs, noting they were in “all part of the Aetna business.”

In Connecticut, CVS’ workforce also includes a chain of more than 170 pharmacies. A current job count for the Aetna headquarters in Hartford has not been disclosed by CVS.

CVS employs about 300,000 nationwide and the 5,000 job cuts represent about 2% of the company’s overall workforce, CVS has said.

CVS has moved into offering health care services with its in-store “MinuteClinics,” emphasizing the opportunity to offer primary health care while downplaying the traditional retail sales of its pharmacies.

In February, CVS pushed deeper into providing physician services for patients. CVS said it would pay $10.6 billion to acquire Oak Street Health, a primary care provider mainly for adults covered by Medicare Advantage.

Kenneth R. Gosselin can be reached at kgosselin@courant.com.

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