New York-based life insurer MetLife Inc., laid off 1,000 employees during the first quarter of 2009, including an unspecified number of workers in Connecticut, a company spokesperson has confirmed.
MetLife’s Chief Financial Officer William Wheeler disclosed the cuts today at an investor’s conference in New York, spokesman John Calagna told the Hartford Business Journal.
Calagna said the company, which has major operations in Bloomfield, is working to save nearly $400 million in annual expenses and that these cuts were announced to employees late last year.
Calagna added that there “were not a significant number of people who lost their jobs in Connecticut or Hartford.”
 “As a company we are looking to become more efficient,” Calagna said.
MetLife recorded a $544 million net loss during the first quarter of 2009, compared to a $648 million profit in the year-ago period.
Life insurers across the U.S., including The Hartford Financial Services Group and the Phoenix Cos., have announced major layoffs over the past six months as they struggle to cope with the financial crisis.
