M&T Bank pledges at least 1K jobs at Bridgeport site

M&T Bank pledged Thursday to employ at least 1,000 within a year at the Bridgeport headquarters of People’s United Bank after acquiring one of Connecticut largest lenders and combining operating systems of the two banks.

Buffalo-based M&T made that commitment in a letter to Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, who along with a growing number of local, state and federal elected officials, expressed alarm at the depth of the job cuts disclosed by M&T in a July 22 filing with the state labor department.

The labor department filing disclosed that 747 jobs — 661 of them at the People’s

United’s Main Street headquarters — were on the chopping block. Elected officials said they were taken off guard, having understood job loss would be minimal.

Tong praised the commitment outlined by M&T on Thursday that not only addressed jobs but economic impacts, lending strategies, including for small businesses, and corporate responsibility.

“M&T Bank is making a significant public commitment to Connecticut jobs, and to the city of Bridgeport in this letter,” Tong said, in a statement. “This is an important step forward after weeks of mixed messages and confusion.

“I appreciate the commitments made by M&T Bank to Bridgeport and to Connecticut

in this letter, but my work is not done. I will be watching their actions closely to ensure local jobs are protected and Connecticut communities remain a priority. I look forward to continued discussions.”

The letter Thursday from M&T’S chairman and chief executive Rene F. Jones sought to clarify the depth of those cuts and how they fit into the larger picture of the $7.6 billion merger announced in February. The acquisition is expected to be completed this fall and the system conversion is anticipated in February 2022.

Spokespeople for M&T and People’s United did not immediately respond to a request for the current employee count at the headquarters.

Bridgeport would become a regional headquarters for M&T’S expansion deep into New England, where People’s United has a franchise in Connecticut and across New England.

Jones wrote that M&T conducted hundreds of discussions with People’s United managers and employees to determine positions that overlapped with existing ones at M&T. The reductions that were identified are mainly in administrative and senior management positions, he wrote.

Based on that analysis, Jones wrote that M&T would keep 1,959 People’s United employees in Connecticut, or 72% of the workforce. The 747 jobs disclosed in the filing represent about 28% of the People’s United employees, he wrote.

“However, as alternate opportunities at M&T are identified, we expect the number of impacted employees to decrease,” Jones wrote.

The number of lost jobs could go down, in part, because M&T has determined that there are 1,500 open positions across its entire footprint across the Northeast. Of the open positions, approximately 1,000 are not tied to a specific location.

People’s United employees losing their jobs would be given first priority for those positions, which include both hybrid and remote work options.

Jones wrote that more than 1,000 employees in People’s United branches — 616 in traditional branches and 452 in Stop & Shop locations — would keep their jobs. For Stop & Shop branches that are closing, those employees would be transferred to nearby traditional branches, Jones wrote.

The layoffs following the merger are expected to take place in 2022. The severance package for Connecticut employees will include an average of 38.5 weeks of pay and outplacement services. Eligible employees also will receive medical benefits, up to a maximum of 52 weeks.