Oregon Mutual Insurance has notified state officials that it plans to eliminate 62 positions across several departments as part of an organizational restructuring.
The layoffs will affect employees in roles including business analysis, customer service, administrative support, claims technology and operations, engineering, and human resources.
Underwriting roles will account for approximately 20% of the impacted positions, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notice filed with the state.
The move comes as mutual insurers across the US face growing financial pressure tied to a combination of rising loss costs, a hardening reinsurance market, and more frequent severe weather events.
These conditions have prompted some mutual companies to increase rates; however, the impact of those rate adjustments has often been delayed due to how premiums are earned over time.
In the first half of 2024, some mutual insurers reported modest improvements in underwriting performance, partly supported by investment income.
The staffing cuts also come amid ongoing efforts to stabilize the company’s performance following a series of underwriting challenges. In a previous ratings assessment, AM Best classified Oregon Mutual Group’s operating performance as marginal, citing volatility in underwriting outcomes due to both economic and social inflation.
AM Best downgraded the financial strength rating of Oregon Mutual Group affiliates – Oregon Mutual Insurance Co. and Western Protectors Insurance Co. – to B- (Fair) from B++ (Good). It also revised the long-term issuer credit ratings to “bb-” (Fair) from “bbb” (Good).
AM Best also said the company’s underwriting losses have been partly offset in recent years through investment income and realized capital gains.
Oregon Mutual is not alone in executing workforce reductions. Other mutual insurers, such as Liberty Mutual, have also implemented layoffs in recent quarters.
In December 2023, Liberty Mutual eliminated approximately 850 jobs – as about 2% of its US workforce – as part of a wider effort to streamline operations and adjust to changing market conditions.
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