Assurant to lay off 442 workers in York

More than 440 workers will lose their jobs as Assurant closes its York County operations next year due to consolidation.

In a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act filing with the state Department of Labor & Industry, Assurant said 429 employees from its device care center at 625 Willow Springs Lane, East Manchester Township, and 13 associated employees from its 58 Grumbacher Road, Suite C, Manchester Township, facility will be affected.

No workers impacted are unionized.

A spokesperson described Assurant Inc. as a leading global business services Fortune 500 company that supports, protects and connects major consumer purchases. “Assurant supports the advancement of the connected world by partnering with the world’s leading brands to develop innovative solutions and to deliver an enhanced customer experience through mobile device solutions, extended service contracts, vehicle protection services, renters’ insurance, lender-placed insurance products and other products.”

For example, the spokesperson said, the device care centers support New York City-based Assurant’s trade-in and insurance programs for connected devices by repairing and refurbishing smartphones, laptops, tablets, earbuds, smart watches, etc., so that they can be re-used.

In a statement explaining the decision to close its York locations, the company said: “As part of our broader strategy to drive operational excellence and efficiency as well as to support emerging client needs, we have decided to consolidate our device care center operations from three locations to two sites (Dallas and Nashville), as well as to locate operations closer to our clients’ primary hubs,” Assurant said in a statement.

“As a result, we will be closing our device care center in York. We’re very proud of the dedication demonstrated by our York employees who have served our clients over the last 24 years, and we thank them for their years of service. Our commitment is to treat each person with empathy, dignity and respect, and we will support them through this transition with severance and outplacement support, as well as opportunities to apply to other roles within the company in the coming months.”

The WARN letter said job layoffs will likely begin Jan. 2, 2024, and conclude by May 2024, when the York Device Care Center is expected to close permanently.

Paula Wolf is a freelance writer