State Fund to Lay Off Quarter of Workforce

By Greg Jones, Western Bureau ChiefThe California State Compensation Insurance Fund on Thursday announced plans to lay off 25% of its workforce next year -- between 1,500 and 1,800 workers -- because of a declining share of the shrinking workers' compensation market and operational expenses more than twice the average for private insurers.An email from State Fund President and Chief Executive Officer Tom Rowe to employees said the company plans to eliminate the positions by May or June of 2012 because the carrier's operating expenses are too high."As you may know, we operate at an expe...