Sun Life A Little less Bright
Sun Life Financial laid off 4 percent of its global workforce on Wednesday, including several employees at their Wellesley Hills office.
An employee at the office called Wednesday’s work environment “terrifying,” as staff watched and waited while managers plucked people from their cubicles one-by-one, never to return.
Steve Kee, assistant vice president of communications for Sun Life Financial, said the company had “taken some actions” after “evaluating various projects and initiatives.”
Kee would not say exactly how many employees were trimmed in Wellesley Hills or globally, or what projects and initiatives were cut. Kee would not discuss any details of the firings, other than all terminated employees had been notified.
“We will continue to move forward with our business, and continue to operate during these economic times, make prudent business decisions, and continue to service our 25 million customers,” Kee said.
Foreclosures Driving ACORN Nuts
ACORN is raising its profile this year in Boston by fighting foreclosures after a 2008 that was filled with scandal and bad press for the controversial non-profit.
On Jan. 15, ACORN, or the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, protested outside Massachusetts Land Court on Causeway Street as part of a nationwide action to stop the foreclosure process for one day.
Unfortunately for ACORN, that one day happened to be really cold. Temperatures dropped below 10 degrees Fahrenheit, and ACORN’s turnout was less than they had hoped.
“Considering it was in the single digits, we were happy to have some people out to attend,” said Hannah Kahl, ACORN’s regional field director for Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
The protest wasn’t just to slow down the “foreclosure machinery,” but also draw attention to a bill ACORN supports in the state Legislature promoting judicial foreclosure.
“We weren’t trying to be super disruptive, because we know it isn’t the clerks fault, but we were trying to be a part of the national action to get them to stop stamping paperwork for one day,” Kahl said.
On Martin Luther King Day, ACORN volunteers took to the streets of Dorchester and Mattapan to educate residents about foreclosure prevention programs, and to have residents sign a petition in favor of President Obama’s proposed 90-day foreclosure moratorium.
“We’re really trying to heighten our profile, and we want people to know despite the national political ploy and media scandal that we’re back and we actually have a pretty aggressive platform in 2009,” Kahl said. “We definitely have some issues to overcome for our national profile and funding.”
Kahl is referring to the $948,000 embezzlement scandal unveiled in June 2008, when the public learned that Dale Rathke, brother of ACORN co-founder Wade Rathke, stole the money.
That scandal led to the Catholic Campaign for Human Development to pull out their support of ACORN, reneging on $1.2 million in pledged funds.
A Billion Here, A Billion There…
Sovereign Bank doesn’t currently have ties to the Bernard Madoff Ponzi scheme, but it may in the near future: its likely soon-to-be-parent company, Banco Santander, had $3.1 billion of investor exposure in the enormous international scandal.
The Spanish banking giant’s troubles have been splashed across the pages of the Wall Street Journal, but the word is – for the most part – that this isn’t going to pose a big obstacle for the deal, which will be voted on this week. Regulators have already signed off on it, and shareholders for both entities won’t be that rocked by a mere $3.1 billion; after all, Banco Santander’s assets under management as of Sept. 30 were $1.54 trillion.
