Guardian lays off 39 in Spokane office

New York-based Guardian Life Insurance has laid off 39 workers in its Spokane office, the company announced Monday. Guardian’s operation, at Magnesium Road and Nevada in north Spokane, now has about 480 workers after the layoffs, said Richard Jones, vice president for corporate communications, based in New York. Close to half the total Spokane work force is involved in handling calls or processing dental claims or other insurance claims. Guardian administrators said in 2005 the Spokane office was handling about 10 million claims per year. Jones said the reduction affected all departments in the Spokane office. “We decided this is an opportunity to take advantage of some efficiencies (at the Spokane center),” said Jones.