Ahead of Johnston exodus, Polisena says FM to lay off local workers

FM is laying off an unknown number of employees in conjunction with plans to relocate its global headquarters from Johnston to Providence, Johnston Mayor Joe Polisena Jr. said on Thursday.

Polisena told Rhode Island Current in a phone interview that he met with an FM employee earlier in the day, who said she and at least a handful of other workers for the insurance giant had received layoff notices. The employee was not immediately available for comment.

A spokesperson for FM, formerly known as FM Global, acknowledged but did not immediately respond to requests for confirmation and details on layoffs.

FM revealed on Tuesday that it will be moving from Johnston to the IGT office tower in downtown Providence. At the time it bought the 10-story glass and metal building for $69 million in February, FM executives said it was part of a planned expansion, with no implications for its existing, 93-acre corporate offices in Johnston.

On Tuesday, the company confirmed it will abandon its Johnson campus, moving its 1,500-person local workforce in a portion of the Providence office building on Memorial Boulevard. The announcement did not say when the relocation would happen, or how it would affect employment.

Federal law requires employers with more than 100 full-time employees to give state and local officials at least 60 days notice before mass layoffs or facility closings. A spokesperson for the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training did not immediately respond to requests regarding any notices submitted by FM.

Polisena said Thursday he has not received any layoff notices.

“This explains why they have been so quiet about it,” Polisena said of the layoffs.

Having learned of the company move when he was contacted by Rhode Island Current on Tuesday, Polisena blasted the company for what he called a “corporate sneak attack.” 

He also alleged that when his office called FM Thursday morning, following his conversation with the employee who received a layoff notice, the person who answered the phone hung up on his assistant.

Polisena was most concerned about the financial implications for the town, which relies on property and tangible tax revenue from the company’s Central Avenue headquarters. The tangible tax, which reflects office equipment, technology, furniture and other physical assets within the office space, amounts to $1.4 million per year, Polisena said.

Combined with a $1.5 million property tax bill in 2025, FM contributes nearly $3 million in annual tax revenue to Johnston, representing roughly 2% of its $144 million budget.

However, FM has challenged the tax bill based on the 2025 property revaluation, alleging the $53.4 million assessed value exceeds the “full and fair cash value” of its property and that the assessment method was “arbitrary and capricious,” according to the Providence County Superior Court complaint filed in April. The town tax board already rejected FM’s appeal, according to the complaint. The town denied the claims in a response to the Superior Court suit filed in May.

The case remains open, according to the public docket.

In 2025, the Rhode Island General Assembly agreed to rewrite a longstanding state law at FM’s request. Former House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi later revealed the global insurance giant had contemplated leaving Johnston without the law change, which lifted the cap on insurance company investments in nontraditional, long-term assets. 

House Speaker Christopher Blazejewski and Senate President Valarie Lawson did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the layoffs Thursday.

Gov.-elect Helena Buonanno Foulkes, who has centered her campaign on economic growth and jobs, also did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Polisena is part of her 23-person transition team.

FM opened its current headquarters in September 2009, spending $154 million to build the corporate offices on land it already owned, according to news reports. 

The new headquarters in downtown Providence also houses the state’s lottery contractor — formerly known as IGT — along with Fidelity Investments Inc., and the Capital Grille.

FM previously said the move will not affect its research campus in Glocester. 

This story will be updated.