Firms go out of business and folks lose their jobs all the time, but how often does the governor of a state get personally involved in the plights of the individuals of a single business? For Gov. M. Jodi Rell her gesture toward to the soon-to-be jobless staffers of Amaranth Advisors is not just altruistic, it’s an economic necessity, or so it seems. The Stamford Advocate reports that Rell has named Barbara Fernandez, director of the state’s Office and Insurance and Financial Services to serve as the point person for the 350 or so Amaranth employees who will be without work and to work on making sure they find jobs within Connecticut. “Our goal is to find opportunities for every Amaranth employee, and we have already received well over 1,000 open-position listings, predominantly from hedge funds, as well as other financial services firms,” Amaranth spokesman Steve Bruce told the Advocate. “Connecticut is home to some of the world’s leading companies in the hedge fund industry,” Rell said, and the governor wants to keep it that way. Fernandez says it’s not just the jobs, “but it’s an industry that has a lot of innovations and a lot of creativity that attracts a lot of young people to our state,” and of course that’s good for the economy. Meanwhile, the staff at Amaranth’s operations north of the border, may have little to worry about when they lose their jobs. According to the Globe and Mail, hedge funds and other financial institutions in the area are already circling the firm’s Toronto office to pick up some hot talent.
