Connecticut

UTC CEO's: CT's Business Climate Did Not Factor Into Boston HQ Move

Raytheon and UTC announced an all-stock merger this past weekend, pending regulatory approval.

United Technologies CEO, Greg Hayes, appeared Wednesday morning on the Fox Business Network’s Mornings with Maria, and host Maria Bartiromo asked him whether Connecticut’s high taxes were a reason the company’s top executives will move from Farmington to Raytheon’s headquarters in suburban Boston.

Hayes responded saying, “I would just say that is patently false. The rationale for this was as a merger of equals we make compromises.” He added, “We make compromises on the name. We make compromises on the board composition. We make compromises on the headquarters location.”

Raytheon and UTC announced an all-stock merger this past weekend, pending regulatory approval. The new company will be named Raytheon Technologies, will have its headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts, and United Technologies will control eight board seats, while Raytheon will control the remaing seven. Fifty-seven percent of the company’s shares will be UTC, with the rest being Raytheon.

Gov. Ned Lamont said Wednesday that the move by UTC to Waltham to join Raytheon had little to do with Connecticut and everything to do with wanting to be near one of the greatest cities in the world.

“There’s no question about it,” Lamont said Wednesday. “Boston is a big major city and when it comes to recruitment we’ve got to do a better job of bringing our cities to life.”

The Hartford Courant reported in recent days that Carrier Air Conditioners has been based in recent years in Florida, while Otis elevator announced its intention to stay in Connecticut. The two companies were spun off by UTC and will be new, independently traded companies.

Lamont met with a handful of UTC employees during a visit to Augie and Ray’s in East Hartford.

One of them, Mary White, has worked for UTC for 22 years in the aerospace division. She said she believes Hayes and other executives who have reassured her that her job is safe.

“At first I was a little bit nervous because we weren’t sure how it was going to affect us but I think that in the end everything will be OK,” White said. “They’ll have our best interests at heart and everything is going to be good.”

Hayes, on Fox Business, said UTC still plans to ramp up hiring, continuing plans from years ago. The company has hired more than 3,000 workers in the past three years in Connecticut, mainly at enginemaker Pratt and Whitney. Hayes says to expect 1,000 more.

Hayes also said the move to Boston did not have to do with the cost of doing business.

“Moving from Connecticut to Massachusetts, it’s not like you’re going from high cost to low-cost,” he said.

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