Home » Protective Life Corp. to relocate regional office to Covington

Protective Life Corp. to relocate regional office to Covington

Project includes 100 high-wage jobs next year, could more than double in coming decade

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky’s efforts to attract and create better-paying jobs statewide took a major step forward today. Protective Life Corp. announced the company will relocate its core site in the greater Cincinnati region to Covington.

The new location positions Protective Life for long-term employee and business growth. The initial move to RiverCenter Towers in downtown Covington will bring approximately 100 well-paying jobs to Kentucky in 2021. As the company grows over the next decade, leaders expect to more than double that employee count.

Protective Life plans a $17.1 million investment to lease and retrofit 67,000 square feet in Technology Tower I of Covington’s RiverCenter. The office, which company leaders anticipate will open next summer, will be a core site to support Protective Life’s business nationally and complement its headquarters in Birmingham, Alabama.

The Kentucky location will provide the company with premier facilities with adjoining training, hotel, and conference space, along with signage visibility from downtown Cincinnati, air and vehicle traffic. Company leaders noted RiverCenter’s central location and surrounding amenities as key factors in the decision to relocate.

Founded in 1907 in Birmingham, Protective Life is one of the largest insurance and financial service companies in the U.S., protecting over 11 million customers and employing over 3,000 people across the country. Today’s news follows the company’s October 2020 announcement that it would focus on the greater Cincinnati region as one of its three core sites, alongside Birmingham and St. Louis, which also are supported by a strong virtual workforce representing 40% of the company’s overall employee population.

To encourage investments and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority today preliminarily approved a 10-year incentive agreement with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based agreement can provide up to $2.1 million in tax incentives based on the company’s investment of $17.14 million and annual targets of:

  • Creation and maintenance of 77 Kentucky-resident, full-time jobs across 10 years; and
  • Over the 10-year program life, achieving an average hourly wage target of $47.50 for the new jobs.

By meeting its annual targets over the agreement term, the company can be eligible to keep a portion of the new tax revenue it generates. The company may claim eligible incentives against its income tax liability and/or wage assessments.

In addition, Protective Life can receive resources from the Kentucky Skills Network. Through the Kentucky Skills Network, companies can receive no-cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced-cost customized training, and job training incentives.