July 24, 2008 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Mass layoffs in manufacturing, June 2008

In June, 541 mass layoff events were reported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 76,514 initial claims for unemployment insurance. Each mass layoff event involved at least 50 persons from a single employer.

Mass layoff events in manufacturing, seasonally adjusted, June 2003-June 2008
[Chart data—TXT]

Both measures were at their highest monthly levels since August 2003. Over the month, mass layoff events in manufacturing increased by 13 and initial claims increased by 4,456.

In the entire economy, U.S. employers took 1,643 mass layoff actions in June, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month.

These data are from the Mass Layoff Statistics program and are all seasonally adjusted. To learn more, see "Mass Layoffs in June 2008," (PDF) (HTML) news release USDL 08-1013.