August 25, 2008 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Mass layoffs in July 2008

In July, employers took 1,512 mass layoff actions, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month.

[Chart data—TXT]

Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single employer; the number of workers involved totaled 151,171.

The number of mass layoff events this July decreased by 131 from the prior month, while the number of associated initial claims decreased by 14,526.

From January through July 2008, the total number of mass layoff events (seasonally adjusted), at 10,770, was the highest for the January-July period since 2003.

These data are from the Mass Layoff Statistics program and are all seasonally adjusted. To learn more, see "Mass Layoffs in July 2008," (PDF) (HTML) news release USDL 08-1185.