Mass Layoffs Summary
Technical information: (202) 691-6392 USDL 09-0416 http://www.bls.gov/mls/ For release: 10:00 A.M. (EDT) Media contact: (202) 691-5902 Thursday, April 23, 2009 MASS LAYOFFS IN MARCH 2009 Employers took 2,933 mass layoff actions in March that resulted in the separation of 299,388 workers, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported to- day. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single employer. The number of mass layoff events in March increased by 164 from the prior month, while the number of associated initial claims increased by 3,911. Over the year, the number of mass layoff events increased by 1,348, and the number of associated initial claims increased by 137,891. In March, the manufacturing sector experienced 1,259 mass layoff events, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 155,909 initial claims. Over the month, mass layoff events in manufacturing increased by 24, and initial claims increased by 3,291. (See table 1.) Layoff events and initial claims rose to their highest levels on record, with data available back to 1995; events in the manufacturing sector also reached its highest level. During the 16 months from December 2007 through March 2009, the total number of mass layoff events (seasonally adjusted) was 31,414, and the number of initial claims (seasonally adjusted) was 3,227,201. (December 2007 was the start of a recession as designated by the National Bureau of Economic Research.) The national unemployment rate was 8.5 percent in March 2009, sea- sonally adjusted, up from 8.1 percent the prior month and from 5.1 per- cent a year earlier. In March, total nonfarm payroll employment de- creased by 663,000 over the month and by 4,795,000 from a year earlier. Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted) The number of mass layoff events in March was 2,191 on a not sea- sonally adjusted basis; the number of associated initial claims was 228,387. (See table 2.) Over the year, increases were recorded in both the number of mass layoff events (+1,102) and initial claims (+113,846). This year, both average weekly events and initial claim- ants reached their highest March levels in program history; data are available back to 1996. (Average weekly analysis mitigates the effect of differing lengths of months. See the Technical Note.) Thirteen of the 19 major industry sectors reported program highs in terms of average weekly initial claimants for the month of March--mining; con- struction; manufacturing; wholesale trade; retail trade; information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional and technical services; management of companies and enterprises; admini- strative and waste services; arts, entertainment, and recreation; and accommodation and food services. The manufacturing sector accounted for 43 percent of all mass layoff events and 50 percent of initial claims filed in March 2009; a year earlier, manufacturing made up 31 percent of events and 38 percent of initial claims. This March, the number of manufacturing claimants was greatest in transportation equipment (26,012) and machinery (18,081). (See table 3.) The retail trade industry accounted for 8 percent of mass layoff events and 9 percent of associated initial claims during the month. Of the 10 detailed industries with the largest number of mass layoff initial claims, 6 reached their March peak. The six-digit NAICS industry with the largest number of initial claims was temporary help services (9,964). (See table A.) - 2 - Table A. Industries with the largest number of mass layoff initial claims in March 2009 March peak Industry Initial claims Year Initial claims Temporary help services (1) ................... 9,964 2002 14,338 Construction machinery manufacturing .......... 7,933 2009 7,933 Food service contractors ...................... 6,475 2007 7,636 Radio, TV, and other electronics stores ....... 5,867 2009 5,867 Motion picture and video production ........... 4,919 2005 7,192 Professional employer organizations (1) ....... 4,892 2009 4,892 Motor vehicle power train components mfg. ..... 4,843 2009 4,843 Light truck and utility vehicle manufacturing . 4,446 2009 4,446 School and employee bus transportation ........ 4,070 2008 8,073 Semiconductors and related device mfg. ........ 3,476 2009 3,476 1 See the Technical Note for more information on these industries. Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted) Of the 4 census regions, the Midwest registered the highest number of initial claims in March due to mass layoffs (81,957), followed by the South (61,432) and the West (55,505). (See table 5.) Initial claims associated with mass layoffs increased over the year in all 4 regions, with the Midwest (+47,072) and the South (+33,335) experiencing the largest increases. In 2009, all four regions reported their highest March levels of average weekly initial claims in program history. Of the 9 geographic divisions, the East North Central (64,595) had the highest number of initial claims due to mass layoffs in March, fol- lowed by the Pacific (44,514) and the South Atlantic (27,819). (See table 5.) All divisions experienced over-the-year increases in initial claims, led by the East North Central (+36,748) and the Pacific (+18,158). This year, all divisions except the Pacific reached March program highs in terms of initial claims. California recorded the highest number of initial claims filed due to mass layoff events in March with 38,130. The states with the next highest number of mass layoff initial claims were Illinois (18,096), Texas (14,284), and Ohio (13,067). (See table 6.) Forty-three states registered over-the-year increases in initial claims associated with mass layoffs, led by California (+16,318), Illinois (+11,402), and Texas (+9,179). In 2009, 26 states reached program highs in average weekly initial claims for the month of March--Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wisconsin. - 3 - Note The monthly data series in this release cover mass layoffs of 50 or more workers beginning in a given month, regardless of the duration of the layoffs. For private nonfarm establishments, information on the length of the layoff is obtained later and issued in a quarterly re- lease that reports on mass layoffs lasting more than 30 days (referred to as "extended mass layoffs"). The quarterly release provides more information on the industry classification and location of the establish- ment and on the demographics of the laid-off workers. Because monthly figures include short-term layoffs of 30 days or less, the sum of the figures for the 3 months in a quarter will be higher than the quarterly figure for mass layoffs of more than 30 days. (See table 4.) See the Technical Note for more detailed definitions. ______________________________ The report on Extended Mass Layoffs in the First Quarter of 2009 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, May 12. The report on Mass Layoffs in April 2009 is scheduled to be released on Friday, May 22.
- Mass Layoffs Technical Note
- Table 1. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, April 2005 to March 2009, seasonally adjusted
- Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, April 2005 to March 2009, not seasonally adjusted
- Table 3. Industry distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance
- Table 4. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, January 2007 to March 2009, not seasonally adjusted
- Table 5. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance by census region and division, not seasonally adjusted
- Table 6. State distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, not seasonally adjusted
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Last Modified Date: April 23, 2009