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Economic News Release
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MLS MLS Program Links

Mass Layoffs (Monthly) News Release

For release 10:00 a.m. (EST) Wednesday, February 23, 2011               USDL-11-0238

Technical information:  (202) 691-6392  *  mlsinfo@bls.gov  *  www.bls.gov/mls
Media contact:          (202) 691-5902  *  PressOffice@bls.gov


                             MASS LAYOFFS -- JANUARY 2011


Employers took 1,534 mass layoff actions in January involving 149,799 workers, sea-
sonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits dur-
ing the month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Each mass layoff 
event involved at least 50 workers from a single employer. The number of mass layoff 
events in January increased by 51 from December, and the number of associated initial 
claims increased by 11,807. In January, 341 mass layoff events were reported in the 
manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 39,189 initial claims; both 
figures increased over the month. (See table 1.)

The national unemployment rate was 9.0 percent in January, down from 9.4 percent 
the prior month and 9.7 percent a year earlier. In January, total nonfarm payroll 
employment increased by 36,000 over the month and by 984,000 from a year earlier.

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

The number of mass layoff events in January was 2,558 on a not seasonally adjusted 
basis; the number of associated initial claims was 246,463. (See table 2.) The num-
ber of mass layoff events was down by 302 from January 2010, and associated initial 
claims decreased by 32,216. Eleven of the 19 major industry sectors in the private
economy reported over-the-year declines in initial claims, with manufacturing hav-
ing the largest decrease. The six-digit industry with the largest number of initial 
claims in January 2011 was temporary help services. (See table A. The table in-
cludes both publicly and privately owned entities.)

The manufacturing sector accounted for 27 percent of all mass layoff events and 30 
percent of initial claims filed in January. A year earlier, manufacturing made up 
34 percent of events and 38 percent of initial claims. Within manufacturing, the 
number of claimants in January was greatest in transportation equipment and in 
food. (See table 3.) Eighteen of the 21 manufacturing subsectors experienced over-
the-year decreases in initial claims, with the largest declines in machinery and 
fabricated metal products.



Table A. Industries with the largest number of mass layoff initial claims in 
January 2011, not seasonally adjusted


                                                              January peak
                  Industry
                                                Initial     Year      Initial 
                                                claims                claims

Temporary help services (1) ..................  20,948      1998      26,224   
School and employee bus transportation .......  14,754      2010      15,131   
Discount department stores ...................   6,722      2010       8,065   
Motion picture and video production ..........   5,818      1998      12,038   
Highway, street, and bridge construction .....   5,310      2000       9,680   
Professional employer organizations (1) ......   5,063      2009      11,345   
Automobile manufacturing .....................   4,503      2001      21,093   
Hotels and motels, except casino hotels ......   3,593      2009       6,592   
Warehouse clubs and supercenters .............   3,508      2011       3,508   
Food service contractors .....................   3,439      2011       3,439   

   1 See the Technical Note for more information on these industries.



Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

Three of the 4 regions and 7 of the 9 divisions experienced over-the-year decreases 
in initial claims due to mass layoffs in January. Among the census regions, the Mid-
west registered the largest over-the-year decrease in initial claims. Of the geo-
graphic divisions, the East North Central had the largest over-the-year decline in 
initial claims. (See table 5.)

California recorded the highest number of initial claims in January, followed by New 
York and Pennsylvania. Thirty-two states experienced over-the-year decreases in ini-
tial claims, led by Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois. (See table 6.)

Note

The monthly data series in this release cover mass layoffs of 50 or more workers be-
ginning in a given month, regardless of the duration of the layoffs. For private non-
farm establishments, information on the length of the layoff is obtained later and 
issued in a quarterly release that reports on mass layoffs lasting more than 30 days
(referred to as "extended mass layoffs"). The quarterly release provides more infor-
mation on the industry classification and location of the establishment and on the 
demographics of the laid-off workers. Because monthly figures include short-term lay-
offs 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 Mass Layoffs news release for February is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, 
March 22, 2011, at 10:00 a.m. (EDT).




Technical Note


   The Mass Layoff Statistics (MLS) program is a federal-state program
that uses a standardized automated approach to identifying, describing,
and tracking the effects of major job cutbacks, using data from each
state's unemployment insurance database.  Each month, states report on
employers which have at least 50 initial claims filed against them during
a consecutive 5-week period.  These employers then are contacted by the
state agency to determine whether these separations lasted 31 days or
longer, and, if so, other information concerning the layoff is collected.
States report on layoffs lasting more than 1 month on a quarterly basis.

   A given month contains an aggregation of the weekly unemployment
insurance claims filings for the Sunday through Saturday weeks in that
month.  All weeks are included for the particular month, except if the
first day of the month falls on Saturday.  In this case, the week is
included in the prior month's tabulations.  This means that some months
will contain 4 weeks and others, 5 weeks.  The number of weeks in a given 
month may be different from year to year, and the number of weeks in a
year may vary.  Therefore, analysis of over-the-month and over-the-year
change in not seasonally adjusted series should take this calendar effect
into consideration.

   The MLS program resumed operations in April 1995 after it had been
terminated in November 1992 due to lack of funding.  Prior to April 1995,
monthly layoff statistics were not available.

   Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request.  Voice phone:  (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay
Service:  (800) 877-8339.

Definitions

   Employer.  Employers in the MLS program include those covered by state
unemployment insurance laws.  Information on employers is obtained from the
Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, which is adminis-
tered by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

   Industry.  Employers are classified according to the 2007 version of the 
North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).  For temporary help
and professional employers organization industries, monthly MLS-related 
statistics generally reflect layoffs related to underlying client companies 
in other industries.  An individual layoff action at a client company can
be small, but when initial claimants associated with many such layoffs are
assigned to a temporary help or professional employer organization firm, a
mass layoff event may trigger.

   Initial claimant.  A person who files any notice of unemployment to
initiate a request either for a determination of entitlement to and
eligibility for compensation, or for a subsequent period of unemployment
within a benefit year or period of eligibility.

   Mass layoff event.  Fifty or more initial claims for unemployment insur-
ance benefits filed against an employer during a 5-week period, regardless 
of duration.

Seasonal adjustment

   Effective with the release of data for January 2005, BLS began publish-
ing six seasonally adjusted monthly MLS series.  The six series are the
numbers of mass layoff events and mass layoff initial claims for the total,
private nonfarm, and manufacturing sectors.
   
   Seasonal adjustment is the process of estimating and removing the effect
on time series data of regularly recurring seasonal events such as changes
in the weather, holidays, and the beginning and ending of the school year.
The use of seasonal adjustment makes it easier to observe fundamental changes
in time series, particularly those associated with general economic expan-
sions and contractions.

   The MLS data are seasonally adjusted using the X-12-ARIMA seasonal adjust-
ment method on a concurrent basis.  Concurrent seasonal adjustment uses all
available monthly estimates, including those for the current month, in devel-
oping seasonal adjustment factors.  Revisions to the most recent 5 years
of seasonally adjusted data will be made once a year with the issuance of
December data.  Before the data are seasonally adjusted, prior adjustments
are made to the original data to adjust them for differences in the number
of weeks used to calculate the monthly data.  Because weekly unemployment
insurance claims are aggregated to form monthly data, a particular month's
value could be calculated with 5 weeks of data in 1 year and 4 weeks in 
another.  The effects of these differences could seriously distort the sea-
sonal factors if they were ignored in the seasonal adjustment process.  These 
effects are modeled in the X-12-ARIMA program and are permanently removed from 
the final seasonally adjusted series.




Table 1. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, February 2007 to
January 2011, seasonally adjusted 

                                      Total            Private nonfarm         Manufacturing    
             Date                                                                             
                                           Initial               Initial               Initial  
                                Events    claimants   Events    claimants    Events   claimants 
                                                                                              
             2007                                                                             

February ...................     1,198     129,244     1,072     120,459       371      53,420
March ......................     1,202     124,521     1,092     115,835       384      47,658
April ......................     1,238     126,334     1,102     115,271       358      42,989
May ........................     1,159     113,578     1,064     106,573       347      44,637
June .......................     1,207     127,776     1,097     119,007       342      37,552
July .......................     1,295     136,168     1,193     128,208       401      55,906
August .....................     1,217     122,450     1,126     115,305       312      34,877
September ..................     1,233     121,998     1,140     115,675       430      51,731
October ....................     1,330     133,063     1,210     124,455       439      56,970
November ...................     1,397     145,339     1,269     135,651       408      56,985
December ...................     1,553     154,275     1,435     144,785       463      59,445

             2008                                                                             

January ....................     1,437     146,900     1,302     135,622       431      55,562
February ...................     1,604     175,128     1,441     163,475       471      59,118
March ......................     1,500     150,502     1,388     140,424       435      56,156
April ......................     1,292     128,901     1,162     118,016       449      58,402
May ........................     1,582     161,944     1,444     152,230       468      62,452
June .......................     1,631     164,508     1,488     153,014       491      68,198
July .......................     1,581     164,497     1,443     153,720       463      62,425
August .....................     1,791     181,107     1,653     171,705       583      77,874
September ..................     2,192     233,034     2,024     219,532       635      82,471
October ....................     2,221     229,254     2,062     215,787       697      92,408
November ...................     2,415     228,107     2,256     214,631       900     102,284
December ...................     2,443     245,661     2,264     231,138       927     114,280

             2009                                                                             

January ....................     2,272     238,717     2,103     224,850       756     100,927
February ...................     2,801     315,507     2,636     300,042     1,194     138,583
March ......................     2,950     295,543     2,758     279,027     1,205     144,713
April ......................     2,579     251,032     2,368     234,796       997     121,435
May ........................     2,758     288,319     2,557     271,425     1,187     147,548
June .......................     2,506     250,275     2,293     232,814     1,048     135,389
July .......................     2,192     223,697     1,977     203,365       620      72,932
August .....................     2,419     220,262     2,177     201,951       778      83,837
September ..................     2,305     219,924     2,095     204,596       799      91,665
October ....................     1,975     195,347     1,780     177,977       570      63,646
November ...................     1,754     154,223     1,585     141,439       464      51,891
December ...................     1,725     156,274     1,545     141,649       420      43,584

             2010                                                                             

January ....................     1,716     171,633     1,541     157,597       494      60,059
February ...................     1,492     149,369     1,318     135,490       351      40,564
March ......................     1,635     146,901     1,436     131,953       347      37,273
April ......................     1,675     159,358     1,498     143,814       371      48,646
May ........................     1,665     155,352     1,405     133,913       314      30,967
June .......................     1,729     153,937     1,504     134,837       326      32,646
July .......................     1,528     138,581     1,316     121,378       296      30,752
August .....................     1,658     163,325     1,453     141,489       409      47,668
September ..................     1,541     137,941     1,331     119,654       336      34,641
October ....................     1,649     147,204     1,445     130,264       353      37,394
November ...................     1,579     148,800     1,397     133,845       350      39,072
December ...................     1,483     137,992     1,272     122,688       319      35,977

             2011                                                                             

January ....................     1,534     149,799     1,344     132,730       341      39,189




Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, February 2007 to
January 2011, not seasonally adjusted

                                       Total           Private nonfarm         Manufacturing    
             Date                                                                             
                                           Initial               Initial               Initial  
                                Events    claimants   Events    claimants    Events   claimants 
                                                                                              
             2007                                                                             

February ...................       935      86,696       861      82,097       273      36,170
March ......................     1,082     123,974     1,015     118,431       367      49,886
April ......................     1,219     127,444     1,115     118,040       309      35,229
May ........................       923      85,816       856      81,153       224      26,527
June .......................     1,599     172,810     1,318     148,669       313      36,571
July .......................     1,599     175,419     1,450     164,939       684     101,390
August .....................       963      93,458       908      88,345       220      23,361
September ..................       717      67,385       667      64,026       246      29,381
October ....................     1,083     108,455       929      97,716       338      50,918
November ...................     1,799     198,220     1,593     181,184       514      75,413
December ...................     2,167     224,214     2,071     216,898       699      91,754

             2008                                                                             

January ....................     1,647     154,503     1,520     144,191       488      54,418
February ...................     1,269     119,508     1,178     113,587       361      42,527
March ......................     1,089     114,541     1,039     110,147       333      43,740
April ......................     1,272     130,810     1,172     121,625       394      48,188
May ........................     1,552     159,471     1,438     150,462       388      51,698
June .......................     1,622     166,742     1,315     140,916       309      42,097
July .......................     1,891     200,382     1,687     186,018       760     108,733
August .....................     1,427     139,999     1,343     133,146       414      51,912
September ..................     1,292     129,586     1,202     122,505       361      46,391
October ....................     2,125     221,784     1,917     205,553       689     100,457
November ...................     2,574     241,589     2,389     226,657       997     107,620
December ...................     3,377     351,305     3,232     340,220     1,378     172,529

             2009                                                                             

January ....................     3,806     388,813     3,633     375,293     1,461     172,757
February ...................     2,262     218,438     2,173     210,755       945     103,588
March ......................     2,191     228,387     2,107     221,397       940     114,747
April ......................     2,547     256,930     2,385     243,321       887     100,872
May ........................     2,738     289,628     2,572     274,047     1,005     123,683
June .......................     2,519     256,357     2,051     216,063       674      85,726
July .......................     3,054     336,654     2,659     296,589     1,133     154,208
August .....................     1,428     125,024     1,334     117,193       436      41,151
September ..................     1,371     123,177     1,258     115,141       448      51,126
October ....................     1,934     193,904     1,678     172,883       566      69,655
November ...................     1,870     164,496     1,679     150,751       517      55,053
December ...................     2,310     214,648     2,166     203,655       615      64,540

             2010                                                                             

January ....................     2,860     278,679     2,682     265,074       962     104,846
February ...................     1,183     102,818     1,091      96,022       282      30,728
March ......................     1,197     111,727     1,111     105,514       273      29,745
April ......................     1,840     199,690     1,697     184,654       424      55,178
May ........................     1,354     123,333     1,170     109,203       216      19,334
June .......................     1,861     171,190     1,355     125,872       212      21,083
July .......................     2,124     206,254     1,732     172,248       532      64,200
August .....................       976      92,435       897      83,021       230      23,088
September ..................       920      77,654       806      67,987       187      19,403
October ....................     1,642     148,638     1,373     127,865       351      40,861
November ...................     1,676     158,048     1,477     142,591       389      41,383
December ...................     1,931     184,130     1,763     172,881       465      52,816

             2011                                                                             

January ....................     2,558     246,463     2,372     229,765       693      75,006




Table 3. Industry distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance


                                                                                                     Initial claimants for           
                                                             Mass layoff events                     unemployment insurance          
                     Industry                                                                                                      
                                                    January   November December  January    January    November  December   January 
                                                      2010      2010     2010      2011       2010       2010      2010       2011   
                                                                                                                                   
                Seasonally adjusted                                                                                                


      Total .....................................    1,716     1,579    1,483     1,534     171,633    148,800   137,992    149,799

  Total, private nonfarm ........................    1,541     1,397    1,272     1,344     157,597    133,845   122,688    132,730
    Manufacturing ...............................      494       350      319       341      60,059     39,072    35,977     39,189

              Not seasonally adjusted                                                                                              

      Total (1) .................................    2,860     1,676    1,931     2,558     278,679    158,048   184,130    246,463

Total, private ..................................    2,739     1,614    1,830     2,438     268,595    152,651   176,405    234,708
    Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ..       57       137       67        66       3,521     10,060     3,524      4,943

  Total, private nonfarm ........................    2,682     1,477    1,763     2,372     265,074    142,591   172,881    229,765
    Mining ......................................       20        13       29        15       1,561        943     2,439      1,188
    Utilities ...................................      (2)       (2)      (2)         5         (2)        (2)       (2)        390
    Construction ................................      328       325      379       325      24,148     26,767    29,458     23,906
    Manufacturing ...............................      962       389      465       693     104,846     41,383    52,816     75,006
        Food ....................................       93        69       52        94       9,134      7,242     6,590      9,313
        Beverage and tobacco products ...........       13         7        8         5         839        655       856        752
        Textile mills ...........................       28        15       21        31       3,807      1,631     2,239      4,455
        Textile product mills ...................       18       (2)        8         9       2,503        (2)       981        793
        Apparel .................................       23         8       18        20       2,128        993     1,294      1,776
        Leather and allied products .............        3       (2)        3       (2)         499        (2)       850        (2)
        Wood products ...........................       62        28       39        43       6,657      2,568     3,623      4,930
        Paper ...................................       16         8       14        14       1,421        653     1,055      1,049
        Printing and related support activities .       23        14       13        12       2,415      1,312       934        983
        Petroleum and coal products .............        7         8       10       (2)         469        796       892        (2)

        Chemicals ...............................       23         9        8        18       2,058        685       561      1,612
        Plastics and rubber products ............       62        20       25        51       5,466      1,912     2,392      4,569
        Nonmetallic mineral products ............       44        21       48        56       3,131      1,839     4,212      4,239
        Primary metals ..........................       56        17       21        23       5,734      1,352     1,919      3,046
        Fabricated metal products ...............       99        21       29        51       9,256      1,766     2,380      4,174
        Machinery ...............................       89        24       18        46      12,322      2,980     2,724      5,446
        Computer and electronic products ........       37        12       13        14       4,239        990     1,214      1,020
        Electrical equipment and appliances .....       33        11       12        15       3,360      1,808     2,372      1,572
        Transportation equipment ................      175        60       78       128      23,150      7,754    12,534     19,478
        Furniture and related products ..........       48        23       20        44       5,088      2,945     2,521      4,263
        Miscellaneous manufacturing .............       10         9        7        14       1,170        775       673      1,073

    Wholesale trade .............................       67        28       23        32       5,310      2,347     1,706      2,839
    Retail trade ................................      259        99      105       241      28,109      8,433     9,985     27,038
    Transportation and warehousing ..............      212        68      114       212      23,788      6,236    13,341     22,440
    Information .................................       84        48       25        53      12,581     10,136     2,818      7,915
    Finance and insurance .......................       47        22       29        31       3,681      1,742     2,151      2,758
    Real estate and rental and leasing ..........      (2)         5       13        17         (2)        287     1,408      1,150
    Professional and technical services .........       71        57       44        52       6,390      6,284     3,549      4,019
    Management of companies and enterprises .....       15       (2)      (2)         6       1,462        (2)       (2)        439
    Administrative and waste services ...........      326       225      225       381      30,020     20,778    17,203     34,996
    Educational services ........................       18         3        9        19       2,460        147       958      2,672
    Health care and social assistance ...........       46        31       46        56       3,019      2,523     3,904      3,880
    Arts, entertainment, and recreation .........       35        32       24        55       2,860      2,703     1,843      5,494
    Accommodation and food services .............      163       112      208       158      12,838     10,219    27,239     12,107
    Other services, except public administration        20        15       15        21       1,458      1,168     1,153      1,528
    Unclassified ................................        -         1        1         -           -         79        92          -  

Government ......................................      121        62      101       120      10,084      5,397     7,725     11,755
    Federal .....................................        8        10       10        23         698        945     1,215      2,922
    State .......................................       37        17       22        32       3,278      1,472     1,724      3,272
    Local .......................................       76        35       69        65       6,108      2,980     4,786      5,561
                                                                                                                                   
 
   1 Data were reported by all states and the District of Columbia. 
   2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.   
   NOTE: Dash represents zero.




Table 4. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, January 2009 to January 2011, not seasonally adjusted 

                                                                                   Private nonfarm                                
                                                                                   
                                Total mass layoffs                              Extended mass layoffs                             
             Date                                        Mass layoffs          lasting more than 30 days        Realization rates (1)   
             
                                           Initial               Initial                       Initial                      Initial 
                               Events     claimants   Events    claimants       Events        claimants           Events   claimants
             2009                                                                                                                 

January ....................    3,806      388,813     3,633     375,293                                                          
February ...................    2,262      218,438     2,173     210,755                                                          
March ......................    2,191      228,387     2,107     221,397                                                          

First Quarter ..............    8,259      835,638     7,913     807,445         3,979         835,551             50.3      103.5

April ......................    2,547      256,930     2,385     243,321                                                          
May ........................    2,738      289,628     2,572     274,047                                                          
June .......................    2,519      256,357     2,051     216,063                                                          

Second Quarter .............    7,804      802,915     7,008     733,431         3,395         731,049             48.4       99.7

July .......................    3,054      336,654     2,659     296,589                                                          
August .....................    1,428      125,024     1,334     117,193                                                          
September ..................    1,371      123,177     1,258     115,141                                                          

Third Quarter ..............    5,853      584,855     5,251     528,923         2,034         406,823             38.7       76.9

October ....................    1,934      193,904     1,678     172,883                                                          
November ...................    1,870      164,496     1,679     150,751                                                          
December ...................    2,310      214,648     2,166     203,655                                                          

Fourth Quarter .............    6,114      573,048     5,523     527,289         2,416      (r)468,577             43.7       88.9

             2010                                                                                                                 

January ....................    2,860      278,679     2,682     265,074                                                          
February ...................    1,183      102,818     1,091      96,022                                                          
March ......................    1,197      111,727     1,111     105,514                                                          

First Quarter ..............    5,240      493,224     4,884     466,610         1,870      (r)368,459             38.3    (r)79.0

April ......................    1,840      199,690     1,697     184,654                                                          
May ........................    1,354      123,333     1,170     109,203                                                          
June .......................    1,861      171,190     1,355     125,872                                                          

Second Quarter .............    5,055      494,213     4,222     419,729      (r)2,008      (r)395,224             47.6    (r)94.2

July .......................    2,124      206,254     1,732     172,248                                                          
August .....................      976       92,435       897      83,021                                                          
September ..................      920       77,654       806      67,987                                                          

Third Quarter ..............    4,020      376,343     3,435     323,256      (r)1,370      (r)256,636          (r)39.9    (r)79.4

October ....................    1,642      148,638     1,373     127,865                                                          
November ...................    1,676      158,048     1,477     142,591                                                          
December ...................    1,931      184,130     1,763     172,881                                                          

Fourth Quarter .............    5,249      490,816     4,613     443,337   (2)(p)1,910   (2)(p)268,431          (p)41.4    (p)60.5

             2011                                                                                                                 

January ....................    2,558      246,463     2,372     229,765                                                          

                                                                                                                                  
   1 The event realization rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm mass layoff events lasting more than 30 days. The
initial claimant realization rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm mass layoff initial claimants associated with 
layoffs lasting more than 30 days.
   2 These quarterly numbers are provisional and will be revised as more data on these layoffs become available.
Experience suggests that the number of extended mass layoff events is generally revised upwards by less than 10 percent and
the number of initial claimants associated with such events increases by 25-40 percent.
   r = revised.
   p = preliminary.




Table 5. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance by census region and division, not
seasonally adjusted 

                                                                                     Initial claimants for            
                                            Mass layoff events                      unemployment insurance            
                                            
  Census region and division                                                                                            
  
                                  January   November  December  January    January    November    December   January  
                                    2010      2010      2010      2011       2010       2010        2010       2011   
                                                                                                                        
        United States (1) ...      2,860     1,676     1,931     2,558     278,679    158,048     184,130    246,463
        
Northeast ...................        593       223       356       591      58,748     20,305      35,601     58,802
    New England .............         70        41        50        81       6,503      3,878       5,278      7,047
    Middle Atlantic .........        523       182       306       510      52,245     16,427      30,323     51,755

South .......................        753       426       493       687      74,105     38,416      51,554     66,552
    South Atlantic ..........        404       245       287       431      37,846     20,773      27,744     40,880
    East South Central ......        220        83       110       156      23,085      7,182      12,784     16,508
    West South Central ......        129        98        96       100      13,174     10,461      11,026      9,164

Midwest .....................        807       431       565       613      83,185     43,401      58,560     63,468
    East North Central ......        604       317       394       464      63,706     31,834      42,375     45,790
    West North Central ......        203       114       171       149      19,479     11,567      16,185     17,678

West ........................        707       596       517       667      62,641     55,926      38,415     57,641
    Mountain ................         94       101        90        66       8,992      8,789       7,274      6,046
    Pacific .................        613       495       427       601      53,649     47,137      31,141     51,595
                                                                                                                    
 
   1 See footnote 1, table 3.
   NOTE: The States (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the census divisions are: New England:
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; Middle Atlantic: New Jersey, New York,
and Pennsylvania; South Atlantic: Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South
Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia; East South Central: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee; West South 
Central: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas; East North Central: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and 
Wisconsin; West North Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota; Mountain:
Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming; and Pacific: Alaska, California, Hawaii,  
Oregon, and Washington.




Table 6. State distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, not seasonally
adjusted

                                                                                      Initial claimants for             
                                       Mass layoff events                            unemployment insurance             
           State                                                                                                      
                            January      November   December   January     January      November    December   January 
                              2010         2010       2010       2011        2010         2010        2010       2011   
                                                                                                              
   Total (1) ............    2,860        1,676      1,931      2,558      278,679      158,048     184,130    246,463
                                                                                                                      
Alabama .................       93           26         34         70       11,204        2,499       3,758      7,730
Alaska ..................        9            4          9          4          713          266         915        392
Arizona .................       17            5          9         13        1,502          365         940      1,075
Arkansas ................        9           10          6          6        1,433        1,224         563        768
California ..............      533          424        365        530       46,474       40,704      25,602     44,274
Colorado ................       13           17         14         11        1,301        1,379         964      1,126
Connecticut .............        6            9          7         11          406          837         576      1,048
Delaware ................        4            3          6          5          287          153         429        411
District of Columbia ....      (2)          (2)        (2)          4          (2)          (2)         (2)        452
Florida .................      141           72         92        128        9,909        3,911       7,554      9,464
Georgia .................       83           28         42         84        8,861        3,012       4,306      8,952
Hawaii ..................        9          (2)          -          6          735          (2)           -        388
Idaho ...................       11           21         15          8        1,068        2,085       1,006        698

Illinois ................      112           59        110         86       11,615        5,386      13,672      7,516
Indiana .................       59           30         49         43        6,470        3,799       5,314      6,487
Iowa ....................       54           24         39         39        6,647        3,716       3,897      4,007
Kansas ..................       27            8         23         23        2,432        1,205       2,923      5,440
Kentucky ................       76           21         38         47        8,044        1,744       5,003      5,472
Louisiana ...............       18           17         21         29        1,566        1,351       1,741      2,309
Maine ...................        8            6          6         11          789          528         431        900
Maryland ................       29            7          9         25        2,586          529         611      1,888
Massachusetts ...........       27           17         19         34        2,341        1,449       2,372      3,225
Michigan ................      144           74         67        127       16,035        7,199       8,985     10,398
Minnesota ...............       36           39         34         19        3,614        3,316       2,932      1,988
Mississippi .............       11           25         19         13          735        1,964       2,128      1,163
Missouri ................       74           29         54         55        5,567        2,159       4,763      4,713

Montana .................        9           12          8          6        1,012        1,074         470        560
Nebraska ................        7            8         14          9          548          643       1,157      1,086
Nevada ..................       26           28         26         12        2,463        2,186       2,449      1,299
New Hampshire ...........       12            3          3          9          962          218         326        722
New Jersey ..............       87           33         49        109        7,506        4,247       6,036      9,853
New Mexico ..............        8            8          8          7          560          636         640        467
New York ................      236           54        115        207       28,309        4,471      12,383     24,950
North Carolina (3) ......       27           78         80        100        2,072        8,019       8,876      9,865
North Dakota ............        4            6          5          3          595          528         375        390
Ohio ....................      145           64         87         93       14,121        6,234       7,826      9,241
Oklahoma ................       17            5          6         11        1,666          441       1,410      1,048
Oregon ..................       35           28         25         36        3,730        2,676       2,234      4,390
Pennsylvania ............      200           95        142        194       16,430        7,709      11,904     16,952

Rhode Island ............       13          (2)         10          8        1,696          (2)       1,264        555
South Carolina ..........       67           19         26         41        7,274        1,501       2,648      5,124
South Dakota ............      (2)            -        (2)        (2)          (2)            -         (2)        (2)
Tennessee ...............       40           11         19         26        3,102          975       1,895      2,143
Texas ...................       85           66         63         54        8,509        7,445       7,312      5,039
Utah ....................       10            9         10          7        1,086          977         805        720
Vermont .................        4            5          5          8          309          736         309        597
Virginia ................       49           32         30         42        6,570        3,111       3,177      4,497
Washington ..............       27           37         28         25        1,997        3,294       2,390      2,151
West Virginia ...........      (2)            5          -        (2)          (2)          457           -        (2)
Wisconsin ...............      144           90         81        115       15,465        9,216       6,578     12,148
Wyoming .................        -          (2)          -        (2)            -          (2)           -        (2)

Puerto Rico ............        19           11         10         25        1,892        1,046         940      2,854

   1 See footnote 1, table 3.
   2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.     
   3 Data starting in November 2010 may not be comparable to prior data due to a change in MLS unemployment insurance
input procedures.
   NOTE: Dash represents zero.  
   
   
   

Last Modified Date: February 23, 2011