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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. (EDT) Wednesday, June 22, 2011                    USDL-11-0920

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


                             MASS LAYOFFS -- MAY 2011


Employers took 1,599 mass layoff actions in May involving 143,540 workers, seasonally 
adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the 
month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Each mass layoff involved 
at least 50 workers from a single employer. The number of mass layoff events in May 
increased by 35, or 2 percent, from April, while the number of associated initial 
claims decreased by 387, or less than 1 percent. In May, 373 mass layoff events were 
reported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 38,673 initial 
claims; both figures increased over the month. (See table 1.)

The national unemployment rate was 9.1 percent in May, essentially unchanged from the 
prior month but down from 9.6 percent a year earlier. In May, total nonfarm payroll 
employment increased by 54,000 over the month and by 870,000 over the year. 

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

The number of mass layoff events in May was 1,367, not seasonally adjusted, resulting 
in 119,911 initial claims for unemployment insurance. The number of mass layoff events 
was about the same (1,354 events) as recorded in May 2010, while associated initial 
claims decreased by 3,422, or 3 percent. (See table 2.) Fourteen of the 19 major 
industry sectors in the private economy reported over-the-year declines in initial 
claims, with the largest decreases occurring in construction, retail trade, and 
professional and technical services. The six-digit industry with the largest number 
of initial claims in May 2011 was temporary help services. (See table A. The table 
includes both publicly and privately owned entities.)



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



                                                                May peak
                 Industry
                                              Initial claims  Year  Initial claims

Temporary help services (1) ..................     9,546      2002      16,992
Food service contractors .....................     8,601      2009      11,216
Child day care services ......................     7,120      2011       7,120
Motion picture and video production ..........     4,142      1999       8,985
Colleges and universities ....................     2,095      2011       2,095
Full-service restaurants .....................     1,998      2009       2,437
Junior colleges ..............................     1,857      2010       2,049
Other individual and family services .........     1,824      2011       1,824
Nonresidential plumbing and HVAC contractors .     1,705      2009       2,176
Casino hotels ................................     1,694      2009       2,323

   1 See the Technical Note for more information on this industry.



The manufacturing sector accounted for 20 percent of all mass layoff events and 21 
percent of initial claims filed in May. A year earlier, manufacturing made up 16 
percent of events and initial claims. Within this sector, the number of claimants 
in May 2011 was greatest in the food and transportation equipment subsectors. Twelve 
of the 21 manufacturing subsectors experienced over-the-year increases in initial 
claims, with the largest increases occurring in food and in transportation equipment. 
(See table 3.)

Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

Two of the 4 regions and 5 of the 9 divisions experienced over-the-year decreases in 
initial claims for unemployment insurance due to mass layoffs in May. Among the 
census regions, the West registered the largest over-the-year decrease in initial 
claims. Of the geographic divisions, the Pacific had the largest over-the-year decline 
in initial claims. The East South Central division registered the largest over-the-year 
increase in initial claims. (See table 5.)

California recorded the highest number of mass layoff initial claims in May, followed 
by Pennsylvania, Florida, and Mississippi. Twenty-nine states experienced over-the-year 
increases in initial claims, led by Mississippi. (See table 6.)

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 release 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 establishment 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 Mass Layoffs news release for June is scheduled to be released on Friday, July 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, June 2007 to 
May 2011, seasonally adjusted

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

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
February ...................     1,421     130,818     1,220     116,190       291      26,060
March ......................     1,286     118,523     1,128     105,636       253      27,619
April ......................     1,564     143,927     1,401     129,702       327      35,022
May ........................     1,599     143,540     1,405     127,494       373      38,673




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

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

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
February ...................     1,024      85,585       919      78,718       222      18,471
March ......................       908      85,095       844      80,014       191      20,869
April ......................     1,750     189,919     1,625     176,478       397      47,104
May ........................     1,367     119,911     1,221     108,531       270      25,199




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


                                                                                                     Initial claimants for           
                                                              Mass layoff events                    unemployment insurance          
                     Industry                                                                                                      
                                                      May      March    April      May        May       March     April       May   
                                                      2010      2011     2011      2011       2010       2011      2011       2011  
                                                                                                                                   
                Seasonally adjusted                                                                                                


      Total .....................................    1,665     1,286    1,564     1,599     155,352    118,523   143,927    143,540

  Total, private nonfarm ........................    1,405     1,128    1,401     1,405     133,913    105,636   129,702    127,494
    Manufacturing ...............................      314       253      327       373      30,967     27,619    35,022     38,673

              Not seasonally adjusted                                                                                              

      Total (1) .................................    1,354       908    1,750     1,367     123,333     85,095   189,919    119,911

Total, private ..................................    1,197       874    1,685     1,243     110,968     82,046   183,436    109,881
    Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ..       27        30       60        22       1,765      2,032     6,958      1,350

  Total, private nonfarm ........................    1,170       844    1,625     1,221     109,203     80,014   176,478    108,531
    Mining ......................................      (2)         3        4         5         (2)        247       270        308
    Utilities ...................................        5         4      (2)       (2)         449        547       (2)        (2)
    Construction ................................      159        99      161       137      12,129      7,569    12,121      9,875
    Manufacturing ...............................      216       191      397       270      19,334     20,869    47,104     25,199
        Food ....................................       47        45       84        64       4,015      4,338     9,064      6,036
        Beverage and tobacco products ...........        5         4        6       (2)         386        242       438        (2)
        Textile mills ...........................        3         3        5        12         391        328       792      1,045
        Textile product mills ...................        3         3        6       (2)         407        481       536        (2)
        Apparel .................................        8         4       10        10         498        374       964      1,174
        Leather and allied products .............        -         -        -       (2)           -          -         -        (2)
        Wood products ...........................       11        24       19        10         913      2,354     1,681        755
        Paper ...................................        3         7        6         9         277        622       590        934
        Printing and related support activities .       12         5        8        14       1,065        359       858      1,182
        Petroleum and coal products .............        3       (2)        -       (2)         205        (2)         -        (2)

        Chemicals ...............................        8       (2)        5         8         530        (2)       453        503
        Plastics and rubber products ............        6         4       21        14         329        321     2,113      1,082
        Nonmetallic mineral products ............        5         5        9         6         342        404       926        635
        Primary metals ..........................       12         8       12        11       1,147        536       944      1,053
        Fabricated metal products ...............       12        12       21        11         910        916     1,758        848
        Machinery ...............................       20        11       16        12       1,971      1,077     2,552      2,054
        Computer and electronic products ........       13        10       18        12       1,015        808     1,675        731
        Electrical equipment and appliances .....       11         8       16         7         865      2,886     1,736      1,049
        Transportation equipment ................       20        19      117        45       2,860      2,887    18,328      4,146
        Furniture and related products ..........        5        10        9        12         409      1,099       831        888
        Miscellaneous manufacturing .............        9         5        9         5         799        530       865        456

    Wholesale trade .............................       18        18       27        21       1,183      1,393     2,005      1,777
    Retail trade ................................      121        89      147       108       9,982      9,012    16,501      8,244
    Transportation and warehousing ..............       47        44      194        38       4,781      5,133    26,537      3,371
    Information .................................       41        36       42        36       6,310      3,788     5,689      5,394
    Finance and insurance .......................       23        19       42        24       1,761      1,354     3,482      1,616
    Real estate and rental and leasing ..........        9         6       15         7         698        452     1,389        457
    Professional and technical services .........       61        35       80        50       5,534      3,771     8,572      4,062
    Management of companies and enterprises .....      (2)         3        7       (2)         (2)        194       550        (2)
    Administrative and waste services ...........      175       151      262       203      17,363     11,303    23,380     15,938
    Educational services ........................       10         4       17        15         766        265     2,522      1,201
    Health care and social assistance ...........       84        33       46       102       7,337      2,038     3,397     11,059
    Arts, entertainment, and recreation .........       32        13       45        24       2,063        893     4,650      1,835
    Accommodation and food services .............      129        88      127       148      16,045     10,491    17,269     15,483
    Other services, except public administration        34         8        9        28       2,933        695       845      2,361
    Unclassified ................................        -         -      (2)         -           -          -       (2)          -

Government ......................................      157        34       65       124      12,365      3,049     6,483     10,030
    Federal .....................................       19         5        6        12       1,864        532       582      1,160
    State .......................................       39        10       18        32       2,904      1,389     1,714      2,136
    Local .......................................       99        19       41        80       7,597      1,128     4,187      6,734
                                                                                                                                   
 
    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, April 2009 to May 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                                                                                                                 

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         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         368,642             38.3       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         2,008         395,573             47.6       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         1,370         259,886             39.9       80.4

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         1,999         388,285             43.3       87.6

             2011                                                                                                                 

January ....................    2,558      246,463     2,372     229,765                                                          
February ...................    1,024       85,585       919      78,718                                                          
March ......................      908       85,095       844      80,014                                                          

First Quarter ..............    4,490      417,143     4,135     388,497   (2)(p)1,397   (2)(p)179,686          (p)33.8    (p)46.3

April ......................    1,750      189,919     1,625     176,478                                                          
May ........................    1,367      119,911     1,221     108,531                                                          
 
   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 claim-
ants associated with such events increases by 25-40 percent.
   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                                                                                        
  
                                    May      March     April      May        May       March       April       May  
                                    2010      2011      2011      2011       2010       2011        2011       2011 
                                                                                                                    
        United States (1) ...      1,354       908     1,750     1,367     123,333     85,095     189,919    119,911

Northeast ...................        203       169       402       210      17,575     15,540      54,129     17,726
    New England .............         29        22        67        30       2,421      1,883       8,926      2,505
    Middle Atlantic .........        174       147       335       180      15,154     13,657      45,203     15,221

South .......................        428       250       431       468      38,299     26,112      42,685     43,457
    South Atlantic ..........        216       116       210       234      19,282      9,765      17,371     18,785
    East South Central ......         94        61       125       131       8,431      6,539      16,048     14,830
    West South Central ......        118        73        96       103      10,586      9,808       9,266      9,842

Midwest .....................        261       172       383       288      26,176     17,168      44,126     26,017
    East North Central ......        175       124       310       217      17,981     11,640      37,250     18,948
    West North Central ......         86        48        73        71       8,195      5,528       6,876      7,069

West ........................        462       317       534       401      41,283     26,275      48,979     32,711
    Mountain ................         73        46       118        68       6,357      4,292      12,547      5,948
    Pacific .................        389       271       416       333      34,926     21,983      36,432     26,763
                                                                                                                    
 
   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                                                                                                      
                              May         March      April       May         May         March       April       May  
                              2010         2011       2011       2011        2010         2011        2011       2011 

   Total (1) ............    1,354          908      1,750      1,367      123,333       85,095     189,919    119,911

Alabama .................       24           18         28         37        2,171        2,072       3,080      3,604
Alaska ..................       11          (2)          9          6        1,259          (2)       1,137        489
Arizona .................       24           11         40         15        2,369        1,045       5,635      1,394
Arkansas ................        6            3        (2)         15          553          232         (2)      1,647
California ..............      345          230        348        285       31,197       17,478      29,264     22,874
Colorado ................       10            5         15         10        1,024          557       1,750      1,171
Connecticut .............       10            5         10         11          823          410       1,056        769
Delaware ................      (2)            -          8          5          (2)            -         551        334
District of Columbia ....        4            -        (2)          5          301            -         (2)        276
Florida .................      104           56         98        102        7,027        4,060       7,600      6,363
Georgia .................       39           16         40         40        4,227        1,593       3,380      4,038
Hawaii ..................        4            5          6          5          264          659         420        351
Idaho ...................        6           10         10          6          367          886         896        370

Illinois ................       56           37         56         47        6,699        3,495       6,701      4,749
Indiana .................       21           12         41         28        1,931        1,336       4,689      2,189
Iowa ....................       16           10         17          6        1,984        2,060       2,143      1,069
Kansas ..................       15            5          5         12        1,464          727         381      1,365
Kentucky ................       28           20         56         33        2,758        2,387       9,722      3,431
Louisiana ...............       29           11         22         29        2,646        1,239       1,669      2,531
Maine ...................        3            5          7          4          204          575         818        318
Maryland ................       12            4          5          5          816          431         365        462
Massachusetts ...........        9            7         17         10          865          624       2,040      1,068
Michigan ................       24           21         50         38        2,924        2,359       6,813      3,368
Minnesota ...............       11            9         16         10          965          707       1,023        932
Mississippi .............       11           14         27         40          922        1,413       1,987      5,957
Missouri ................       30           21         23         32        2,396        1,755       2,259      2,620

Montana .................        4          (2)          7          4          267          (2)         438        414
Nebraska ................        6            3          9          8          593          279         768        860
Nevada ..................       13            7         23         13          994          524       1,703      1,133
New Hampshire ...........        3          (2)          7          3          264          (2)       1,107        233
New Jersey ..............       34           19         70         34        2,685        1,494      11,776      2,937
New Mexico ..............        8            7          9         10          673          640         711        783
New York ................       67           49        153         56        6,338        5,159      22,636      4,743
North Carolina (3) ......       13           18         14         40        2,462        1,917       1,240      3,928
North Dakota ............        7            -        (2)        (2)          681            -         (2)        (2)
Ohio ....................       47           22         87         63        3,909        1,891      11,082      5,170
Oklahoma ................        6            5          6          9          350          367         392        902
Oregon ..................       18           20         25         21        1,324        2,337       2,886      1,586
Pennsylvania ............       73           79        112         90        6,131        7,004      10,791      7,541

Rhode Island ............        4          (2)          9        (2)          265          (2)       2,105        (2)
South Carolina ..........       10            7         19         11          839          489       1,913        949
South Dakota ............      (2)            -        (2)        (2)          (2)            -         (2)        (2)
Tennessee ...............       31            9         14         21        2,580          667       1,259      1,838
Texas ...................       77           54         67         50        7,037        7,970       7,118      4,762
Utah ....................        8            3         13          8          663          423       1,232        554
Vermont .................        -          (2)         17        (2)            -          (2)       1,800        (2)
Virginia ................       26           13         23         21        3,151        1,102       2,063      2,050
Washington ..............       11           14         28         16          882        1,099       2,725      1,463
West Virginia ...........        5          (2)        (2)          5          297          (2)         (2)        385
Wisconsin ...............       27           32         76         41        2,518        2,559       7,965      3,472
Wyoming .................        -          (2)        (2)        (2)            -          (2)         (2)        (2)

Puerto Rico ............        19           11         17         24        1,735        1,114       1,676      2,815
 
   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: June 22, 2011