Internet address: http://stats.bls.gov:80/newsrels.htm Technical information: (202) 606-6396 USDL 97-250 For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT Media contact: 606-5902 Thursday, July 31, 1997 MASS LAYOFFS IN MAY 1997 In May 1997, there were 1,056 mass layoff actions by employers as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, according to preliminary data from the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single establishment, and the number of workers involved totaled 93,477 persons. Both layoff events and the number of workers involved were higher than in May 1996. (See table 1.) The monthly series in this release covers mass layoffs of 50 or more workers beginning in a given month, regardless of duration. Information on the length of the layoff is obtained later for the quarterly release, which includes only mass layoffs lasting more than 30 days (referred to as "extended mass layoffs"), along with more information on the establishment classification and location and on the demographics of the laid-off workers. See the Technical Note for more detailed definitions. Because the monthly figures include short-term layoffs of 30 days or less, the sum of the figures for the three months in a quarter will be higher than the quarterly figure for mass layoffs of more than 30 days. For example, the sum of all mass layoffs in January, February, and March of 1997 was 3,624 layoff events involving 355,191 initial claimants for unemployment insurance. The first-quarter 1997 figures for mass layoffs lasting more than 30 days, however, were 993 events and 141,287 claimants. Twenty-seven percent of all mass layoffs in the January-March period lasted for more than a month. In all quarters for which data are available, this ratio of "extended" mass layoffs to all mass layoffs varied from 27 to 46 percent. State Distribution Among the 48 states and the District of Columbia reporting preliminary data for May, the largest numbers of initial claims filed in mass layoff events were: California 26,288 Texas 10,015 New York 8,550 Illinois 5,699 Wisconsin 4,473 - 2 - These five states accounted for 59 percent of the total number of layoff events and initial claims reported. California alone accounted for 34 percent of the events and 28 percent of the initial claims. (See table 2.) Layoffs in this group of states were concentrated in business services (mostly in help supply), food processing (mainly in canned fruits and vegetables), and eating and drinking places. From May 1996 to May 1997, California reported the largest over-the-year rise in initial claims stemming from mass layoff events, primarily in business services and food processing. Colorado reported the sharpest decline in initial claims. States with the largest over-the-year changes in initial claims were: Increases Decreases California 13,445 Colorado -3,534 Texas 5,624 South Carolina -1,813 New York 5,518 Tennessee -919 Missouri 1,181 Georgia -717 Indiana 997 New Jersey -526 Industry Distribution In May 1997, manufacturing industries accounted for 34 percent of all initial claims filed and 30 percent of all mass layoff events. (See table 3.) Within manufacturing, more initial claims were filed in nondurable goods industries than in durable goods industries. Manufacturing industries which had the largest numbers of initial claimants were: Food and kindred products 7,483 Electronic and other electrical equipment 4,546 Transportation equipment 3,989 Apparel and other textile products 3,271 Outside of manufacturing, services accounted for 41 percent of the layoff events and 42 percent of the initial claims (primarily in business services and social services). Retail trade (mostly eating and drinking places) contributed an additional 19 percent to layoff events and 21 percent to initial claims. Nonmanufacturing industries with the largest numbers of initial claims filed in mass layoff events were: Business services 9,418 Eating and drinking places 6,877 Social services 5,841 - 3 - Compared with May 1996, the largest changes in initial claims occurred in the following industries: Increases Business services 3,261 Local and suburban passenger transit 2,179 Eating and drinking places 1,990 Transportation equipment 1,830 Social services 1,813 Decreases Food stores -3,778 Industrial machinery and equipment -1,515 Furniture and fixtures -722 Printing and publishing -659 Technical Note The Mass Layoff Statistics (MLS) program is a federal-state program which 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 establishments which have at least 50 initial claims filed against them during a consecutive 5-week period. These establishments 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 one month on a quarterly basis. Monthly reports from the MLS program began with data for September 1996. The program resumed operations in April 1995 after it had been terminated in November 1992 due to lack of funding. Previously, however, monthly layoff statistics were not published. Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-606-STAT; TDD phone: 202-606-5897; TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-326-2577. Definitions 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 insurance benefits filed against an establishment during a 5-week period, regardless of duration. Table 1. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, January 1996 to May 1997 Extended mass layoffs Event Total mass layoffs lasting more than 30 days realization rate (1) Date Events Initial Initial claimants Events claimants 1996 January (r)............. 1,753 175,348 February (r)............ 939 77,289 March (r)............... 990 128,862 First quarter....... r3,682 r381,499 1,354 216,257 r36.8 April (r)............... 1,024 109,266 May (r)................. 930 79,576 June (r)................ 914 79,203 Second quarter...... r2,868 r268,045 1,307 192,577 r45.6 July (r)................ 1,531 191,955 August (r).............. 912 82,783 September (r)........... 509 42,132 Third quarter....... r2,952 r316,870 985 181,083 r33.4 October (r)............. 1,289 131,879 November (r)............ 1,429 130,310 December (r)............ 1,811 203,115 Fourth quarter...... r4,529 r465,304 (2)1,841 (2)321,235 r40.6 1997 January (r)............. 2,098 208,783 February (r)............ 755 63,260 March (r)............... 771 83,148 First quarter....... r3,624 r355,191 (3)993 (3)141,287 r27.4 April (4)............... r1,084 r130,020 May (4)................. p1,056 p93,477 1 The event realization rate is the percentage of total mass layoff events lasting more than 30 days. 2 Data for layoffs lasting more than 30 days were reported by the District of Columbia and all states, except New York. 3 Data for layoffs lasting more than 30 days were reported by the District of Columbia and all states, except Nebraska, New York, and Pennsylvania. 4 Data for total mass layoffs were reported by the District of Columbia and all states, except Michigan and Pennsylvania. p = preliminary. r = revised. NOTE: Data for total mass layoffs also have been revised for April through December 1995 due to the inclusion of new data for New York. Table 2. State distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claims for unemployment insurance, May 1996 and May 1997 Mass layoff events Initial claimants for unemployment insurance State May May May May 1996 1997 1996 1997 Total ( 1 )........................... r930 1,056 r79,576 93,477 Alabama ................................. 6 5 434 354 Alaska .................................. ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) 200 Arizona ................................. 11 13 1,405 1,538 Arkansas ................................ 10 19 1,265 1,800 California .............................. 214 362 12,843 26,288 Colorado ................................ 7 4 4,041 507 Connecticut ............................ 6 ( 2 ) 578 ( 2 ) Delaware ................................ ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) District of Columbia .................... ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) – Florida ................................. 47 60 3,417 4,037 Georgia ................................. 18 10 1,428 711 Hawaii .................................. ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) 237 Idaho ................................... 5 10 284 891 Illinois ................................ 51 54 5,176 5,699 Indiana ................................. 8 20 596 1,593 Iowa .................................... 7 10 765 873 Kansas .................................. 11 6 739 387 Kentucky ................................ ( 2 ) 6 ( 2 ) 457 Louisiana ............................... 6 7 337 526 Maine ................................... 5 6 634 473 Maryland ................................ 10 9 799 824 Massachusetts ........................... 12 15 852 1,441 Michigan ................................ 20 ( 1 ) 2,637 ( 1 ) Minnesota ............................... 12 11 1,163 873 Mississippi ............................. – 5 – 571 Missouri ................................ 29 43 2,589 3,770 Montana ................................. 4 3 231 169 Nebraska ................................ – ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Nevada .................................. 4 5 319 408 New Hampshire ........................... ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) 182 New Jersey .............................. 38 21 2,915 2,389 New Mexico .............................. ( 2 ) 5 ( 2 ) 425 New York ................................ r33 84 r3,032 8,550 North Carolina .......................... 18 16 1,657 1,326 North Dakota ............................ – ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Ohio .................................... 35 43 3,064 3,895 Oklahoma ................................ ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) – Oregon .................................. 12 16 1,051 1,745 Pennsylvania ............................ 121 ( 1 ) 8,916 ( 1 ) Rhode Island ............................ 3 3 405 236 South Carolina .......................... 24 12 3,024 1,211 South Dakota ............................ – – – – Tennessee ............................... 17 4 1,222 303 Texas ................................... 48 81 4,391 10,015 Utah .................................... 3 ( 2 ) 206 ( 2 ) Vermont ................................ ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) – Virginia ................................ 14 19 1,610 2,525 Washington .............................. 10 11 742 830 West Virginia ........................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Wisconsin ............................... 38 40 3,811 4,473 Wyoming ................................. – – – – Puerto Rico ............................. 6 9 689 863 1 For May 1997, data were reported by the District of Columbia and all states, except Michigan and Pennsylvania. 2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. r = revised. NOTE: Dash represents zero. Table 3. Industry distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claims for unemployment insurance, May 1996 and May 1997 Mass layoff events Initial claimants for unemployment insurance Industry May May May May 1996 1997 1996 1997 Total ( 1 )........................................ 930 1,056 79,576 93,477 Total, private.............................................. 915 1,013 78,315 88,970 Agriculture............................................... 26 61 1,370 4,085 Nonagriculture............................................ 855 934 74,063 83,402 Manufacturing........................................... 359 313 33,426 31,756 Durable goods........................................ 156 135 14,878 15,300 Lumber and wood products......................... 12 5 820 507 Furniture and fixtures........................... 12 3 917 195 Stone, clay, and glass products.................. 5 6 334 554 Primary metal industries......................... 8 10 523 742 Fabricated metal industries...................... 12 17 838 1,528 Industrial machinery and equipment............... 30 18 3,097 1,582 Electronic and other electrical equipment........ 37 28 4,630 4,546 Transportation equipment......................... 25 28 2,159 3,989 Instruments and related products................. 5 12 571 968 Miscellaneous manufacturing industries........... 10 8 989 689 Nondurable goods..................................... 203 178 18,548 16,456 Food and kindred products......................... 75 82 6,969 7,483 Textile mill products............................. 20 19 2,313 2,181 Apparel and other textile products................ 46 35 3,585 3,271 Paper and allied products......................... 12 5 830 361 Printing and publishing........................... 23 18 1,873 1,214 Chemicals and allied products..................... 6 ( 2 ) 527 ( 2 ) Petroleum and coal products....................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Rubber and miscellaneous plastics products........ 12 11 1,754 1,277 Leather and leather products...................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Nonmanufacturing....................................... 496 621 40,637 51,646 Mining............................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Construction......................................... 48 104 3,325 7,816 Transportation and public utilities.................. 29 51 2,510 4,173 Wholesale and retail trade........................... 160 159 15,565 14,014 Wholesale trade................................... 25 23 1,890 1,840 Retail trade...................................... 135 136 13,675 12,174 Finance, insurance, and real estate.................. ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Services............................................. 238 285 17,665 23,790 Not identified........................................... 34 18 2,882 1,483 Government.................................................. 15 43 1,261 4,507 Federal.................................................. 4 10 268 1,225 State.................................................... 2 10 113 730 Local.................................................... 9 23 880 2,552 1 For May 1997, data were reported by the District of Columbia and all states, except Michigan and Pennsylvania. 2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. NOTE: Data for total mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance have been revised for May 1996 due to the inclusion of new data for New York.