Table 2. Reason for layoff: Extended mass layoff events, separations, and initial claimants for unemployment insurance,
private nonfarm sector, selected quarters, 2008 and 2009
Initial claimants for
Layoff events Separations unemployment insurance
Reason for layoff
III II III III II III III II III
2008r 2009r 2009p 2008r 2009r 2009p 2008r 2009r 2009p
Total, private nonfarm (1) ..... 1,581 3,396 1,776 290,453 650,679 277,924 304,340 727,494 266,938
Business demand ................... 642 1,457 850 97,187 228,472 123,473 127,524 319,603 132,626
Contract cancellation ........... 44 78 45 7,298 12,837 5,989 6,984 14,963 5,208
Contract completion ............. 195 310 254 32,262 51,258 46,529 41,847 63,573 39,237
Domestic competition ............ (2) - 4 (2) - 258 (2) - 231
Excess inventory/saturated
market ........................ (2) 25 17 (2) 7,263 3,394 (2) 17,517 16,094
Import competition .............. 12 8 3 3,197 1,261 310 3,356 1,130 349
Slack work/insufficient demand/
non-seasonal business slowdown. 382 1,036 527 52,332 155,853 66,993 72,408 222,420 71,507
Organizational changes ............ 122 171 106 33,572 36,228 18,109 29,965 37,184 13,601
Business-ownership change ....... 20 33 21 14,033 12,835 3,590 4,906 7,703 2,105
Reorganization or restructuring
of company .................... 102 138 85 19,539 23,393 14,519 25,059 29,481 11,496
Financial issues .................. 192 295 165 37,198 74,300 24,512 31,683 76,236 27,707
Bankruptcy ...................... 42 51 19 13,032 32,265 3,121 8,490 29,416 3,780
Cost control/cost cutting/
increase profitability ........ 92 169 97 12,326 24,116 14,507 13,056 32,363 17,063
Financial difficulty ............ 58 75 49 11,840 17,919 6,884 10,137 14,457 6,864
Production specific ............... 30 14 14 5,998 2,014 4,161 7,034 2,243 3,076
Automation/technological
advances ...................... 4 (2) (2) 760 (2) (2) 843 (2) (2)
Energy related .................. 6 - - 720 - - 2,656 - -
Governmental regulations/
intervention .................. 5 3 4 806 598 2,637 475 279 1,179
Labor dispute/contract
negotiations/strike ........... 4 - 4 1,880 - 422 1,169 - 745
Material or supply shortage ..... 4 (2) - 466 (2) - 371 (2) -
Model changeover ................ (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2)
Plant or machine repair/
maintenance ................... 3 (2) (2) 685 (2) (2) 433 (2) (2)
Product line discontinued ....... (2) 5 (2) (2) 577 (2) (2) 777 (2)
Disaster/safety ................... 32 3 4 4,988 508 1,941 4,233 231 463
Hazardous work environment ...... - - (2) - - (2) - - (2)
Natural disaster (not weather
related) ...................... (2) - - (2) - - (2) - -
Non-natural disaster ............ (2) (2) - (2) (2) - (2) (2) -
Extreme weather-related event ... (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2)
Seasonal .......................... 216 757 258 43,921 160,021 46,701 36,587 140,248 31,290
Seasonal ........................ 116 387 143 27,567 87,539 30,133 21,450 71,113 16,666
Vacation period-school related
or otherwise .................. 100 370 115 16,354 72,482 16,568 15,137 69,135 14,624
Other/miscellaneous ............... 347 699 379 67,589 149,136 59,027 67,314 151,749 58,175
Other ........................... 22 38 27 3,943 5,953 3,558 4,355 8,465 2,915
Data not provided: refusal ...... 53 170 96 13,696 42,582 16,711 13,651 42,576 16,685
Data not provided: does not
know .......................... 272 491 256 49,950 100,601 38,758 49,308 100,708 38,575
1 See footnote 1, table 1.
2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.
r = revised.
p = preliminary.
NOTE: Dash represents zero.
