For release 10:00 a.m. (EST) Tuesday, February 23, 2010 USDL-10-0229
Technical information: (202) 691-6392 * mlsinfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/mls
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 * PressOffice@bls.gov
MASS LAYOFFS -- JANUARY 2010
Employers took 1,761 mass layoff actions in January that resulted in the sepa-
ration of 182,261 workers, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for
unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Sta-
tistics reported today. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single
employer. Both mass layoff events and initial claims increased from the prior
month after four consecutive over-the-month decreases. In January, 486 mass
layoff events were reported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted,
resulting in 62,556 initial claims. Both figures increased over the month--the
first increases since August 2009 for events and since September 2009 for ini-
tial claims. (See table 1.)
During the 26 months from December 2007 through January 2010, the total number
of mass layoff events (seasonally adjusted) was 53,739, and the associated num-
ber of initial claims was 5,425,101. (December 2007 was the start of a reces-
sion as designated by the National Bureau of Economic Research.)
The national unemployment rate was 9.7 percent in January 2010, seasonally ad-
justed, down from 10.0 percent the prior month but up from 7.7 percent a year
earlier. In January, nonfarm payroll employment decreased by 20,000 over the
month and by 4,022,000 from a year earlier.
Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
The number of mass layoff events in January was 2,860 on a not seasonally ad-
justed basis; the number of associated initial claims was 278,679. Over the
year, the number of mass layoff events decreased by 946, and associated ini-
tial claims decreased by 110,134. (See table 2.) Sixteen of the 19 major in-
dustry sectors in the private economy reported over-the-year decreases in ini-
tial claimants, led by manufacturing (-67,911). (See table 3.) Management of
companies and educational services reported January program highs in terms of
average weekly initial claimants while utilities reached a January program
low. (Average weekly analysis mitigates the effect of differing lengths of
months. See the Technical Note.)
The manufacturing sector accounted for 34 percent of all mass layoff events and
38 percent of initial claims filed in January 2010. A year earlier, manufac-
turing made up 38 percent of events and 44 percent of initial claims. Within
manufacturing, the number of claimants in January was greatest in transporta-
tion equipment, followed by food, fabricated metal products, and machinery.
Eighteen of the 21 manufacturing subsectors experienced over-the-year decreases
in initial claims, led by transportation equipment (-34,023). (See table 3.)
The six-digit industry with the largest number of initial claims in January 2010
was temporary help services. Of the 10 detailed industries with the largest num-
ber of mass layoff initial claims, school and employee bus transportation, dis-
count department stores, and nonresidential electrical contractors reached pro-
gram highs for the month of January. (See table A.)
Table A. Industries with the largest number of mass layoff initial claims in
January 2010, not seasonally adjusted
January peak
Industry Initial Initial
claims Year claims
Temporary help services (1) .................... 16,575 1998 26,224
School and employee bus transportation ......... 15,131 2010 15,131
Discount department stores ..................... 8,065 2010 8,065
Motion picture and video production ............ 7,966 1998 12,038
Professional employer organizations (1) ........ 6,462 2009 11,345
Highway, street, and bridge construction ....... 5,094 2000 9,680
Hotels and motels, except casino hotels ........ 4,248 2009 6,592
Automobile manufacturing ....................... 4,173 2001 21,093
Supermarkets and other grocery stores .......... 3,371 2009 3,978
Nonresidential electrical contractors .......... 3,299 2010 3,299
1 See the Technical Note for more information on these industries.
Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
All regions and all divisions experienced over-the-year decreases in initial
claims due to mass layoffs in January. Among the 4 census regions, the South
(-41,525) and Midwest (-31,010) registered the largest over-the-year decreases
in initial claims. Of the 9 geographic divisions, the East North Central
(-30,146) and the South Atlantic (-21,046) had the largest over-the-year de-
creases of initial claims. (See table 5.)
California recorded the highest number of initial claims in January, followed
by New York and Pennsylvania. Forty states experienced over-the-year decreases
in initial claims, led by Ohio (-13,850), Pennsylvania (-13,226), and Michigan
(-10,418). (See table 6.) In 2010, three states reached January program highs
for average weekly initial claims: North Dakota, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin.
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 quar-
terly 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 in February 2010 news release is scheduled to be released on
Tuesday, March 23, 2010, 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 2006 to
January 2010, seasonally adjusted
Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing
Date
Initial Initial Initial
Events claimants Events claimants Events claimants
2006
February ................... 938 96,542 846 88,629 304 40,029
March ...................... 1,069 117,725 965 109,241 312 45,687
April ...................... 1,189 123,056 1,055 112,922 352 48,731
May ........................ 1,121 117,834 1,003 107,929 302 40,703
June ....................... 1,150 125,318 1,039 115,883 349 43,476
July ....................... 1,182 121,056 1,056 111,432 373 51,691
August ..................... 1,238 135,707 1,104 125,704 372 58,962
September .................. 1,154 124,200 1,043 115,261 393 45,972
October .................... 1,208 123,691 1,094 115,102 409 53,957
November ................... 1,244 135,465 1,128 125,976 413 58,509
December ................... 1,227 134,176 1,123 124,570 376 51,403
2007
January .................... 1,264 130,834 1,113 119,874 404 55,217
February ................... 1,191 121,289 1,075 112,607 374 54,581
March ...................... 1,225 126,391 1,113 117,760 386 48,298
April ...................... 1,268 129,098 1,135 118,175 362 43,205
May ........................ 1,172 118,648 1,070 111,103 345 44,391
June ....................... 1,241 131,394 1,125 122,123 338 37,931
July ....................... 1,274 130,331 1,169 122,381 403 55,973
August ..................... 1,247 126,108 1,158 118,575 323 34,902
September .................. 1,255 123,632 1,160 116,744 436 51,814
October .................... 1,370 137,108 1,248 128,387 449 58,360
November ................... 1,415 148,952 1,289 139,665 424 58,543
December ................... 1,569 155,095 1,448 145,666 483 60,368
2008
January .................... 1,481 151,269 1,348 140,570 436 57,147
February ................... 1,578 162,152 1,432 150,712 470 60,276
March ...................... 1,487 151,539 1,372 141,574 436 56,919
April ...................... 1,327 133,318 1,201 122,651 460 59,377
May ........................ 1,604 170,619 1,465 160,529 468 62,345
June ....................... 1,674 170,329 1,523 158,084 501 68,403
July ....................... 1,531 152,447 1,389 141,707 461 61,417
August ..................... 1,845 189,798 1,711 179,737 607 78,172
September .................. 2,222 235,755 2,049 220,832 634 81,989
October .................... 2,287 239,768 2,125 226,098 721 95,301
November ................... 2,489 240,181 2,334 227,368 929 107,072
December ................... 2,461 243,505 2,277 229,171 962 115,961
2009
January .................... 2,279 251,807 2,115 238,990 764 109,124
February ................... 2,737 289,162 2,592 274,040 1,186 141,264
March ...................... 2,913 295,970 2,715 279,671 1,202 146,381
April ...................... 2,663 263,162 2,461 247,329 1,033 125,093
May ........................ 2,794 306,788 2,589 289,012 1,183 145,166
June ....................... 2,598 260,596 2,371 241,864 1,072 135,844
July ....................... 2,039 196,578 1,818 176,542 565 66,918
August ..................... 2,480 238,911 2,244 218,425 798 87,201
September .................. 2,326 221,639 2,109 204,462 783 90,440
October .................... 2,055 205,502 1,856 187,880 594 65,801
November ................... 1,813 163,823 1,650 151,810 485 54,858
December ................... 1,726 153,127 1,542 138,747 433 44,072
2010
January .................... 1,761 182,261 1,585 168,466 486 62,556
Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, February 2006 to
January 2010, not seasonally adjusted
Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing
Date
Initial Initial Initial
Events claimants Events claimants Events claimants
2006
February ................... 719 66,555 658 62,208 210 24,892
March ...................... 921 111,838 856 106,177 285 44,688
April ...................... 1,140 121,589 1,038 112,964 296 39,538
May ........................ 872 84,809 794 78,663 192 23,570
June ....................... 1,489 164,761 1,224 140,687 319 41,095
July ....................... 1,511 166,857 1,335 154,342 648 96,152
August ..................... 708 72,844 656 69,054 203 28,494
September .................. 865 87,699 785 81,274 296 39,076
October .................... 964 98,804 820 88,133 311 46,737
November ................... 1,315 136,186 1,172 125,009 455 58,473
December ................... 2,249 254,503 2,126 244,783 735 105,462
2007
January .................... 1,407 134,984 1,263 124,475 456 53,615
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
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
2009 2009 2009 2010 2009 2009 2009 2010
Seasonally adjusted
Total ..................................... 2,279 1,813 1,726 1,761 251,807 163,823 153,127 182,261
Total, private nonfarm ........................ 2,115 1,650 1,542 1,585 238,990 151,810 138,747 168,466
Manufacturing ............................... 764 485 433 486 109,124 54,858 44,072 62,556
Not seasonally adjusted
Total (1) ................................. 3,806 1,870 2,310 2,860 388,813 164,496 214,648 278,679
Total, private .................................. 3,709 1,791 2,219 2,739 380,158 158,146 206,930 268,595
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting .. 76 112 53 57 4,865 7,395 3,275 3,521
Total, private nonfarm ........................ 3,633 1,679 2,166 2,682 375,293 150,751 203,655 265,074
Mining ...................................... 50 22 34 20 4,538 1,551 2,807 1,561
Utilities ................................... (2) 3 6 (2) (2) 206 444 (2)
Construction ................................ 388 308 485 328 27,762 23,902 35,718 24,148
Manufacturing ............................... 1,461 517 615 962 172,757 55,053 64,540 104,846
Food .................................... 84 61 63 93 8,083 6,631 6,447 9,134
Beverage and tobacco products ........... 6 9 5 13 511 682 396 839
Textile mills ........................... 35 12 14 28 4,322 1,337 2,242 3,807
Textile product mills ................... 19 - 3 18 2,811 - 300 2,503
Apparel ................................. 33 17 19 23 3,189 1,361 1,661 2,128
Leather and allied products ............. 6 (2) 5 3 504 (2) 324 499
Wood products ........................... 104 40 40 62 9,870 3,505 3,218 6,657
Paper ................................... 38 (2) 12 16 3,977 (2) 850 1,421
Printing and related support activities . 38 10 14 23 4,187 888 1,659 2,415
Petroleum and coal products ............. 8 11 10 7 515 852 866 469
Chemicals ............................... 26 13 10 23 1,883 1,239 768 2,058
Plastics and rubber products ............ 110 29 35 62 11,156 2,802 3,487 5,466
Nonmetallic mineral products ............ 56 30 59 44 4,441 2,514 4,990 3,131
Primary metals .......................... 98 38 34 56 9,660 3,426 3,456 5,734
Fabricated metal products ............... 151 36 54 99 13,746 2,764 4,387 9,256
Machinery ............................... 121 44 53 89 14,120 5,080 6,827 12,322
Computer and electronic products ........ 76 25 23 37 6,747 2,788 1,429 4,239
Electrical equipment and appliances ..... 53 18 19 33 5,807 1,379 2,191 3,360
Transportation equipment ................ 316 86 106 175 57,173 13,806 13,537 23,150
Furniture and related products .......... 48 19 28 48 6,928 2,407 4,617 5,088
Miscellaneous manufacturing ............. 35 11 9 10 3,127 931 888 1,170
Wholesale trade ............................. 86 33 50 67 7,612 2,389 3,858 5,310
Retail trade ................................ 329 99 121 259 33,622 7,083 12,300 28,109
Transportation and warehousing .............. 236 83 157 212 25,081 6,651 17,909 23,788
Information ................................. 69 52 51 84 9,405 5,414 7,042 12,581
Finance and insurance ....................... 88 33 30 47 7,683 2,691 2,357 3,681
Real estate and rental and leasing .......... 26 13 12 (2) 1,870 963 763 (2)
Professional and technical services ......... 87 55 47 71 7,032 4,651 3,746 6,390
Management of companies and enterprises ..... (2) 3 5 15 (2) 290 545 1,462
Administrative and waste services ........... 473 220 253 326 46,646 18,219 21,653 30,020
Educational services ........................ 14 6 12 18 1,952 453 755 2,460
Health care and social assistance ........... 41 38 38 46 4,279 2,886 2,653 3,019
Arts, entertainment, and recreation ......... 49 45 19 35 4,421 3,705 1,734 2,860
Accommodation and food services ............. 197 129 214 163 17,360 13,264 23,507 12,838
Other services, except public administration 25 20 16 20 2,155 1,380 1,171 1,458
Unclassified ................................ 1 - 1 - 49 - 153 -
Government ...................................... 97 79 91 121 8,655 6,350 7,718 10,084
Federal ..................................... 13 12 11 8 1,302 1,155 921 698
State ....................................... 25 25 26 37 2,155 2,213 2,560 3,278
Local ....................................... 59 42 54 76 5,198 2,982 4,237 6,108
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 2008 to January 2010, 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
2008
January .................... 1,647 154,503 1,520 144,191
February ................... 1,269 119,508 1,178 113,587
March ...................... 1,089 114,541 1,039 110,147
First Quarter .............. 4,005 388,552 3,737 367,925 1,340 259,292 35.9 70.5
April ...................... 1,272 130,810 1,172 121,625
May ........................ 1,552 159,471 1,438 150,462
June ....................... 1,622 166,742 1,315 140,916
Second Quarter ............. 4,446 457,023 3,925 413,003 1,756 339,630 44.7 82.2
July ....................... 1,891 200,382 1,687 186,018
August ..................... 1,427 139,999 1,343 133,146
September .................. 1,292 129,586 1,202 122,505
Third Quarter .............. 4,610 469,967 4,232 441,669 1,581 304,340 37.4 68.9
October .................... 2,125 221,784 1,917 205,553
November ................... 2,574 241,589 2,389 226,657
December ................... 3,377 351,305 3,232 340,220
Fourth Quarter ............. 8,076 814,678 7,538 772,430 3,582 (r)766,780 47.5 (r)99.3
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 (r)835,420 50.3 (r)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 (r)3,395 (r)730,946 (r)48.4 (r)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 (r)2,035 (r)402,927 (r)38.8 (r)76.2
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)(p)2,043 (2)(p)292,696 (p)37.0 (p)55.5
2010
January .................... 2,860 278,679 2,682 265,074
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
2009 2009 2009 2010 2009 2009 2009 2010
United States (1) ... 3,806 1,870 2,310 2,860 388,813 164,496 214,648 278,679
Northeast ................... 787 285 461 593 77,142 26,974 41,913 58,748
New England ............. 97 40 71 70 8,414 3,750 6,743 6,503
Middle Atlantic ......... 690 245 390 523 68,728 23,224 35,170 52,245
South ....................... 1,052 413 494 753 115,630 37,708 48,248 74,105
South Atlantic .......... 574 207 284 404 58,892 19,029 25,236 37,846
East South Central ...... 279 83 115 220 32,215 6,656 13,749 23,085
West South Central ...... 199 123 95 129 24,523 12,023 9,263 13,174
Midwest ..................... 1,024 530 739 807 114,195 51,989 76,826 83,185
East North Central ...... 821 382 508 604 93,852 39,265 51,903 63,706
West North Central ...... 203 148 231 203 20,343 12,724 24,923 19,479
West ........................ 943 642 616 707 81,846 47,825 47,661 62,641
Mountain ................ 149 98 126 94 12,657 9,393 10,700 8,992
Pacific ................. 794 544 490 613 69,189 38,432 36,961 53,649
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; Moun-
tain: 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
2009 2009 2009 2010 2009 2009 2009 2010
Total (1) ............ 3,806 1,870 2,310 2,860 388,813 164,496 214,648 278,679
Alabama ................. 100 16 36 93 10,588 1,266 4,592 11,204
Alaska .................. 10 3 7 9 788 361 650 713
Arizona ................. 24 9 9 17 1,941 709 817 1,502
Arkansas ................ 13 9 7 9 1,462 973 581 1,433
California .............. 651 472 412 533 54,153 31,922 30,229 46,474
Colorado ................ 24 14 24 13 1,814 1,064 1,941 1,301
Connecticut ............. 14 5 8 6 1,349 424 890 406
Delaware ................ 5 6 5 4 1,052 347 266 287
District of Columbia .... (2) (2) 4 (2) (2) (2) 301 (2)
Florida ................. 235 86 96 141 19,301 6,010 7,715 9,909
Georgia ................. 137 26 56 83 16,654 3,225 5,244 8,861
Hawaii .................. 14 7 7 9 998 488 637 735
Idaho ................... 21 19 16 11 1,746 2,071 1,099 1,068
Illinois ................ 130 101 142 112 13,443 10,794 17,639 11,615
Indiana ................. 117 43 57 59 10,734 4,323 6,256 6,470
Iowa .................... 64 25 51 54 7,353 2,648 6,087 6,647
Kansas .................. 21 8 28 27 2,447 741 4,878 2,432
Kentucky ................ 80 41 44 76 12,492 3,649 5,013 8,044
Louisiana ............... 29 35 22 18 3,396 2,795 1,641 1,566
Maine ................... 18 6 3 8 1,618 674 204 789
Maryland ................ 31 6 16 29 2,535 486 1,251 2,586
Massachusetts ........... 33 11 28 27 2,782 803 2,990 2,341
Michigan ................ 229 78 119 144 26,453 8,549 10,913 16,035
Minnesota ............... 41 55 45 36 3,289 4,905 3,690 3,614
Mississippi ............. 25 9 12 11 2,353 512 1,000 735
Missouri ................ 62 48 86 74 5,239 3,195 8,373 5,567
Montana ................. 14 10 12 9 1,491 758 896 1,012
Nebraska ................ 5 6 12 7 1,070 611 1,166 548
Nevada .................. 33 33 36 26 2,805 3,891 3,677 2,463
New Hampshire ........... 7 4 11 12 465 279 867 962
New Jersey .............. 90 52 67 87 7,179 5,277 6,716 7,506
New Mexico .............. 13 7 12 8 822 476 954 560
New York ................ 279 75 126 236 31,893 6,281 12,704 28,309
North Carolina .......... 41 30 18 27 4,149 4,273 1,455 2,072
North Dakota ............ (2) 5 7 4 (2) 557 595 595
Ohio .................... 199 59 91 145 27,971 5,233 8,888 14,121
Oklahoma ................ 21 10 10 17 2,772 1,438 893 1,666
Oregon .................. 76 35 29 35 9,005 3,464 2,617 3,730
Pennsylvania ............ 321 118 197 200 29,656 11,666 15,750 16,430
Rhode Island ............ 17 3 6 13 1,526 297 713 1,696
South Carolina .......... 102 20 45 67 10,703 1,456 4,780 7,274
South Dakota ............ 6 (2) (2) (2) 530 (2) (2) (2)
Tennessee ............... 74 17 23 40 6,782 1,229 3,144 3,102
Texas ................... 136 69 56 85 16,893 6,817 6,148 8,509
Utah .................... 19 4 16 10 1,978 256 1,256 1,086
Vermont ................. 8 11 15 4 674 1,273 1,079 309
Virginia ................ 15 31 40 49 3,313 3,021 3,903 6,570
Washington .............. 43 27 35 27 4,245 2,197 2,828 1,997
West Virginia ........... 7 (2) 4 (2) 1,127 (2) 321 (2)
Wisconsin ............... 146 101 99 144 15,251 10,366 8,207 15,465
Wyoming ................. (2) (2) (2) - (2) (2) (2) -
Puerto Rico ............. 29 22 11 19 2,992 2,177 1,093 1,892
1 See footnote 1, table 3.
2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.
NOTE: Dash represents zero.
United States Department of Labor
