Technical information: (202) 691-6392 USDL 09-0416
http://www.bls.gov/mls/
For release: 10:00 A.M. (EDT)
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 Thursday, April 23, 2009
MASS LAYOFFS IN MARCH 2009
Employers took 2,933 mass layoff actions in March that resulted in
the separation of 299,388 workers, seasonally adjusted, as measured by
new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the
Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported to-
day. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single employer.
The number of mass layoff events in March increased by 164 from the
prior month, while the number of associated initial claims increased by
3,911. Over the year, the number of mass layoff events increased by
1,348, and the number of associated initial claims increased by 137,891.
In March, the manufacturing sector experienced 1,259 mass layoff events,
seasonally adjusted, resulting in 155,909 initial claims. Over the month,
mass layoff events in manufacturing increased by 24, and initial claims
increased by 3,291. (See table 1.) Layoff events and initial claims
rose to their highest levels on record, with data available back to 1995;
events in the manufacturing sector also reached its highest level.
During the 16 months from December 2007 through March 2009, the
total number of mass layoff events (seasonally adjusted) was 31,414,
and the number of initial claims (seasonally adjusted) was 3,227,201.
(December 2007 was the start of a recession as designated by the
National Bureau of Economic Research.)
The national unemployment rate was 8.5 percent in March 2009, sea-
sonally adjusted, up from 8.1 percent the prior month and from 5.1 per-
cent a year earlier. In March, total nonfarm payroll employment de-
creased by 663,000 over the month and by 4,795,000 from a year earlier.
Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
The number of mass layoff events in March was 2,191 on a not sea-
sonally adjusted basis; the number of associated initial claims was
228,387. (See table 2.) Over the year, increases were recorded in
both the number of mass layoff events (+1,102) and initial claims
(+113,846). This year, both average weekly events and initial claim-
ants reached their highest March levels in program history; data are
available back to 1996. (Average weekly analysis mitigates the effect
of differing lengths of months. See the Technical Note.) Thirteen
of the 19 major industry sectors reported program highs in terms of
average weekly initial claimants for the month of March--mining; con-
struction; manufacturing; wholesale trade; retail trade; information;
finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional
and technical services; management of companies and enterprises; admini-
strative and waste services; arts, entertainment, and recreation; and
accommodation and food services.
The manufacturing sector accounted for 43 percent of all mass layoff
events and 50 percent of initial claims filed in March 2009; a year
earlier, manufacturing made up 31 percent of events and 38 percent of
initial claims. This March, the number of manufacturing claimants was
greatest in transportation equipment (26,012) and machinery (18,081).
(See table 3.) The retail trade industry accounted for 8 percent of mass
layoff events and 9 percent of associated initial claims during the month.
Of the 10 detailed industries with the largest number of mass layoff
initial claims, 6 reached their March peak. The six-digit NAICS industry
with the largest number of initial claims was temporary help services
(9,964). (See table A.)
- 2 -
Table A. Industries with the largest number of mass layoff initial claims in March 2009
March peak
Industry
Initial claims Year Initial claims
Temporary help services (1) ................... 9,964 2002 14,338
Construction machinery manufacturing .......... 7,933 2009 7,933
Food service contractors ...................... 6,475 2007 7,636
Radio, TV, and other electronics stores ....... 5,867 2009 5,867
Motion picture and video production ........... 4,919 2005 7,192
Professional employer organizations (1) ....... 4,892 2009 4,892
Motor vehicle power train components mfg. ..... 4,843 2009 4,843
Light truck and utility vehicle manufacturing . 4,446 2009 4,446
School and employee bus transportation ........ 4,070 2008 8,073
Semiconductors and related device mfg. ........ 3,476 2009 3,476
1 See the Technical Note for more information on these industries.
Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
Of the 4 census regions, the Midwest registered the highest number
of initial claims in March due to mass layoffs (81,957), followed by
the South (61,432) and the West (55,505). (See table 5.) Initial
claims associated with mass layoffs increased over the year in all 4
regions, with the Midwest (+47,072) and the South (+33,335) experiencing
the largest increases. In 2009, all four regions reported their highest
March levels of average weekly initial claims in program history.
Of the 9 geographic divisions, the East North Central (64,595) had
the highest number of initial claims due to mass layoffs in March, fol-
lowed by the Pacific (44,514) and the South Atlantic (27,819). (See
table 5.) All divisions experienced over-the-year increases in initial
claims, led by the East North Central (+36,748) and the Pacific (+18,158).
This year, all divisions except the Pacific reached March program highs
in terms of initial claims.
California recorded the highest number of initial claims filed due
to mass layoff events in March with 38,130. The states with the next
highest number of mass layoff initial claims were Illinois (18,096),
Texas (14,284), and Ohio (13,067). (See table 6.) Forty-three states
registered over-the-year increases in initial claims associated with
mass layoffs, led by California (+16,318), Illinois (+11,402), and
Texas (+9,179). In 2009, 26 states reached program highs in average
weekly initial claims for the month of March--Alabama, Arizona, Colorado,
Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine,
Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico,
North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South
Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wisconsin.
- 3 -
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 re-
lease 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 establish-
ment 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 report on Extended Mass Layoffs in the First Quarter of 2009
is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, May 12. The report on Mass
Layoffs in April 2009 is scheduled to be released on Friday, May 22.
- 4 -
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; TDD message referral
phone number: 1-800-877-8339.
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.
- 5 -
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, April 2005 to
March 2009, seasonally adjusted
Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing
Date
Initial Initial Initial
Events claimants Events claimants Events claimants
2005
April ...................... 1,244 134,425 1,111 123,958 396 60,052
May ........................ 1,264 137,475 1,121 124,468 397 54,998
June ....................... 1,196 126,416 1,082 117,568 367 58,003
July ....................... 1,241 130,331 1,094 117,510 354 46,056
August ..................... 1,143 125,536 1,000 113,465 342 47,255
September .................. 2,250 296,913 2,035 252,291 420 55,974
October .................... 1,109 111,202 991 102,111 320 43,387
November ................... 1,162 113,502 1,027 102,058 325 41,493
December ................... 1,263 136,751 1,135 125,700 358 46,940
2006
January .................... 1,112 111,601 986 102,359 293 35,390
February ................... 960 104,045 872 96,317 317 41,810
March ...................... 1,078 118,270 976 109,842 320 48,026
April ...................... 1,198 123,674 1,062 113,849 366 50,747
May ........................ 1,132 116,808 1,013 106,743 312 42,958
June ....................... 1,156 124,955 1,044 115,491 356 45,280
July ....................... 1,204 123,172 1,077 113,324 381 50,109
August ..................... 1,278 136,289 1,117 125,064 376 60,524
September .................. 1,167 124,083 1,054 115,451 390 46,470
October .................... 1,195 121,439 1,081 112,777 401 53,597
November ................... 1,209 131,459 1,096 122,136 402 57,084
December ................... 1,201 133,311 1,100 124,019 369 51,113
2007
January .................... 1,261 129,190 1,116 118,890 406 55,341
February ................... 1,240 134,524 1,130 126,105 404 58,861
March ...................... 1,261 129,480 1,151 120,923 407 52,356
April ...................... 1,281 130,263 1,145 119,683 381 45,654
May ........................ 1,200 119,259 1,097 111,585 368 48,682
June ....................... 1,256 132,078 1,138 122,726 356 41,135
July ....................... 1,288 131,556 1,182 123,322 405 53,318
August ..................... 1,262 125,334 1,162 117,557 331 36,577
September .................. 1,279 125,527 1,183 118,917 440 54,006
October .................... 1,346 133,514 1,224 124,666 436 57,527
November ................... 1,352 143,419 1,233 134,445 408 56,330
December ................... 1,469 145,916 1,354 136,914 447 56,152
2008
January .................... 1,476 149,068 1,350 139,076 435 56,579
February ................... 1,669 183,038 1,532 172,013 526 67,235
March ...................... 1,585 161,497 1,471 151,550 483 65,252
April ...................... 1,344 135,352 1,215 125,074 487 63,247
May ........................ 1,701 180,558 1,563 170,538 538 75,520
June ....................... 1,717 174,748 1,561 162,071 555 79,744
July ....................... 1,535 152,499 1,390 141,239 455 57,648
August ..................... 1,887 188,951 1,735 178,479 626 80,913
September .................. 2,290 240,721 2,114 226,492 643 86,617
October .................... 2,204 230,330 2,042 216,095 687 92,256
November ................... 2,333 225,639 2,185 213,288 868 100,643
December ................... 2,275 226,117 2,100 212,559 871 105,402
2009
January .................... 2,227 237,902 2,070 225,490 738 102,577
February ................... 2,769 295,477 2,628 281,500 1,235 152,618
March ...................... 2,933 299,388 2,751 283,989 1,259 155,909
Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, April 2005 to
March 2009, not seasonally adjusted
Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing
Date
Initial Initial Initial
Events claimants Events claimants Events claimants
2005
April ...................... 1,373 158,582 1,263 148,133 395 59,129
May ........................ 986 101,358 891 93,332 249 30,424
June ....................... 1,157 120,463 941 103,307 216 32,783
July ....................... 1,981 244,216 1,745 222,377 856 136,210
August ..................... 645 67,582 598 63,484 188 22,531
September .................. 1,662 213,281 1,505 179,042 318 47,497
October .................... 905 91,941 757 80,694 249 37,276
November ................... 1,254 116,127 1,079 102,182 363 41,442
December ................... 2,323 254,258 2,168 242,753 706 96,382
2006
January .................... 1,245 117,946 1,123 108,701 331 35,097
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
Table 3. Industry distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance
Initial claimants for
Mass layoff events unemployment insurance
Industry
March January February March March January February March
2008 2009 2009 2009 2008 2009 2009 2009
Seasonally adjusted
Total ..................................... 1,585 2,227 2,769 2,933 161,497 237,902 295,477 299,388
Total, private nonfarm ........................ 1,471 2,070 2,628 2,751 151,550 225,490 281,500 283,989
Manufacturing ............................... 483 738 1,235 1,259 65,252 102,577 152,618 155,909
Not seasonally adjusted
Total (1) ................................. 1,089 3,806 2,262 2,191 114,541 388,813 218,438 228,387
Total, private .................................. 1,063 3,709 2,215 2,140 111,984 380,158 213,548 223,981
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting .. 24 76 42 33 1,837 4,865 2,793 2,584
Total, private nonfarm ........................ 1,039 3,633 2,173 2,107 110,147 375,293 210,755 221,397
Mining ...................................... (2) 50 35 31 (2) 4,538 3,379 3,751
Utilities ................................... (2) (2) (2) 3 (2) (2) (2) 234
Construction ................................ 119 388 199 166 7,891 27,762 14,040 11,612
Manufacturing ............................... 333 1,461 945 940 43,740 172,757 103,588 114,747
Food .................................... 58 84 57 63 7,705 8,083 5,379 6,077
Beverage and tobacco products ........... 6 6 8 9 540 511 606 1,305
Textile mills ........................... 14 35 19 29 2,745 4,322 1,833 3,108
Textile product mills ................... (2) 19 8 6 (2) 2,811 769 554
Apparel ................................. 8 33 16 9 544 3,189 1,545 883
Leather and allied products ............. - 6 (2) (2) - 504 (2) (2)
Wood products ........................... 30 104 57 62 2,419 9,870 5,348 5,799
Paper ................................... 9 38 34 27 827 3,977 3,129 2,749
Printing and related support activities . 9 38 21 23 736 4,187 1,758 2,124
Petroleum and coal products ............. (2) 8 (2) (2) (2) 515 (2) (2)
Chemicals ............................... 3 26 20 21 140 1,883 1,806 1,746
Plastics and rubber products ............ 27 110 48 60 2,201 11,156 4,878 6,151
Nonmetallic mineral products ............ 15 56 40 46 1,224 4,441 2,788 4,095
Primary metals .......................... 10 98 59 71 873 9,660 6,523 8,681
Fabricated metal products ............... 20 151 99 88 1,878 13,746 8,735 8,186
Machinery ............................... 15 121 106 110 2,447 14,120 14,921 18,081
Computer and electronic products ........ 10 76 78 68 917 6,747 7,439 8,130
Electrical equipment and appliances ..... 9 53 35 47 2,692 5,807 5,399 6,476
Transportation equipment ................ 72 316 171 155 14,318 57,173 22,440 26,012
Furniture and related products .......... 11 48 44 24 842 6,928 6,333 3,020
Miscellaneous manufacturing ............. 4 35 20 19 301 3,127 1,607 1,354
Wholesale trade ............................. 22 86 62 59 1,624 7,612 4,243 4,696
Retail trade ................................ 94 329 193 178 9,788 33,622 17,538 19,491
Transportation and warehousing .............. 92 236 80 91 10,629 25,081 7,864 8,809
Information ................................. 35 69 72 75 4,316 9,405 8,476 8,559
Finance and insurance ....................... 46 88 74 57 3,692 7,683 5,685 4,469
Real estate and rental and leasing .......... 5 26 17 16 552 1,870 1,083 980
Professional and technical services ......... 24 87 82 81 3,225 7,032 7,895 7,191
Management of companies and enterprises ..... (2) (2) 14 10 (2) (2) 990 923
Administrative and waste services ........... 130 473 235 227 10,076 46,646 23,566 18,762
Educational services ........................ 6 14 (2) 8 1,191 1,952 (2) 467
Health care and social assistance ........... 20 41 33 24 1,347 4,279 2,032 1,820
Arts, entertainment, and recreation ......... 8 49 10 17 492 4,421 655 1,259
Accommodation and food services ............. 90 197 95 115 10,328 17,360 8,080 13,090
Other services, except public administration 10 25 18 9 906 2,155 1,083 537
Unclassified ................................ - 1 - - - 49 - -
Government ...................................... 26 97 47 51 2,557 8,655 4,890 4,406
Federal ..................................... 7 13 7 5 569 1,302 533 470
State ....................................... 7 25 17 11 618 2,155 1,804 1,066
Local ....................................... 12 59 23 35 1,370 5,198 2,553 2,870
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 2007 to March 2009, 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
2007
January .................... 1,407 134,984 1,263 124,475
February ................... 935 86,696 861 82,097
March ...................... 1,082 123,974 1,015 118,431
First Quarter .............. 3,424 345,654 3,139 325,003 1,110 199,250 35.4 61.3
April ...................... 1,219 127,444 1,115 118,040
May ........................ 923 85,816 856 81,153
June ....................... 1,599 172,810 1,318 148,669
Second Quarter ............. 3,741 386,070 3,289 347,862 1,421 259,234 43.2 74.5
July ....................... 1,599 175,419 1,450 164,939
August ..................... 963 93,458 908 88,345
September .................. 717 67,385 667 64,026
Third Quarter .............. 3,279 336,262 3,025 317,310 1,018 173,077 33.7 54.5
October .................... 1,083 108,455 929 97,716
November ................... 1,799 198,220 1,593 181,184
December ................... 2,167 224,214 2,071 216,898
Fourth Quarter ............. 5,049 530,889 4,593 495,798 1,814 347,151 39.5 70.0
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 1,340 259,084 35.9 70.4
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 1,756 339,184 44.7 82.1
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 1,582 300,337 37.4 68.0
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 (2)(p)3,140 (2)(p)463,715 (p)41.7 (p)60.0
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
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.
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
March January February March March January February March
2008 2009 2009 2009 2008 2009 2009 2009
United States (1) ... 1,089 3,806 2,262 2,191 114,541 388,813 218,438 228,387
Northeast ................... 180 787 348 317 21,202 77,142 32,131 29,493
New England ............. 14 97 78 68 1,014 8,414 7,744 7,021
Middle Atlantic ......... 166 690 270 249 20,188 68,728 24,387 22,472
South ....................... 245 1,052 624 589 28,097 115,630 55,542 61,432
South Atlantic .......... 139 574 295 276 14,166 58,892 23,842 27,819
East South Central ...... 53 279 172 158 6,680 32,215 17,840 15,629
West South Central ...... 53 199 157 155 7,251 24,523 13,860 17,984
Midwest ..................... 287 1,024 561 607 34,885 114,195 64,973 81,957
East North Central ...... 224 821 434 466 27,847 93,852 52,690 64,595
West North Central ...... 63 203 127 141 7,038 20,343 12,283 17,362
West ........................ 377 943 729 678 30,357 81,846 65,792 55,505
Mountain ................ 43 149 128 109 4,001 12,657 11,381 10,991
Pacific ................. 334 794 601 569 26,356 69,189 54,411 44,514
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
March January February March March January February March
2008 2009 2009 2009 2008 2009 2009 2009
Total (1) ............ 1,089 3,806 2,262 2,191 114,541 388,813 218,438 228,387
Alabama ................. 11 100 33 45 927 10,588 4,690 4,985
Alaska .................. (2) 10 7 (2) (2) 788 557 (2)
Arizona ................. 9 24 23 22 808 1,941 2,185 2,483
Arkansas ................ 5 13 6 10 867 1,462 1,156 806
California .............. 296 651 515 498 21,812 54,153 45,557 38,130
Colorado ................ 6 24 15 13 533 1,814 1,237 1,578
Connecticut ............. (2) 14 12 11 (2) 1,349 824 928
Delaware ................ 4 5 4 4 298 1,052 484 509
District of Columbia .... - (2) (2) (2) - (2) (2) (2)
Florida ................. 63 235 155 107 5,145 19,301 9,779 8,594
Georgia ................. 20 137 45 46 3,302 16,654 3,830 4,152
Hawaii .................. 4 14 15 5 304 998 1,211 376
Idaho ................... 12 21 10 16 1,187 1,746 591 1,664
Illinois ................ 51 130 115 109 6,694 13,443 19,469 18,096
Indiana ................. 27 117 59 68 3,870 10,734 6,776 10,781
Iowa .................... 11 64 33 38 1,051 7,353 4,374 6,140
Kansas .................. 8 21 18 19 1,069 2,447 1,582 2,259
Kentucky ................ 26 80 78 72 4,555 12,492 8,794 7,861
Louisiana ............... 6 29 19 16 411 3,396 1,498 1,411
Maine ................... - 18 4 9 - 1,618 348 835
Maryland ................ (2) 31 11 8 (2) 2,535 800 531
Massachusetts ........... 5 33 32 25 433 2,782 2,873 2,422
Michigan ................ 41 229 79 87 3,980 26,453 7,392 11,121
Minnesota ............... 9 41 24 30 617 3,289 1,777 3,665
Mississippi ............. 7 25 8 12 493 2,353 458 745
Missouri ................ 28 62 38 42 3,799 5,239 3,538 3,430
Montana ................. (2) 14 11 7 (2) 1,491 753 667
Nebraska ................ 6 5 7 (2) 412 1,070 500 (2)
Nevada .................. 7 33 43 27 522 2,805 3,881 2,351
New Hampshire ........... 3 7 9 9 167 465 1,020 1,213
New Jersey .............. 34 90 47 39 4,007 7,179 3,777 3,217
New Mexico .............. 5 13 13 9 685 822 1,868 858
New York ................ 29 279 82 70 3,436 31,893 8,927 6,974
North Carolina .......... 16 41 34 44 1,367 4,149 3,833 6,277
North Dakota ............ - (2) 3 4 - (2) 207 1,259
Ohio .................... 52 199 91 93 6,236 27,971 9,065 13,067
Oklahoma ................ 6 21 19 17 868 2,772 1,437 1,483
Oregon .................. 21 76 43 42 3,275 9,005 5,321 4,118
Pennsylvania ............ 103 321 141 140 12,745 29,656 11,683 12,281
Rhode Island ............ 4 17 9 9 303 1,526 1,291 889
South Carolina .......... 17 102 33 48 1,659 10,703 3,471 6,157
South Dakota ............ (2) 6 4 5 (2) 530 305 323
Tennessee ............... 9 74 53 29 705 6,782 3,898 2,038
Texas ................... 36 136 113 112 5,105 16,893 9,769 14,284
Utah .................... (2) 19 11 14 (2) 1,978 753 1,313
Vermont ................. (2) 8 12 5 (2) 674 1,388 734
Virginia ................ 14 15 8 14 1,808 3,313 786 1,229
Washington .............. 12 43 21 23 913 4,245 1,765 1,833
West Virginia ........... 3 7 3 4 428 1,127 681 301
Wisconsin ............... 53 146 90 109 7,067 15,251 9,988 11,530
Wyoming ................. - (2) (2) (2) - (2) (2) (2)
Puerto Rico ............. 4 29 28 22 344 2,992 2,282 2,035
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
