For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Friday, April 23, 2010 USDL-10-0492
Technical information: (202) 691-6392 * mlsinfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/mls
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 * PressOffice@bls.gov
MASS LAYOFFS -- MARCH 2010
Employers took 1,628 mass layoff actions in March that resulted in the sepa-
ration of 150,864 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 action involved at least 50 persons
from a single employer. The number of mass layoff events in March increased
by 58 from the prior month, while the number of associated initial claims
decreased by 4,854. The number of events has decreased in 5 of the last 7
months, and the number of initial claims has decreased in 6 of the last 7
months. In March, 356 mass layoff events were reported in the manufacturing
sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 39,290 initial claims. Both figures
registered their lowest levels since August 2007. (See table 1.)
During the 28 months from December 2007 through March 2010, the total number
of mass layoff events (seasonally adjusted) was 56,937, and the associated
number of initial claims was 5,731,683. (December 2007 was the start of a re-
cession as designated by the National Bureau of Economic Research.)
The national unemployment rate was 9.7 percent in March 2010, seasonally ad-
justed, unchanged from the prior month but up from 8.6 percent a year earlier.
In March, nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000 over the month but
was down by 2,320,000 from a year earlier.
Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
The number of mass layoff events in March was 1,197 on a not seasonally ad-
justed basis; the number of associated initial claims was 111,727. Over the
year, the number of mass layoff events decreased by 994, and associated ini-
tial claims decreased by 116,660. (See table 2.) Fifteen of the 19 major in-
dustry sectors in the private economy reported over-the-year decreases in
initial claimants, led by manufacturing (-85,002). (See table 3.) Manufac-
turing also reported a program low in terms of average weekly initial claim-
ants for the month of March. (Average weekly analysis mitigates the effect
of differing lengths of months. See the Technical Note.)
The manufacturing sector accounted for 23 percent of all mass layoff events
and 27 percent of initial claims filed in March 2010. A year earlier, manu-
facturing made up 43 percent of events and 50 percent of initial claims.
Within manufacturing, the number of claimants in March 2010 was greatest in
transportation equipment and food. Nineteen of the 21 manufacturing subsec-
tors experienced over-the-year reductions in initial claims, led by trans-
portation equipment (-18,884) and machinery (-15,708). (See table 3.)
The six-digit industry with the largest number of initial claims in March
2010 was food service contractors. (See table A.) Of the 10 detailed in-
dustries with the largest number of mass layoff initial claims, warehouse
clubs and supercenters reached a program high for the month of March.
(Data begin in April 1995.)
Table A. Industries with the largest number of mass layoff initial claims in
March 2010, not seasonally adjusted
March peak
Industry
Initial Year Initial
claims claims
Food service contractors ................. 6,677 2007 7,636
Temporary help services (1) .............. 6,647 2002 14,338
Department stores, except discount ....... 3,339 1999 3,799
School and employee bus transportation ... 3,180 2008 8,073
Automobile manufacturing ................. (2) 1996 15,411
Motion picture and video production ...... 2,933 2005 7,192
Professional employer organizations (1) .. 2,561 2009 4,892
Supermarkets and other grocery stores .... 2,012 2009 2,220
Warehouse clubs and supercenters ......... 1,897 2010 1,897
Discount department stores ............... 1,821 2007 3,670
1 See the Technical Note for more information on these industries.
2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.
Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
All regions and all divisions experienced over-the-year decreases in ini-
tial claims due to mass layoffs in March. Among the 4 census regions, the
Midwest (-54,366) and South (-34,841) registered the largest over-the-year
declines in initial claims. Of the 9 geographic divisions, the East North
Central (-42,982) and the South Atlantic (-17,057) had the largest over-
the-year declines in initial claims. (See table 5.)
California recorded the highest number of initial claims in March, fol-
lowed by Pennsylvania, Illinois, Texas, and New York. Forty-four states
and the District of Columbia experienced over-the-year decreases in ini-
tial claims, led by Illinois (-10,617), Ohio (-10,140), and California
(-9,950). (See table 6.) In 2010, three states and the District of Colum-
bia reached or matched March program lows for average weekly initial claims:
Delaware, North Dakota, and Wisconsin. (Average weekly analysis mitigates
the effect of differing lengths of months. See the Technical Note.)
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 lay-
offs. 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 Extended Mass Layoffs in the First Quarter 2010 news release is
scheduled to be released on Wednesday, May 12, 2010, at 10:00 a.m.
(EDT). The Mass Layoffs in April 2010 news release is scheduled to be
released on Friday, May 21, 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, April 2006 to
March 2010, seasonally adjusted
Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing
Date
Initial Initial Initial
Events claimants Events claimants Events claimants
2006
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
February ................... 1,570 155,718 1,406 142,240 376 43,100
March ...................... 1,628 150,864 1,432 136,446 356 39,290
Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, April 2006 to
March 2010, not seasonally adjusted
Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing
Date
Initial Initial Initial
Events claimants Events claimants Events claimants
2006
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
February ................... 1,183 102,818 1,091 96,022 282 30,728
March ...................... 1,197 111,727 1,111 105,514 273 29,745
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
2009 2010 2010 2010 2009 2010 2010 2010
Seasonally adjusted
Total ..................................... 2,913 1,761 1,570 1,628 295,970 182,261 155,718 150,864
Total, private nonfarm ........................ 2,715 1,585 1,406 1,432 279,671 168,466 142,240 136,446
Manufacturing ............................... 1,202 486 376 356 146,381 62,556 43,100 39,290
Not seasonally adjusted
Total (1) ................................. 2,191 2,860 1,183 1,197 228,387 278,679 102,818 111,727
Total, private .................................. 2,140 2,739 1,128 1,149 223,981 268,595 98,241 107,880
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting .. 33 57 37 38 2,584 3,521 2,219 2,366
Total, private nonfarm ........................ 2,107 2,682 1,091 1,111 221,397 265,074 96,022 105,514
Mining ...................................... 31 20 5 5 3,751 1,561 761 374
Utilities ................................... 3 (2) - (2) 234 (2) - (2)
Construction ................................ 166 328 166 117 11,612 24,148 12,200 8,206
Manufacturing ............................... 940 962 282 273 114,747 104,846 30,728 29,745
Food .................................... 63 93 45 53 6,077 9,134 4,031 6,122
Beverage and tobacco products ........... 9 13 6 4 1,305 839 407 716
Textile mills ........................... 29 28 5 4 3,108 3,807 431 350
Textile product mills ................... 6 18 5 3 554 2,503 557 172
Apparel ................................. 9 23 4 10 883 2,128 265 578
Leather and allied products ............. (2) 3 (2) - (2) 499 (2) -
Wood products ........................... 62 62 27 16 5,799 6,657 1,850 1,445
Paper ................................... 27 16 10 5 2,749 1,421 721 313
Printing and related support activities . 23 23 12 14 2,124 2,415 960 1,224
Petroleum and coal products ............. (2) 7 (2) 3 (2) 469 (2) 185
Chemicals ............................... 21 23 9 13 1,746 2,058 872 1,064
Plastics and rubber products ............ 60 62 10 9 6,151 5,466 1,014 686
Nonmetallic mineral products ............ 46 44 12 11 4,095 3,131 794 785
Primary metals .......................... 71 56 9 8 8,681 5,734 981 773
Fabricated metal products ............... 88 99 12 18 8,186 9,256 681 1,361
Machinery ............................... 110 89 20 22 18,081 12,322 2,466 2,373
Computer and electronic products ........ 68 37 18 16 8,130 4,239 1,538 1,278
Electrical equipment and appliances ..... 47 33 12 6 6,476 3,360 1,386 1,195
Transportation equipment ................ 155 175 45 43 26,012 23,150 10,104 7,128
Furniture and related products .......... 24 48 16 10 3,020 5,088 1,346 1,625
Miscellaneous manufacturing ............. 19 10 (2) 5 1,354 1,170 (2) 372
Wholesale trade ............................. 59 67 27 29 4,696 5,310 1,754 2,016
Retail trade ................................ 178 259 128 124 19,491 28,109 10,802 13,337
Transportation and warehousing .............. 91 212 51 62 8,809 23,788 5,372 6,444
Information ................................. 75 84 40 52 8,559 12,581 3,753 5,715
Finance and insurance ....................... 57 47 32 43 4,469 3,681 2,671 3,636
Real estate and rental and leasing .......... 16 (2) 9 8 980 (2) 622 409
Professional and technical services ......... 81 71 33 45 7,191 6,390 2,292 4,610
Management of companies and enterprises ..... 10 15 6 (2) 923 1,462 1,990 (2)
Administrative and waste services ........... 227 326 191 163 18,762 30,020 13,594 13,281
Educational services ........................ 8 18 4 10 467 2,460 242 824
Health care and social assistance ........... 24 46 31 33 1,820 3,019 2,118 2,066
Arts, entertainment, and recreation ......... 17 35 16 20 1,259 2,860 1,419 1,558
Accommodation and food services ............. 115 163 61 112 13,090 12,838 5,044 12,269
Other services, except public administration 9 20 8 10 537 1,458 552 670
Unclassified ................................ - - 1 - - - 108 -
Government ...................................... 51 121 55 48 4,406 10,084 4,577 3,847
Federal ..................................... 5 8 8 8 470 698 631 636
State ....................................... 11 37 12 15 1,066 3,278 947 1,324
Local ....................................... 35 76 35 25 2,870 6,108 2,999 1,887
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 March 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 3,582 766,780 47.5 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 3,979 835,420 50.3 103.5
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 3,395 730,946 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 2,035 402,927 38.8 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
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 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
March January February March March January February March
2009 2010 2010 2010 2009 2010 2010 2010
United States (1) ... 2,191 2,860 1,183 1,197 228,387 278,679 102,818 111,727
Northeast ................... 317 593 215 195 29,493 58,748 21,705 19,419
New England ............. 68 70 39 26 7,021 6,503 4,682 2,168
Middle Atlantic ......... 249 523 176 169 22,472 52,245 17,023 17,251
South ....................... 589 753 319 262 61,432 74,105 29,681 26,591
South Atlantic .......... 276 404 178 136 27,819 37,846 13,052 10,762
East South Central ...... 158 220 69 54 15,629 23,085 9,917 5,470
West South Central ...... 155 129 72 72 17,984 13,174 6,712 10,359
Midwest ..................... 607 807 221 252 81,957 83,185 21,128 27,591
East North Central ...... 466 604 169 184 64,595 63,706 16,776 21,613
West North Central ...... 141 203 52 68 17,362 19,479 4,352 5,978
West ........................ 678 707 428 488 55,505 62,641 30,304 38,126
Mountain ................ 109 94 58 77 10,991 8,992 4,276 6,324
Pacific ................. 569 613 370 411 44,514 53,649 26,028 31,802
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
2009 2010 2010 2010 2009 2010 2010 2010
Total (1) ............ 2,191 2,860 1,183 1,197 228,387 278,679 102,818 111,727
Alabama ................. 45 93 17 18 4,985 11,204 1,758 1,517
Alaska .................. (2) 9 3 (2) (2) 713 267 (2)
Arizona ................. 22 17 8 17 2,483 1,502 700 1,417
Arkansas ................ 10 9 (2) 3 806 1,433 (2) 214
California .............. 498 533 335 373 38,130 46,474 23,191 28,180
Colorado ................ 13 13 10 7 1,578 1,301 706 626
Connecticut ............. 11 6 10 9 928 406 847 746
Delaware ................ 4 4 5 - 509 287 378 -
District of Columbia .... (2) (2) (2) - (2) (2) (2) -
Florida ................. 107 141 87 68 8,594 9,909 5,523 4,311
Georgia ................. 46 83 34 13 4,152 8,861 2,708 1,202
Hawaii .................. 5 9 (2) 7 376 735 (2) 534
Idaho ................... 16 11 11 9 1,664 1,068 709 661
Illinois ................ 109 112 40 60 18,096 11,615 4,311 7,479
Indiana ................. 68 59 22 22 10,781 6,470 1,907 3,057
Iowa .................... 38 54 13 13 6,140 6,647 1,122 2,135
Kansas .................. 19 27 - 4 2,259 2,432 - 313
Kentucky ................ 72 76 32 25 7,861 8,044 6,844 3,276
Louisiana ............... 16 18 12 16 1,411 1,566 1,442 1,615
Maine ................... 9 8 (2) 3 835 789 (2) 233
Maryland ................ 8 29 7 6 531 2,586 724 557
Massachusetts ........... 25 27 8 7 2,422 2,341 646 725
Michigan ................ 87 144 32 29 11,121 16,035 3,694 4,729
Minnesota ............... 30 36 13 13 3,665 3,614 1,456 921
Mississippi ............. 12 11 5 5 745 735 282 241
Missouri ................ 42 74 24 31 3,430 5,567 1,667 2,112
Montana ................. 7 9 4 (2) 667 1,012 258 (2)
Nebraska ................ (2) 7 (2) 6 (2) 548 (2) 409
Nevada .................. 27 26 16 26 2,351 2,463 1,331 2,131
New Hampshire ........... 9 12 7 5 1,213 962 1,095 297
New Jersey .............. 39 87 16 28 3,217 7,506 1,408 3,024
New Mexico .............. 9 8 6 9 858 560 391 847
New York ................ 70 236 52 60 6,974 28,309 6,833 6,046
North Carolina .......... 44 27 5 16 6,277 2,072 451 1,610
North Dakota ............ 4 4 (2) - 1,259 595 (2) -
Ohio .................... 93 145 35 34 13,067 14,121 3,790 2,927
Oklahoma ................ 17 17 3 4 1,483 1,666 306 1,287
Oregon .................. 42 35 19 18 4,118 3,730 1,571 2,080
Pennsylvania ............ 140 200 108 81 12,281 16,430 8,782 8,181
Rhode Island ............ 9 13 7 (2) 889 1,696 1,545 (2)
South Carolina .......... 48 67 11 14 6,157 7,274 886 1,513
South Dakota ............ 5 (2) - (2) 323 (2) - (2)
Tennessee ............... 29 40 15 6 2,038 3,102 1,033 436
Texas ................... 112 85 56 49 14,284 8,509 4,894 7,243
Utah .................... 14 10 (2) 5 1,313 1,086 (2) 393
Vermont ................. 5 4 6 (2) 734 309 483 (2)
Virginia ................ 14 49 22 18 1,229 6,570 1,704 1,416
Washington .............. 23 27 11 12 1,833 1,997 769 949
West Virginia ........... 4 (2) 5 (2) 301 (2) 509 (2)
Wisconsin ............... 109 144 40 39 11,530 15,465 3,074 3,421
Wyoming ................. (2) - (2) (2) (2) - (2) (2)
Puerto Rico ............. 22 19 21 21 2,035 1,892 2,459 1,702
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
