1

Technical information: (202) 691-6392

http://www.bls.gov/mls/

Media contact: 691-5902

USDL 05-878

For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT

Friday, May 27, 2005

Chart 2. Mass layoff initial claims, seasonally 

adjusted, May 2000-April 2005

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

Claims

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 

Private nonfarm

Total

Manufacturing

Note: Shaded area represents recession period.

Chart 1. Mass layoff events, seasonally 

adjusted, May 2000-April 2005

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

Events

2001 

Note: Shaded area represents recession period.

2002 2003 2004 2005 

Manufacturing

Private nonfarm

Total

MASS LAYOFFS IN APRIL 2005

In April 2005, employers took 1,274 mass layoff actions, 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 today. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single establishment, and the number of workers involved totaled 136,837, on a seasonally adjusted basis. (See table 1.) The number of

layoff events rose by 80, and the number of associated initial claims increased by 5,989 from March. In the

manufacturing sector, 395 mass layoff events were reported during April 2005, seasonally adjusted, resulting

in 63,121 initial claims; both figures were higher than a month earlier. (See table 1.)

From January through April 2005, the total number of events (seasonally adjusted), at 5,053, and initial

claims (seasonally adjusted), at 536,359, were lower than in January-April 2004 (5,465 and 564,097,

respectively).

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

The 10 industries reporting the highest number of mass-layoff initial claims, not seasonally adjusted,

accounted for 55,332 initial claims in April, 35 percent of the total. (See table A.) Temporary help services,
2

Table A. Industries with the largest mass-layoff initial claims in April 2005p

Industry

Initial claims

April peak

Year

Initial claims

Temporary help services........................................ 12,663 2001 17,507

School and employee bus transportation................ 9,046 2004 16,589

Automobile manufacturing...................................... 6,976 1996 14,744

Motion picture and video production..................... 6,558 1997 15,908

Farm labor contractors and crew leaders .............. 3,762 1998 4,054

Tax preparation services........................................ 3,743 2005 3,743

Food service contractors ....................................... 3,414 2004 5,496

Discount department stores ................................... 3,294 2003 3,945

Professional employer organizations ....................... 2,991 2001 3,280

Heavy duty truck manufacturing ............................ 2,885 2,885

p=preliminary.

2005

with 12,663 initial claims, and school and employee bus transportation, with 9,046, together accounted for

14 percent of all initial claims in April.

The manufacturing sector accounted for 29 percent of all mass layoff events and 37 percent of all initial

claims filed in April 2005. A year earlier, manufacturing comprised 24 percent of events and 23 percent of

initial claims. Within manufacturing, the number of claimants in April 2005 was highest in transportation

equipment (20,879, mostly automotive-related), followed by food processing (9,653). (See table 3.)

Administrative and waste services accounted for 15 percent of events and 13 percent of initial claims filed

in April, with layoffs mainly from temporary help services. Eight percent of all layoff events and initial claims

filed during the month were from the retail trade sector, primarily from general merchandise stores. Transportation and warehousing accounted for 7 percent of events and initial claims in April, mostly from school

and employee bus transportation. Construction accounted for 9 percent of events and 6 percent of initial

claims during the month, largely among specialty trade contractors. An additional 3 percent of events and

5 percent of initial claims were from the information sector, mainly from motion picture and video production.

Government establishments accounted for 4 percent of events and 3 percent of initial claims filed in April,

mostly in executive, legislative, and general government agencies and educational services.

Over the year, the number of layoff events declined by 85, while the number of associated initial claims

rose by 1,268. The largest increases in initial claims were reported in transportation equipment manufacturing

(+16,123) and electrical equipment and appliance manufacturing (+2,636). The largest over-the-year

decreases in initial claims were reported in transit and ground passenger transportation (-7,900) and food

manufacturing (-3,929).

Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

Among the four census regions, the highest number of initial claims in April due to mass layoffs was in

the West (52,751). (See table 5.) Administrative and support services, motion picture and sound recording

industries, and agriculture and forestry support activities accounted for 43 percent of all mass-layoff initial
3

claims in that region during the month. The Midwest had the second largest number of initial claims (42,151),

followed by the South (35,412) and the Northeast (28,268).

The number of initial claimants from mass layoffs increased over the year in two of the four regions. The

increases occurred in the Midwest (+10,532) and in the South (+7,859). The Northeast (-12,460) and the

West (-4,663) reported the over-the-year declines in initial claims. Seven of the nine geographic divisions

had over-the-year increases in the number of initial claims associated with mass layoffs, with the largest in the

East North Central division (+8,430). Over-the-year decreases occurred in the Middle Atlantic (-12,661)

and Pacific (-6,215) divisions.

Among the states, California recorded the highest number of initial claims filed due to mass layoff events

in April (39,775), mostly in administrative and support services. Ohio had the next highest, with 15,288

initial claims reported, followed by Pennsylvania (9,850), New York (8,072), and Texas (7,416). These five

states accounted for 51 percent of all mass layoff events and initial claims for unemployment insurance. (See

table 6.)

Ohio had the largest over-the-year increase in the number of initial claims (+9,477), followed by

Kentucky (+4,137). The largest over-the-year decreases occurred in New York (-10,984) and California

(-4,536).

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 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 report on Mass Layoffs in May 2005 is scheduled to be released on Thursday, June 23, 2005.
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 establishments which

have at least 50 initial claims filed against them during a

consecutive 5-week period. These establishments then are

contacted by the state agency to determine whether these

separations lasted 31 days or longer, and, if so, other

information concerning the layoff is collected. States report on

layoffs lasting more than 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-theyear 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

Initial claimant . A person who files any notice of

unemployment to initiate a request either for a determination of

entitlement to and eligibility for compensation, or for a

subsequent period of unemployment within a benefit year or

period of eligibility.

Mass layoff event. Fifty or more initial claims for

unemployment insurance benefits filed against an

establishment during a 5-week period, regardless of duration.

Seasonal adjustment

Effective with the release of data for January 2005, BLS

began publishing 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 expansions and contractions.

The MLS data are seasonally adjusted using the X-12-

ARIMA seasonal adjustment method on a concurrent basis.

Concurrent seasonal adjustment uses all available monthly

estimates, including those for the current month, in developing

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 one year and 4 weeks in another. The effects of these differences could seriously distort

the seasonal 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, May 2001 to April 2005,

seasonally adjusted

Initial Initial Initial

 claimants claimants claimants

2001

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,679 207,811 1,523 193,998 755 110,133 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,610 195,617 1,433 180,821 739 104,155 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,704 200,376 1,568 188,468 719 93,867 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,744 206,528 1,586 195,051 788 106,632 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,409 277,214 2,235 263,192 834 108,615 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,109 233,569 1,986 223,808 897 118,136 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,094 218,273 1,935 207,129 944 114,556 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,799 194,759 1,658 183,178 722 93,193 

2002

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,801 208,835 1,659 195,862 739 96,689 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,773 204,089 1,620 192,450 701 91,285 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,674 187,924 1,517 175,998 610 75,367 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,685 186,574 1,497 169,228 591 69,481 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,720 191,841 1,558 178,993 611 74,809 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,615 170,307 1,438 156,759 551 73,064 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,637 179,165 1,457 164,398 568 73,230 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,475 160,855 1,330 149,148 562 65,564 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,909 217,475 1,742 202,640 607 79,413 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,716 178,860 1,524 162,411 598 71,765 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,644 176,462 1,500 165,578 607 70,640 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,825 193,627 1,661 179,368 638 86,714 

2003

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,383 134,258 1,193 120,033 402 49,440 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,771 185,502 1,589 173,392 643 75,331 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,773 176,540 1,577 161,662 618 75,289 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,735 176,645 1,574 165,416 646 86,857 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,709 186,158 1,532 173,123 624 87,615 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,704 163,646 1,515 148,547 636 70,888 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,653 163,061 1,444 147,883 590 71,203 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,502 170,353 1,364 156,731 540 71,944 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,559 145,961 1,370 132,233 471 56,274 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,541 154,908 1,312 136,604 412 49,518 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,400 137,651 1,241 125,115 397 46,955 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,425 141,780 1,281 129,464 420 53,436 

2004

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,458 146,147 1,257 127,917 413 50,074 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,237 126,421 1,091 115,302 358 36,783 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,348 142,480 1,211 134,118 409 63,380 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,422 149,049 1,239 132,180 360 43,158 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,178 114,247 1,016 100,499 314 37,950 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,375 141,300 1,215 129,466 361 47,548 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,363 139,374 1,200 127,011 390 49,276 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,392 130,483 1,208 115,035 330 36,422 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,281 123,761 1,153 114,223 332 45,917 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,274 125,414 1,145 116,042 350 44,908 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,361 130,168 1,201 117,545 402 43,504 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,211 119,649 1,064 108,157 283 34,940 

2005

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,457 150,990 1,321 140,826 379 58,908 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,128 117,684 1,001 107,415 345 43,186 

Marchp ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,194 130,848 1,060 121,408 371 55,377 

Aprilp ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,274 136,837 1,142 126,807 395 63,121 

 

p

 = preliminary.

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Date

Events Events Events
Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, May 2001 to April 2005,

not seasonally adjusted

Initial Initial Initial 

claimants claimants claimants

2001

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,434 159,365 1,331 151,186 528 64,887 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,107 253,826 1,784 226,022 737 116,005 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,117 273,807 1,952 259,128 1,144 168,877 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,490 166,148 1,386 158,307 603 79,515 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,327 160,402 1,214 151,161 485 58,544 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,831 215,483 1,676 202,053 742 107,030 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,721 295,956 2,373 270,268 1,122 151,969 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,440 268,893 2,319 259,497 1,103 136,820 

2002

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,146 263,777 2,028 252,245 892 128,825 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,382 138,808 1,253 129,849 481 58,784 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,460 161,316 1,335 151,305 500 59,613 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,506 165,814 1,378 153,216 461 50,897 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,723 179,799 1,571 166,801 488 52,720 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,584 162,189 1,266 136,424 336 42,130 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,042 245,294 1,819 226,892 907 135,271 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,248 128,103 1,151 119,874 427 48,668 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,062 124,522 957 114,736 352 43,755 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,497 171,100 1,270 149,327 493 64,655 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,153 240,171 1,860 216,237 719 92,712 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,474 264,158 2,324 252,807 984 126,826 

2003

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,315 225,430 2,130 210,918 822 90,244 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,363 124,965 1,222 116,264 435 48,161 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,207 113,026 1,099 104,468 390 41,063 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,581 161,412 1,470 152,937 499 62,349 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,703 174,204 1,538 160,729 499 61,278 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,691 157,552 1,336 127,743 389 40,845 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,087 226,435 1,815 206,901 946 136,410 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,258 133,839 1,163 124,131 405 52,620 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 868 82,647 756 73,914 271 31,428 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,523 158,240 1,265 137,706 438 53,741 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,438 138,543 1,234 123,524 408 48,419 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,929 192,633 1,793 182,750 648 77,915 

2004

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,428 239,454 2,226 220,687 848 89,551 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 941 84,201 832 76,577 240 23,043 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 920 92,554 847 87,782 258 34,686 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,458 157,314 1,316 142,657 343 36,172 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 988 87,501 878 78,786 219 22,141 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,379 134,588 1,077 110,804 222 27,307 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,094 253,929 1,860 234,877 885 145,895 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 809 69,033 745 63,876 194 17,698 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 708 68,972 637 63,102 189 25,808 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,242 127,918 1,101 117,375 372 48,265 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,399 130,423 1,201 115,549 412 44,243 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,614 161,271 1,487 152,092 436 50,726 

2005

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,564 263,952 2,421 253,409 823 108,985 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 810 74,644 722 68,372 230 24,931 

Marchp ..................................................................................................................................................................... 806 88,937 733 83,793 246 33,030 

Aprilp ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,373 158,582 1,263 148,133 395 59,129 

 

p

 = preliminary.

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Date

Events Events Events
Table 3. Industry distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

April February March April April February March April

2004 2005 2005p2005p2004 2005 2005p2005p

Seasonally adjusted

 Total ..................................................................................... 1,422 1,128 1,194 1,274 149,049 117,684 130,848 136,837 

 Total, private nonfarm ...................................................... 1,239 1,001 1,060 1,142 132,180 107,415 121,408 126,807 

 Manufacturing .................................................................... 360 345 371 395 43,158 43,186 55,377 63,121 

Not seasonally adjusted

 Total1 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,458 810 806 1,373 157,314 74,644 88,937 158,582 

Total, private ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,396 779 777 1,324 149,806 72,331 86,306 154,339 

 Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ..................................................................................................................................................................... 80 57 44 61 7,149 3,959 2,513 6,206 

 Total, private nonfarm....................................................... 1,316 722 733 1,263 142,657 68,372 83,793 148,133 

 Mining ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 187 

 Utilities ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 277 

 Construction ..................................................................................................................................................................... 149 118 91 126 11,904 7,245 6,648 9,652 

 Manufacturing..................................................................................................................................................................... 343 230 246 395 36,172 24,931 33,030 59,129 

 Food ..................................................................................................................................................................... 112 60 50 84 13,582 5,237 5,049 9,653 

 Beverage and tobacco products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 4 5 9 319 384 308 660 

 Textile mills ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 5 8 15 1,091 560 1,162 2,912 

 Textile product mills ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 10 4 6 420 874 337 626 

 Apparel ..................................................................................................................................................................... 12 7 9 14 922 1,083 1,351 1,346 

 Leather and allied products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 ( 2

 ) 4 ( 2 ) 399 ( 2 ) 634 ( 2 ) 

 Wood products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 16 16 17 17 1,684 1,606 1,361 3,252 

 Paper ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 6 ( 2

 ) 9 499 493 ( 2 ) 769 

 Printing and related support activities ..................................................................................................................................................................... 15 9 8 10 1,618 668 493 789 

 Petroleum and coal products ..................................................................................................................................................................... – – ( 2

 ) – – – ( 2 ) –

 Chemicals ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 677 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 

 Plastics and rubber products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 12 13 9 18 936 902 851 1,931 

 Nonmetallic mineral products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 10 8 13 452 877 372 1,252 

 Primary metals ..................................................................................................................................................................... 9 ( 2

 ) 10 16 920 ( 2 ) 1,655 2,644 

 Fabricated metal products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 22 11 15 28 2,030 833 1,245 2,220 

 Machinery ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19 9 9 16 1,658 765 1,101 2,028 

 Computer and electronic products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 17 15 11 21 1,375 897 1,266 1,959 

 Electrical equipment and appliances ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 6 10 16 1,252 1,352 785 3,888 

 Transportation equipment ..................................................................................................................................................................... 32 29 48 77 4,625 6,915 13,543 20,879 

 Furniture and related products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 8 9 14 835 644 576 1,270 

 Miscellaneous manufacturing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 5 5 6 878 316 363 503 

 Wholesale trade ..................................................................................................................................................................... 21 18 7 17 1,944 1,229 481 1,406 

 Retail trade ..................................................................................................................................................................... 118 75 64 109 12,659 6,398 5,811 12,287 

 Transportation and warehousing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 145 26 44 92 20,292 2,955 5,340 11,395 

 Information ..................................................................................................................................................................... 42 26 30 38 7,851 5,059 8,303 8,630 

 Finance and insurance ..................................................................................................................................................................... 31 24 22 32 2,594 1,561 1,506 2,107 

 Real estate and rental and leasing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 ( 2 ) 6 9 1,214 ( 2 ) 277 793 

 Professional and technical services ..................................................................................................................................................................... 54 14 22 65 6,939 798 3,709 7,778 

 Management of companies and enterprises ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 – 3 6 269 – 315 540 

 Administrative and waste services ..................................................................................................................................................................... 194 119 89 206 20,812 12,354 6,572 19,862 

 Educational services.................................................................................................................. 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 4 374 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 260 

 Health care and social assistance ..................................................................................................................................................................... 31 12 16 27 2,118 662 1,097 1,921 

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ..................................................................................................................................................................... 40 8 7 32 3,368 430 516 2,689 

 Accommodation and food services ..................................................................................................................................................................... 93 37 78 75 10,067 3,475 9,666 7,253 

 Other services, except public administration..................................................................................................................................................................... 26 5 ( 2 ) 21 3,240 300 ( 2 ) 1,838 

 Unclassified ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 1 2 2 563 56 100 129 

Government ..................................................................................................................................................................... 62 31 29 49 7,508 2,313 2,631 4,243 

 Federal ..................................................................................................................................................................... 14 7 7 9 1,173 591 704 696 

 State ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 11 8 12 884 784 802 1,054 

 Local ..................................................................................................................................................................... 37 13 14 28 5,451 938 1,125 2,493 

 

1

 Data were reported by all states and the District of Columbia. p = preliminary.

 

2

 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. NOTE: Dash represents zero.

 

Industry
Table 4. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, April 2003 to April 2005,

not seasonally adjusted

Extended mass layoffs 

lasting more than 30 days Realization rates1

Events

Initial

claimants Events

Initial

claimants Events

Initial

claimants Events

Initial

claimants

2003

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,581 161,412 1,470 152,937 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,703 174,204 1,538 160,729 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,691 157,552 1,336 127,743 

Second Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4,975 493,168 4,344 441,409 1,799 348,966 41.4 79.1 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,087 226,435 1,815 206,901 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,258 133,839 1,163 124,131 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 868 82,647 756 73,914 

Third Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4,213 442,921 3,734 404,946 1,190 227,909 31.9 56.3 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,523 158,240 1,265 137,706 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,438 138,543 1,234 123,524 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,929 192,633 1,793 182,750 

Fourth Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4,890 489,416 4,292 443,980 1,690 326,328 39.4 73.5 

2004

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,428 239,454 2,226 220,687 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 941 84,201 832 76,577 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 920 92,554 847 87,782 

First Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4,289 416,209 3,905 385,046 1,339 r 238,392 34.3 61.9 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,458 157,314 1,316 142,657 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 988 87,501 878 78,786 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,379 134,588 1,077 110,804 

Second Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3,825 379,403 3,271 332,247 1,358 r 253,787 41.5 r 76.4

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,094 253,929 1,860 234,877 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 809 69,033 745 63,876 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 708 68,972 637 63,102 

Third Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3,611 391,934 3,242 361,855 r 886 r 148,180 r 27.3 r 41.0

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,242 127,918 1,101 117,375 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,399 130,423 1,201 115,549 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,614 161,271 1,487 152,092 

Fourth Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4,255 419,612 3,789 385,016 r 1,427 r 262,006 r 37.7 r 68.1

2005

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,564 263,952 2,421 253,409 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 810 74,644 722 68,372 

Marchp .................................................................................................................................................................... 806 88,937 733 83,793 

First Quarterp .................................................................................................................................................................... 4,180 427,533 3,876 405,574 2 989 2 127,950 25.5 31.5 

Aprilp .................................................................................................................................................................... 1,373 158,582 1,263 148,133 

 1 The event realization rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm number of extended mass layoff events is generally revised upwards

mass layoff events lasting more than 30 days. The initial claimant realization by less than 10 percent and the number of initial claimants associated

rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm mass layoff initial claimants with such events increases by 25-40 percent.

associated with layoffs lasting more than 30 days. r = revised.

 2 These quarterly numbers are provisional and will be revised as more p = preliminary.

data on these layoffs become available. Experience suggests that the

Mass layoffs

Total mass layoffs

Private nonfarm

Date
Table 5. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance by census region and division,

not seasonally adjusted

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

April February March April April February March April

2004 2005 2005p2005p2004 2005 2005p2005p

 United States1

 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,458 810 806 1,373 157,314 74,644 88,937 158,582 

Northeast ..................................................................................................................................................................... 332 120 105 255 40,728 11,226 10,919 28,268 

 New England ..................................................................................................................................................................... 49 17 14 54 5,913 2,126 1,147 6,114 

 Middle Atlantic ..................................................................................................................................................................... 283 103 91 201 34,815 9,100 9,772 22,154 

South ..................................................................................................................................................................... 292 143 154 268 27,553 14,788 17,171 35,412 

 South Atlantic ..................................................................................................................................................................... 139 75 78 142 12,141 5,987 6,642 14,586 

 East South Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 52 32 30 55 5,936 5,778 4,926 9,490 

 West South Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 101 36 46 71 9,476 3,023 5,603 11,336 

Midwest ..................................................................................................................................................................... 275 173 214 314 31,619 17,129 28,413 42,151 

 East North Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 235 144 166 269 27,755 13,041 22,547 36,185 

 West North Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 40 29 48 45 3,864 4,088 5,866 5,966 

West ..................................................................................................................................................................... 559 374 333 536 57,414 31,501 32,434 52,751 

 Mountain ..................................................................................................................................................................... 52 31 37 64 5,962 2,315 3,386 7,514 

 Pacific ..................................................................................................................................................................... 507 343 296 472 51,452 29,186 29,048 45,237 

 

 

1

 See footnote 1, table 3. Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia; East South Central:

 

 

p

 = preliminary. Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee; West South Central: Arkansas, 

 NOTE: The States (including the District of Columbia) that comprise Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas; East North Central: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, 

the census divisions are: New England: Connecticut, Maine, Ohio, and Wisconsin; West North Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, 

Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; Middle Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota; Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, 

Atlantic: New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania; South Atlantic: Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming; and Pacific: Alaska, 

Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington.

 

Census region and division
Table 6. State distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance,

not seasonally adjusted

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

April February March April April February March April

2004 2005 2005p2005p2004 2005 2005p2005p

 Total1 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,458 810 806 1,373 157,314 74,644 88,937 158,582 

Alabama ..................................................................................................................................................................... 15 8 7 10 2,051 620 725 1,314 

Alaska ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 – – 5 633 – – 719 

Arizona ..................................................................................................................................................................... 20 ( 2

 ) 10 32 3,177 ( 2 ) 929 4,574 

Arkansas ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 ( 2

 ) 4 5 513 ( 2 ) 269 309 

California ..................................................................................................................................................................... 440 321 274 421 44,311 27,567 26,727 39,775 

Colorado ..................................................................................................................................................................... 9 4 3 8 973 307 643 753 

Connecticut ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 3 513 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 234 

Delaware ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 ( 2

 ) – – 165 ( 2 ) – –

District of Columbia ..................................................................................................................................................................... – ( 2

 ) – – – ( 2 ) – –

Florida ..................................................................................................................................................................... 69 36 36 62 5,447 2,018 2,669 5,192 

Georgia ..................................................................................................................................................................... 21 14 15 27 2,111 1,415 1,324 3,444 

Hawaii ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 3 ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 570 210 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 

Idaho ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 6 5 5 559 431 460 503 

Illinois ..................................................................................................................................................................... 54 42 21 55 7,471 4,138 2,035 6,502 

Indiana ..................................................................................................................................................................... 25 15 20 33 2,227 1,248 2,177 4,251 

Iowa ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 4 10 11 846 367 804 1,466 

Kansas ..................................................................................................................................................................... 9 5 3 4 1,222 519 202 315 

Kentucky ..................................................................................................................................................................... 20 15 13 28 2,559 4,585 1,912 6,696 

Louisiana ..................................................................................................................................................................... 28 7 4 16 2,554 503 267 1,437 

Maine ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 7 662 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 665 

Maryland ..................................................................................................................................................................... 9 ( 2

 ) – 8 906 ( 2 ) – 748 

Massachusetts ..................................................................................................................................................................... 16 8 8 16 1,759 450 684 1,339 

Michigan ..................................................................................................................................................................... 38 26 46 49 3,556 2,270 5,002 5,355 

Minnesota ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 6 12 14 327 1,907 1,110 2,273 

Mississippi ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 5 – 3 419 308 – 201 

Missouri ..................................................................................................................................................................... 15 11 19 10 1,242 904 3,469 1,349 

Montana ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 3 ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) 157 ( 2 ) 299 

Nebraska ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 3 4 3 227 391 281 272 

Nevada ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 10 9 6 420 730 590 567 

New Hampshire ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) – 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – 379 

New Jersey ..................................................................................................................................................................... 47 29 14 44 4,862 3,282 1,326 4,232 

New Mexico ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 ( 2

 ) 5 4 346 ( 2 ) 413 319 

New York ..................................................................................................................................................................... 120 41 35 65 19,056 3,384 3,150 8,072 

North Carolina ..................................................................................................................................................................... 20 7 11 25 1,768 777 879 2,588 

North Dakota ..................................................................................................................................................................... – – – – – – – –

Ohio ..................................................................................................................................................................... 51 26 31 80 5,811 1,855 8,919 15,288 

Oklahoma ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 4 3 5 425 246 939 2,174 

Oregon ..................................................................................................................................................................... 33 4 10 22 3,899 301 1,337 2,349 

Pennsylvania ..................................................................................................................................................................... 116 33 42 92 10,897 2,434 5,296 9,850 

Rhode Island ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 3 ( 2

 ) 12 1,624 1,135 ( 2 ) 2,191 

South Carolina ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 4 5 11 796 525 498 1,659 

South Dakota ..................................................................................................................................................................... – – – 3 – – – 291 

Tennessee ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 4 10 14 907 265 2,289 1,279 

Texas ..................................................................................................................................................................... 62 24 35 45 5,984 2,198 4,128 7,416 

Utah ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 3 3 5 248 252 235 428 

Vermont ..................................................................................................................................................................... 10 ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 12 1,177 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 1,306 

Virginia ..................................................................................................................................................................... 10 11 11 7 849 1,085 1,272 716 

Washington ..................................................................................................................................................................... 22 15 11 22 2,039 1,108 910 2,221 

West Virginia ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) – – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) 

Wisconsin ..................................................................................................................................................................... 67 35 48 52 8,690 3,530 4,414 4,789 

Wyoming ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) 

Puerto Rico ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 15 10 19 1,147 1,494 1,303 2,342 

 1 See footnote 1, table 3. p

 = preliminary.

 2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. NOTE: Dash represents zero.

State