1

Technical information: (202) 691-6392

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

Media contact: 691-5902

USDL 05-1772

For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT

Friday, September 23, 2005

Chart 1. Mass layoff events, seasonally 

adjusted, September 2000-August 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 

Private nonfarm

Total

Manufacturing

Chart 2. Mass layoff initial claims, seasonally 

adjusted, September 2000-August 2005

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

Claims

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 

Manufacturing

Total

Private nonfarm

Note: Shaded area represents recession period.

MASS LAYOFFS IN AUGUST 2005

In August 2005, employers took 1,142 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 127,466, on a seasonally adjusted basis. (See table 1.) The

number of layoff events in August fell by 107, and the number of associated initial claims decreased by 3,860

from July. In the manufacturing sector, 328 mass layoff events were reported during August 2005, seasonally

adjusted, resulting in 48,155 initial claims. Both figures were lower than a month earlier. (See table 1.)

 The August 2005 reference period for the Mass Layoff Statistics program was prior to

when Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Gulf Coast states. Therefore, the August data do

not reflect the impact of the storm.

Hurricane Katrina
2

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

Industry

Initial claims

August peak

Year Initial claims

p=preliminary.

Motion picture and video production..................... 6,233 2003 6,812

School and employee bus transportation................ 3,921 2003 6,538

Temporary help services........................................ 3,416 1999 11,533

Heavy duty truck manufacturing............................. 2,452 2005 2,452

Automobile manufacturing...................................... 1,952 2001 8,166

Supermarkets and other grocery stores ................. 1,685 2001 2,357

Household laundry equipment mfg. ........................ 1,518 2005 1,518

Payroll services ..................................................... 1,501 2001 8,173

Professional employer organizations ....................... 1,377 2002 2,855

All other personal services..................................... 1,048 2002 1,267

From January through August 2005, the total number of events (seasonally adjusted), at 9,815, and initial

claims (seasonally adjusted), at 1,051,809, were lower than in January-August 2004 (10,773 and 1,089,501,

respectively).

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

In August, the 10 industries reporting the highest number of mass-layoff initial claims, not seasonally

adjusted, accounted for 25,103 initial claims, 37 percent of the total. (See table A.) The two industries

with the highest number of initial claims were motion picture and video production, with 6,233, and school

and employee bus transportation, with 3,921. Together, these two industries accounted for 15 percent of

all initial claims during the month.

The manufacturing sector accounted for 29 percent of all mass layoff events and 33 percent of all initial

claims filed in August 2005. A year earlier, manufacturing comprised 24 percent of events and 26 percent

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

equipment (6,855, mostly automotive-related), followed by food manufacturing (2,762). (See table 3.)

Administrative and waste services accounted for 13 percent of events and 10 percent of initial claims filed

in August, with layoffs mostly from temporary help services. Three percent of all layoff events and 10 percent of initial claims filed during the month were from the information sector, mainly from motion picture and

video production. Transportation and warehousing accounted for 8 percent of events and 9 percent of initial

claims in August, primarily from school and employee bus transportation. Retail trade accounted for 11 percent of events and 8 percent of initial claims during the month, primarily from general merchandise stores. An

additional 8 percent of events and 5 percent of initial claims were from construction, largely among specialty

trade contractors.

Government establishments accounted for 5 percent of events and initial claims filed in August, mostly

from executive, legislative, and general government agencies.

Over the year, the number of layoff events declined by 164 and the number of associated initial claims

fell by 1,451 (not seasonally adjusted). The largest decreases in initial claims were reported in administrative
3

and support services (-3,460) and general merchandise stores (-1,841). The largest over-the-year increases

in initial claims were reported in transportation equipment manufacturing (+4,009) and in motion picture and

sound recording industries (+3,794).

Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

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

the West (22,183). (See table 5.) Motion picture and sound recording industries and administrative and

support services accounted for 40 percent of the West total. The South had the next largest number of initial

claims (18,286), followed by the Midwest (14,023) and the Northeast (13,090).

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

largest decrease occurred in the Northeast (-4,073), followed by the Midwest (-630). The South (+1,935)

and the West (+1,317) reported over-the-year increases in initial claims. Three of the nine geographic

divisions had over-the-year decreases in the number of initial claims associated with mass layoffs, with the

largest in the Middle Atlantic division (-4,667). The East South Central division reported the largest overthe-year increase in initial claims (+2,229).

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

in August (19,530), mostly in motion picture and sound recording industries and professional and technical

services. New York had the next highest, with 6,164 initial claims, followed by Kentucky (3,954) and

Georgia (3,488). These four states accounted for 40 percent of all mass layoff events and 49 percent of all

initial claims for unemployment insurance. (See table 6.)

Florida had the largest over-the-year decrease in the number of initial claims (-2,811), followed by New

York (-1,899). The largest over-the-year increases occurred in Kentucky (+2,772) and Georgia (+1,661).

From January to August, California reported 249,955 mass layoff initial claims due to mass layoffs,

22 percent of the national total. Ohio had the next largest number of claims over this period (87,271),

followed by Michigan (86,458), New York (67,429), and Pennsylvania (62,410).

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 September 2005 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday,

October 25, 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, September 2001 to August 2005,

seasonally adjusted

Initial Initial Initial

 claimants claimants claimants

2001

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 

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

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

May ......................................................................... 1,196 128,771 1,060 117,036 359 53,243 

June ........................................................................ 1,175 127,887 1,059 118,736 347 55,820 

July

p

 ........................................................................ 1,249 131,326 1,107 118,835 360 48,967 

August

p

 ................................................................... 1,142 127,466 1,002 115,674 328 48,155 

 p

 = preliminary.

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Date

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

not seasonally adjusted

Initial Initial Initial 

claimants claimants claimants

2001

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 

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

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

May ......................................................................... 986 101,358 891 93,332 249 30,424 

June ........................................................................ 1,157 120,463 941 103,307 216 32,783 

July

p

 ........................................................................ 1,981 244,216 1,745 222,377 856 136,210 

August

p

 ................................................................... 645 67,582 598 63,484 188 22,531 

 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

August June July August August June July August

2004 2005 2005p 2005p 2004 2005 2005p 2005p

Seasonally adjusted

 Total ............................................................ 1,392 1,175 1,249 1,142 130,483 127,887 131,326 127,466 

 Total, private nonfarm ............................................... 1,208 1,059 1,107 1,002 115,035 118,736 118,835 115,674 

 Manufacturing ................................................ 330 347 360 328 36,422 55,820 48,967 48,155 

Not seasonally adjusted

 Total1

 ..................................................................... 809 1,157 1,981 645 69,033 120,463 244,216 67,582 

Total, private ................................................................ 769 990 1,849 610 65,294 106,219 231,250 64,211 

 Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ................. 24 49 104 12 1,418 2,912 8,873 727 

 Total, private nonfarm............................................... 745 941 1,745 598 63,876 103,307 222,377 63,484 

 Mining ...................................................................... ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Utilities ..................................................................... – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Construction ............................................................ 75 61 80 51 5,266 4,304 6,252 3,458 

 Manufacturing........................................................... 194 216 856 188 17,698 32,783 136,210 22,531 

 Food .................................................................... 28 43 72 28 2,797 4,245 6,874 2,762 

 Beverage and tobacco products .......................... 4 ( 2 ) 7 ( 2 ) 216 ( 2 ) 377 ( 2 )

 Textile mills .......................................................... 10 8 16 13 1,313 1,089 1,682 1,177 

 Textile product mills ............................................. ( 2 ) 4 12 3 ( 2 ) 486 1,597 268 

 Apparel ................................................................ 12 7 27 10 898 789 2,666 560 

 Leather and allied products ................................. ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 7 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 1,426 ( 2 )

 Wood products .................................................... 7 ( 2 ) 39 7 566 ( 2 ) 5,109 547 

 Paper ................................................................... 3 7 9 7 193 633 582 615 

 Printing and related support activities ................. 6 7 4 5 447 569 271 452 

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

 Chemicals ............................................................ 3 ( 2

 ) 18 ( 2 ) 189 ( 2 ) 2,164 ( 2 ) 

 Plastics and rubber products ............................... 9 6 77 7 614 544 9,202 588 

 Nonmetallic mineral products .............................. 4 ( 2 ) 16 6 369 ( 2 ) 2,178 420 

 Primary metals .................................................... 10 11 53 7 740 1,478 7,984 852 

 Fabricated metal products ................................... 21 12 67 13 2,031 963 7,052 1,012 

 Machinery ............................................................ 15 18 44 20 1,946 2,365 5,426 1,815 

 Computer and electronic products ...................... 12 13 32 12 963 1,074 3,729 1,235 

 Electrical equipment and appliances ................... 4 16 24 6 293 4,010 3,409 1,693 

 Transportation equipment ................................... 30 41 286 27 2,846 12,268 69,393 6,855 

 Furniture and related products ............................ 4 9 26 3 394 1,084 2,917 383 

 Miscellaneous manufacturing .............................. 7 ( 2 ) 20 8 534 ( 2 ) 2,172 910 

 Wholesale trade ...................................................... 11 12 33 15 749 1,340 2,889 1,259 

 Retail trade .............................................................. 98 58 102 72 8,752 4,656 10,765 5,434 

 Transportation and warehousing ............................. 52 126 123 50 5,130 15,593 11,543 5,878 

 Information .............................................................. 37 41 32 21 4,909 4,687 5,599 6,889 

 Finance and insurance ............................................ 29 23 18 14 2,117 1,637 1,416 1,493 

 Real estate and rental and leasing .......................... ( 2 ) 5 12 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 239 1,083 ( 2 )

 Professional and technical services ........................ 21 17 51 18 1,641 1,978 7,387 3,104 

 Management of companies and enterprises ........... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

 Administrative and waste services .......................... 124 102 239 84 10,220 9,051 23,794 6,764 

 Educational services................................................ 5 10 16 6 368 551 1,118 454 

 Health care and social assistance ........................... 32 133 56 19 2,117 11,354 4,000 1,227 

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ......................... 7 25 34 7 459 1,338 2,517 486 

 Accommodation and food services ......................... 41 71 73 35 2,581 10,150 5,857 2,436 

 Other services, except public administration............ 12 35 10 9 1,486 3,079 619 1,400 

 Unclassified ............................................................ 2 – 4 1 72 – 354 96 

Government ................................................................. 40 167 132 35 3,739 14,244 12,966 3,371 

 Federal .................................................................... 8 10 19 8 602 964 2,243 1,041 

 State ........................................................................ 8 15 20 11 800 1,009 1,553 862 

 Local ........................................................................ 24 142 93 16 2,337 12,271 9,170 1,468 

 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, July 2003 to August 2005,

not seasonally adjusted

Extended mass layoffs 

lasting more than 30 days Realization rates1

Events Initial

claimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants

2003

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 1,339 238,392 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 1,358 254,063 41.5 76.5 

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 3,242 361,855 886 148,549 27.3 41.1 

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 1,427 262,049 37.7 68.1 

2005

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

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

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

First Quarter ....................................... 4,180 427,533 3,876 405,574 1,144 186,030 29.5 45.9 

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

May .................................................... 986 101,358 891 93,332 

June ................................................... 1,157 120,463 941 103,307 

Second Quarter .................................. 3,516 380,403 3,095 344,772 2.p 1,056 2,p 150,140 p34.1 p43.5

July p

 .................................................. 1,981 244,216 1,745 222,377 

August p

 ............................................. 645 67,582 598 63,484 

 1 The event realization rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm data on these layoffs become available. Experience suggests that the

mass layoff events lasting more than 30 days. The initial claimant realization number of extended mass layoff events is generally revised upwards

rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm mass layoff initial claimants by less than 10 percent and the number of initial claimants associated

associated with layoffs lasting more than 30 days. with such events increases by 25-40 percent.

 2

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

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

August June July August August June July August

2004 2005 2005p 2005p 2004 2005 2005p 2005p

 United States1 .................................................... 809 1,157 1,981 645 69,033 120,463 244,216 67,582 

Northeast .................................................................... 166 183 319 126 17,163 22,721 32,958 13,090 

 New England .......................................................... 14 26 45 23 1,274 3,158 4,353 1,868 

 Middle Atlantic ........................................................ 152 157 274 103 15,889 19,563 28,605 11,222 

South .......................................................................... 217 269 415 170 16,351 25,679 44,995 18,286 

 South Atlantic ......................................................... 116 164 193 92 7,914 15,133 18,350 8,771 

 East South Central ................................................. 41 41 136 34 3,759 3,656 17,428 5,988 

 West South Central ................................................ 60 64 86 44 4,678 6,890 9,217 3,527 

Midwest ...................................................................... 151 299 695 138 14,653 38,985 114,158 14,023 

 East North Central .................................................. 125 246 581 111 11,886 33,393 94,359 10,618 

 West North Central ................................................. 26 53 114 27 2,767 5,592 19,799 3,405 

West ........................................................................... 275 406 552 211 20,866 33,078 52,105 22,183 

 Mountain ................................................................. 17 44 56 17 1,099 4,003 5,836 1,717 

 Pacific ..................................................................... 258 362 496 194 19,767 29,075 46,269 20,466 

 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

August June July August August June July August

2004 2005 2005p 2005p 2004 2005 2005p 2005p

 Total1 ....................................................................... 809 1,157 1,981 645 69,033 120,463 244,216 67,582 

Alabama ..................................................................... 10 8 58 5 1,080 833 6,449 709 

Alaska ......................................................................... ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) 238 ( 2 ) –

Arizona ....................................................................... 5 7 22 ( 2 ) 353 475 2,288 ( 2 )

Arkansas .................................................................... 3 ( 2 ) 8 3 261 ( 2 ) 698 201 

California .................................................................... 246 319 445 182 18,768 24,652 41,741 19,530 

Colorado ..................................................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 5 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 434 ( 2 )

Connecticut ................................................................ 4 6 7 4 268 734 553 397 

Delaware .................................................................... – 4 – – – 1,674 – –

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

Florida ........................................................................ 78 93 86 35 4,842 6,661 6,526 2,031 

Georgia ....................................................................... 21 19 46 22 1,827 1,924 4,374 3,488 

Hawaii ......................................................................... ( 2 ) 3 3 – ( 2 ) 210 246 –

Idaho .......................................................................... 5 4 7 6 266 301 981 684 

Illinois ......................................................................... 30 56 57 27 3,358 5,273 6,808 2,128 

Indiana ........................................................................ 19 34 82 10 1,707 5,771 15,176 1,000 

Iowa ............................................................................ 5 7 23 6 491 847 5,154 1,755 

Kansas ....................................................................... 4 6 8 5 587 822 720 487 

Kentucky ..................................................................... 15 11 62 13 1,182 962 9,576 3,954 

Louisiana .................................................................... 16 21 20 11 1,155 1,965 1,916 596 

Maine .......................................................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 303 ( 2 )

Maryland ..................................................................... ( 2 ) 4 8 3 ( 2 ) 478 811 219 

Massachusetts ........................................................... 7 7 24 12 678 592 2,333 873 

Michigan ..................................................................... 25 55 248 29 2,409 6,580 34,561 2,838 

Minnesota ................................................................... 7 14 27 6 897 1,314 4,573 502 

Mississippi .................................................................. 6 7 5 6 613 391 374 481 

Missouri ...................................................................... 6 16 49 6 540 1,719 8,285 404 

Montana ..................................................................... – 6 ( 2

 ) – – 378 ( 2 ) –

Nebraska .................................................................... ( 2 ) 7 6 3 ( 2 ) 556 991 200 

Nevada ....................................................................... 4 12 13 5 302 1,713 1,084 648 

New Hampshire .......................................................... ( 2 ) 3 5 – ( 2 ) 661 497 –

New Jersey ................................................................. 26 39 37 20 2,979 7,495 3,325 1,786 

New Mexico ................................................................ ( 2 ) 8 5 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 623 287 ( 2 )

New York .................................................................... 73 37 107 42 8,063 3,463 12,136 6,164 

North Carolina ............................................................ 9 13 19 10 577 1,127 2,121 1,323 

North Dakota .............................................................. ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Ohio ............................................................................ 23 62 115 26 1,822 11,541 25,306 2,881 

Oklahoma ................................................................... ( 2 ) 4 7 – ( 2 ) 296 1,303 –

Oregon ....................................................................... ( 2 ) 20 26 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 2,253 2,399 ( 2 )

Pennsylvania .............................................................. 53 81 130 41 4,847 8,605 13,144 3,272 

Rhode Island .............................................................. ( 2

 ) 7 3 4 ( 2 ) 948 419 326 

South Carolina ............................................................ ( 2 ) 17 11 9 ( 2 ) 1,564 1,627 678 

South Dakota .............................................................. – ( 2 ) ––– ( 2 ) – –

Tennessee .................................................................. 10 15 11 10 884 1,470 1,029 844 

Texas .......................................................................... 40 37 51 30 3,201 3,329 5,300 2,730 

Utah ............................................................................ – 5 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – 338 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Vermont ...................................................................... – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Virginia ....................................................................... 4 11 20 11 272 1,495 2,589 918 

Washington ................................................................ 8 17 21 10 753 1,722 1,809 730 

West Virginia .............................................................. ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 210 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Wisconsin ................................................................... 28 39 79 19 2,590 4,228 12,508 1,771 

Wyoming .................................................................... ––––––––

Puerto Rico ................................................................. 9 12 12 8 803 2,023 1,270 1,210 

 1 See footnote 1, table 3. p

 = preliminary.

2

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

State