1

Technical information: (202) 691-6392

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

Media contact: 691-5902

USDL 06-895

For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Chart 1. Mass layoff events, seasonally 

adjusted, May 2001-April 2006

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

Events

2006 

Note: Shaded area represents recession period.

2002 2003 2004 2005 

Private nonfarm

Total

Manufacturing

Chart 2. Mass layoff initial claims, seasonally 

adjusted, May 2001-April 2006

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

Claims

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

Manufacturing

Total

Private nonfarm

Note: Shaded area represents recession period.

MASS LAYOFFS IN APRIL 2006

In April 2006, employers took 1,148 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 118,504, on a seasonally adjusted basis. (See table 1.) The number of layoff events rose by 66, and the number of associated initial claims decreased by 51 from March 2006. In the

manufacturing sector, 358 mass layoff events were reported during April 2006, seasonally adjusted, resulting

in 48,086 initial claims. The number of events in manufacturing was higher than a month earlier, while the

number of initial claims decreased. (See table 1.)

In April 2006, the national unemployment rate was 4.7 percent, seasonally adjusted, unchanged from

March and down from 5.1 percent in April 2005. Total nonfarm payroll employment, seasonally adjusted,

increased by 138,000 over the month and by 2.0 million over the year.

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

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

accounted for 54,547 initial claims in April, 45 percent of the total. (See table A.) School and employee
2

Table A. Industries with the largest mass layoff initial claims in April 2006

Industry Initial claims

 April peak

Year

Initial claims

School and employee bus transportation ................ 17,621 2006 17,621

Automobile manufacturing ...................................... 9,913 1996 14,744

Temporary help services ....................................... 6,289 2001 18,271

Food service contractors ....................................... 4,701 2004 5,496

Tax preparation services ........................................ 3,791 2006 3,791

Motion picture and video production ..................... 3,015 1997 15,937

Farm labor contractors and crew leaders ............... 2,777 1998 4,198

Professional employer organizations ....................... 2,392 2001 3,413

Hotels and motels, except casino hotels ................ 2,147 2003 2,660

Yarn spinning mills ................................................. 1,901 2006 1,901

bus transportation, with 17,621 initial claims, and automobile manufacturing, with 9,913, together accounted

for 23 percent of all initial claims in April.

The manufacturing sector accounted for 26 percent of all mass layoff events and 33 percent of all initial

claims filed in April; a year earlier, manufacturing comprised 29 percent of events and 37 percent of initial

claims. In April 2006, the number of manufacturing claimants was highest in transportation equipment manufacturing (14,093, mostly automotive-related), followed by food manufacturing (8,192). (See table 3.)

Transportation and warehousing accounted for 13 percent of events and 16 percent of initial claims filed

in April 2006, with layoffs mainly in transit and ground passenger transportation. Twelve percent of all layoff

events and 9 percent of initial claims filed during the month were from administrative and waste services, primarily in temporary help services. Accommodation and food services accounted for 6 percent of events and

7 percent of initial claims in April, mostly in food service contractors.

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

largely in executive, legislative, and general government.

On a not seasonally adjusted basis, the number of layoff events in April 2006, at 1,140, decreased by

233 from a year earlier, and the number of associated initial claims decreased by 36,993 to 121,589. The

largest over-the-year increases in initial claims were reported in transit and ground passenger transportation

(+8,703), food services and drinking places (+993), personal and laundry services (+953), and crop production (+540). The largest over-the-year decreases in initial claims were reported in administrative and

support services (-9,076) and transportation equipment manufacturing (-6,786).

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 Northeast, 34,615. (See table 5.) Transit and ground passenger transportation, and food services and

drinking places accounted for 52 percent of all mass layoff initial claims in that region during the month. The

Midwest had the second largest number of initial claims, 34,494, followed by the West with 34,197, and the

South with 18,283.
3

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

largest decrease was in the West (-18,554), followed by the South (-17,129), and the Midwest (-7,657).

The Northeast had the only over-the-year increase (+6,347). Seven of the nine geographic divisions had

over-the-year decreases in the number of initial claims associated with mass layoffs, with the largest decline

in the Pacific division (-16,809). The Middle Atlantic division reported the largest over-the-year increase in

initial claims (+6,193).

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

in April (24,551), followed by New York (13,386), Ohio (12,182), Pennsylvania (8,702), and Michigan

(7,191). These five states accounted for 54 percent of all mass layoff events and initial claims for unemployment insurance. (See table 6.)

New York had the largest over-the-year increase in the number of initial claims (+5,314), largely due to

layoffs in transit and ground passenger transportation and in personal and laundry services. New Jersey had

the next largest increase in initial claims (+2,027), followed by Michigan (+1,836). The largest over-the-year

decrease in claims occurred in California (-15,224).

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 2006 is scheduled to be released on Thursday, June 22, 2006.
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 2002 to April 2006,

seasonally adjusted

2002

May ......................................................................... 1,723 190,797 1,559 177,743 610 73,953 

June ........................................................................ 1,620 170,724 1,443 156,813 550 70,936 

July ......................................................................... 1,635 179,806 1,460 164,944 564 74,834 

August ..................................................................... 1,478 162,040 1,324 150,118 569 67,779 

September .............................................................. 1,911 218,875 1,747 203,849 617 80,528 

October ................................................................... 1,774 186,940 1,582 169,660 625 73,904 

November ............................................................... 1,652 178,402 1,507 167,335 613 71,693 

December ............................................................... 1,841 198,678 1,659 184,368 661 84,048 

2003

January ................................................................... 1,358 131,963 1,168 117,636 387 48,685 

February ................................................................. 1,825 190,928 1,647 178,363 646 78,819 

March ...................................................................... 1,782 175,671 1,595 160,170 617 72,409 

April ......................................................................... 1,722 174,608 1,564 163,607 640 83,303 

May ......................................................................... 1,719 184,003 1,542 170,961 625 86,535 

June ........................................................................ 1,716 164,299 1,524 148,542 636 68,143 

July ......................................................................... 1,642 163,179 1,442 148,299 580 74,070 

August ..................................................................... 1,517 171,861 1,367 158,049 551 74,602 

September .............................................................. 1,562 147,383 1,374 133,383 484 56,472 

October ................................................................... 1,558 156,814 1,336 138,691 427 52,009 

November ............................................................... 1,393 141,383 1,244 129,231 401 50,460 

December ............................................................... 1,426 144,456 1,265 132,324 434 50,994 

2004

January ................................................................... 1,421 142,704 1,223 124,192 395 48,519 

February ................................................................. 1,293 132,640 1,145 120,811 362 39,360 

March ...................................................................... 1,364 140,957 1,234 132,152 407 60,296 

April ......................................................................... 1,381 141,909 1,207 126,106 341 37,686 

May ......................................................................... 1,189 111,173 1,030 98,230 314 37,405 

June ........................................................................ 1,390 141,948 1,226 129,344 360 45,398 

July ......................................................................... 1,329 137,724 1,185 126,945 371 53,248 

August ..................................................................... 1,436 131,807 1,243 116,672 342 38,192 

September .............................................................. 1,283 125,344 1,155 115,499 344 45,691 

October ................................................................... 1,302 129,237 1,181 119,653 369 47,888 

November ............................................................... 1,350 135,036 1,202 122,954 407 47,517 

December ............................................................... 1,188 120,602 1,038 109,508 293 33,123 

2005

January ................................................................... 1,465 153,676 1,330 143,295 380 58,778 

February ................................................................. 1,135 120,190 1,010 109,964 350 43,966 

March ...................................................................... 1,204 133,935 1,071 124,273 384 56,253 

April ......................................................................... 1,278 139,575 1,145 128,478 390 60,726 

May ......................................................................... 1,194 129,214 1,059 117,660 359 52,055 

June ........................................................................ 1,184 128,430 1,065 119,271 349 53,930 

July ......................................................................... 1,248 131,136 1,107 118,994 356 49,070 

August ..................................................................... 1,145 127,592 1,006 116,011 334 48,904 

September .............................................................. 2,219 283,772 1,975 237,831 438 53,399 

October ................................................................... 1,114 104,584 986 94,798 328 45,475 

November ............................................................... 1,205 120,783 1,074 109,680 359 45,069 

December ............................................................... 1,308 149,565 1,185 138,234 365 49,641 

2006

January ................................................................... 1,113 108,378 985 97,832 274 29,541 

February ................................................................. 1,073 111,468 973 103,268 321 45,073 

March ...................................................................... 1,082 118,555 984 110,275 328 49,023 

April ......................................................................... 1,148 118,504 1,023 109,150 358 48,086 

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Date

Events Events Events Initial

claimants

Initial

claimants

Initial

claimants
Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, May 2002 to April 2006,

not seasonally adjusted

2002

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

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

September .............................................................. 1,662 213,281 1,505 179,042 318 47,497 

October ................................................................... 905 91,941 757 80,694 249 37,276 

November ............................................................... 1,254 116,127 1,079 102,182 363 41,442 

December ............................................................... 2,323 254,258 2,168 242,753 706 96,382 

2006

January ................................................................... 1,245 117,946 1,123 108,701 331 35,097 

February ................................................................. 719 66,555 658 62,208 210 24,892 

March ...................................................................... 921 111,838 856 106,177 285 44,688 

April ......................................................................... 1,140 121,589 1,038 112,964 296 39,538 

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Date

Events Events Events Initial

claimants

Initial

claimants

Initial

claimants
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

2005 2006 2006 2006 2005 2006 2006 2006

Seasonally adjusted

 Total ..................................................................... 1,278 1,073 1,082 1,148 139,575 111,468 118,555 118,504 

 Total, private nonfarm .............................................. 1,145 973 984 1,023 128,478 103,268 110,275 109,150 

 Manufacturing ........................................................ 390 321 328 358 60,726 45,073 49,023 48,086 

Not seasonally adjusted

 Total1

 .................................................................... 1,373 719 921 1,140 158,582 66,555 111,838 121,589 

Total, private .............................................................. 1,324 689 897 1,098 154,339 64,296 109,302 118,236 

 Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ................ 61 31 41 60 6,206 2,088 3,125 5,272 

 Total, private nonfarm .............................................. 1,263 658 856 1,038 148,133 62,208 106,177 112,964 

 Mining ..................................................................... 3 – ( 2 ) 5 187 – ( 2 ) 385 

 Utilities .................................................................... 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 277 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Construction ........................................................... 126 82 123 98 9,652 5,997 9,007 6,324 

 Manufacturing ........................................................ 395 210 285 296 59,129 24,892 44,688 39,538 

 Food ................................................................... 84 42 73 80 9,653 4,255 7,519 8,192 

 Beverage and tobacco products ........................ 9 ( 2 ) 7 ( 2 ) 660 ( 2 ) 776 ( 2 )

 Textile mills ........................................................ 15 6 8 14 2,912 373 951 2,935 

 Textile product mills ........................................... 6 4 ( 2 ) 9 626 301 ( 2 ) 773 

 Apparel ............................................................... 14 10 10 12 1,346 1,644 1,012 1,724 

 Leather and allied products ................................ ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Wood products ................................................... 17 12 18 24 3,252 1,230 2,430 2,342 

 Paper .................................................................. 9 4 7 5 769 397 668 333 

 Printing and related support activities ................ 10 6 9 9 789 519 616 804 

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

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

 ) 4 5 4 ( 2 ) 315 436 272 

 Plastics and rubber products .............................. 18 9 15 12 1,931 564 1,492 912 

 Nonmetallic mineral products ............................. 13 9 12 14 1,252 694 837 914 

 Primary metals ................................................... 16 7 11 11 2,644 523 3,667 731 

 Fabricated metal products .................................. 28 12 9 16 2,220 972 894 1,083 

 Machinery ........................................................... 16 14 20 10 2,028 1,029 2,024 1,387 

 Computer and electronic products ..................... 21 6 11 13 1,959 623 1,296 946 

 Electrical equipment and appliances .................. 16 9 11 7 3,888 773 3,570 762 

 Transportation equipment .................................. 77 39 42 39 20,879 9,113 14,958 14,093 

 Furniture and related products ........................... 14 7 5 8 1,270 681 436 709 

 Miscellaneous manufacturing ............................. 6 4 7 5 503 457 712 394 

 Wholesale trade ..................................................... 17 8 11 19 1,406 416 688 1,933 

 Retail trade ............................................................. 109 79 65 86 12,287 6,781 7,315 7,780 

 Transportation and warehousing ............................ 92 31 47 152 11,395 3,274 6,326 19,558 

 Information ............................................................. 38 28 28 30 8,630 3,611 5,779 4,570 

 Finance and insurance ........................................... 32 26 22 26 2,107 1,752 1,610 1,670 

 Real estate and rental and leasing ......................... 9 3 5 ( 2 ) 793 194 411 ( 2 )

 Professional and technical services ....................... 65 24 22 41 7,778 2,124 2,467 5,776 

 Management of companies and enterprises .......... 6 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 540 274 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Administrative and waste services ......................... 206 106 120 134 19,862 8,492 14,361 10,725 

 Educational services .............................................. 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 5 260 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 572 

 Health care and social assistance .......................... 27 15 18 21 1,921 938 1,167 1,676 

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ........................ 32 7 14 25 2,689 457 1,187 1,895 

 Accommodation and food services ........................ 75 26 79 74 7,253 2,486 9,792 7,937 

 Other services, except public administration .......... 21 3 ( 2 ) 17 1,838 197 ( 2 ) 2,000 

 Unclassified ........................................................... 2 3 7 4 129 162 556 240 

Government ............................................................... 49 30 24 42 4,243 2,259 2,536 3,353 

 Federal ................................................................... 9 4 6 9 696 238 757 796 

 State ....................................................................... 12 7 7 10 1,054 764 844 909 

 Local ....................................................................... 28 19 11 23 2,493 1,257 935 1,648 

 1

 Data were reported by all states and the District of Columbia. NOTE: Dash represents zero.

 2

 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.

Industry
Table 4. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, April 2004 to April 2006,

not seasonally adjusted

Extended mass layoffs 

lasting more than 30 days Realization rates1

Events Initial

claimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants

2004

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 3,242 361,855 886 148,575 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 1,142 r

 185,486 29.5 45.7 

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 1,203 r

 212,452 38.9 61.6 

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

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

September ......................................... 1,662 213,281 1,505 179,042 

Third Quarter ...................................... 4,288 525,079 3,848 464,903 1,136 r

 190,119 29.5 r 40.9

October .............................................. 905 91,941 757 80,694 

November .......................................... 1,254 116,127 1,079 102,182 

December .......................................... 2,323 254,258 2,168 242,753 

Fourth Quarter ................................... 4,482 462,326 4,004 425,629 r

 1,400 r 244,943 r 35.0 r 57.5

2006

January .............................................. 1,245 117,946 1,123 108,701 

February ............................................. 719 66,555 658 62,208 

March ................................................. 921 111,838 856 106,177 

First Quarter ....................................... 2,885 296,339 2,637 277,086 2,p 892 2,p 129,607 p33.8 p46.8

April .................................................... 1,140 121,589 1,038 112,964 

 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. p = preliminary.

 2

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

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

2005 2006 2006 2006 2005 2006 2006 2006

 United States1

 .................................................... 1,373 719 921 1,140 158,582 66,555 111,838 121,589 

Northeast ................................................................... 255 115 124 308 28,268 12,252 12,955 34,615 

 New England .......................................................... 54 23 22 52 6,114 3,984 1,849 6,268 

 Middle Atlantic ........................................................ 201 92 102 256 22,154 8,268 11,106 28,347 

South .......................................................................... 268 149 176 177 35,412 14,941 21,001 18,283 

 South Atlantic ......................................................... 142 66 95 98 14,586 7,193 11,298 10,728 

 East South Central ................................................. 55 38 39 41 9,490 4,136 4,819 4,108 

 West South Central ................................................ 71 45 42 38 11,336 3,612 4,884 3,447 

Midwest ...................................................................... 314 168 259 243 42,151 16,622 40,581 34,494 

 East North Central ................................................. 269 136 199 203 36,185 12,702 32,836 30,704 

 West North Central ................................................ 45 32 60 40 5,966 3,920 7,745 3,790 

West ........................................................................... 536 287 362 412 52,751 22,740 37,301 34,197 

 Mountain ................................................................ 64 16 34 47 7,514 1,271 3,380 5,769 

 Pacific .................................................................... 472 271 328 365 45,237 21,469 33,921 28,428 

 1

 See footnote 1, table 3. 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.

Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia; East South Central:

 

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

2005 2006 2006 2006 2005 2006 2006 2006

 Total1

 ....................................................................... 1,373 719 921 1,140 158,582 66,555 111,838 121,589 

Alabama ..................................................................... 10 7 7 9 1,314 621 660 741 

Alaska ......................................................................... 5 ( 2 ) – 5 719 ( 2 ) – 694 

Arizona ....................................................................... 32 – 7 17 4,574 – 804 2,709 

Arkansas .................................................................... 5 ( 2 ) 3 5 309 ( 2 ) 189 432 

California .................................................................... 421 246 283 321 39,775 19,455 29,527 24,551 

Colorado ..................................................................... 8 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 6 753 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 768 

Connecticut ................................................................ 3 3 6 8 234 1,353 390 673 

Delaware .................................................................... – – ( 2 ) ––– ( 2 ) –

District of Columbia .................................................... ––––––––

Florida ........................................................................ 62 30 44 34 5,192 2,055 4,033 2,363 

Georgia ....................................................................... 27 10 20 20 3,444 1,081 1,880 4,191 

Hawaii ......................................................................... ( 2 ) 3 9 6 ( 2 ) 199 814 422 

Idaho .......................................................................... 5 ( 2 ) 7 3 503 ( 2 ) 523 349 

Illinois ......................................................................... 55 36 44 29 6,502 3,385 7,478 3,380 

Indiana ........................................................................ 33 16 20 22 4,251 1,736 2,559 2,260 

Iowa ............................................................................ 11 8 7 7 1,466 620 1,866 987 

Kansas ....................................................................... 4 ( 2 ) 6 ( 2 ) 315 ( 2 ) 751 ( 2 )

Kentucky ..................................................................... 28 20 21 17 6,696 2,653 3,310 2,174 

Louisiana .................................................................... 16 10 8 ( 2 ) 1,437 624 520 ( 2 )

Maine .......................................................................... 7 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 665 338 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Maryland ..................................................................... 8 3 5 15 748 233 497 1,277 

Massachusetts ........................................................... 16 3 4 17 1,339 163 253 2,001 

Michigan ..................................................................... 49 29 50 41 5,355 2,288 9,395 7,191 

Minnesota ................................................................... 14 11 10 12 2,273 2,300 882 814 

Mississippi .................................................................. 3 5 ( 2 ) 6 201 364 ( 2 ) 430 

Missouri ...................................................................... 10 7 31 13 1,349 541 3,297 1,008 

Montana ..................................................................... 3 3 ( 2

 ) 3 299 173 ( 2 ) 220 

Nebraska .................................................................... 3 4 5 4 272 280 774 495 

Nevada ....................................................................... 6 6 9 11 567 487 1,251 1,053 

New Hampshire .......................................................... 4 3 ( 2 ) 5 379 265 ( 2 ) 504 

New Jersey ................................................................. 44 24 15 53 4,232 2,115 1,817 6,259 

New Mexico ................................................................ 4 ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) 319 ( 2 ) 161 ( 2 )

New York .................................................................... 65 30 36 102 8,072 3,144 3,566 13,386 

North Carolina ............................................................ 25 10 8 7 2,588 786 849 568 

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

Ohio ............................................................................ 80 23 32 53 15,288 2,772 6,956 12,182 

Oklahoma ................................................................... 5 4 6 ( 2 ) 2,174 437 966 ( 2 )

Oregon ....................................................................... 22 9 22 16 2,349 802 2,430 1,296 

Pennsylvania .............................................................. 92 38 51 101 9,850 3,009 5,723 8,702 

Rhode Island .............................................................. 12 9 ( 2

 ) 7 2,191 1,746 ( 2 ) 1,528 

South Carolina ............................................................ 11 6 10 11 1,659 514 1,359 1,314 

South Dakota .............................................................. 3 ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) 291 ( 2 ) – ( 2 )

Tennessee .................................................................. 14 6 10 9 1,279 498 709 763 

Texas .......................................................................... 45 29 25 30 7,416 2,375 3,209 2,354 

Utah ............................................................................ 5 ( 2 ) 4 4 428 ( 2 ) 274 381 

Vermont ...................................................................... 12 ( 2 ) 8 13 1,306 ( 2 ) 848 1,311 

Virginia ....................................................................... 7 7 6 9 716 2,524 805 830 

Washington ................................................................ 22 12 14 17 2,221 951 1,150 1,465 

West Virginia .............................................................. ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Wisconsin ................................................................... 52 32 53 58 4,789 2,521 6,448 5,691 

Wyoming .................................................................... ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Puerto Rico ................................................................. 19 19 17 8 2,342 1,962 1,742 767 

 1 See footnote 1, table 3. NOTE: Dash represents zero. 2

 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.

State