For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Tuesday, March 22, 2011 USDL-11-0394 

Technical information: (202) 691-6392 • mlsinfo@bls.gov • www.bls.gov/mls 

Media contact: (202) 691-5902 • PressOffice@bls.gov 

MASS LAYOFFS – FEBRUARY 2011 

Employers took 1,421 mass layoff actions in February involving 130,818 workers, seasonally adjusted, 

as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the U.S. Bureau of 

Labor Statistics reported today. Each mass layoff involved at least 50 workers from a single employer. 

The number of mass layoff events in February decreased by 113 from January, and the number of 

associated initial claims decreased by 18,981. In February, 291 mass layoff events were reported in the 

manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 26,060 initial claims. Both figures decreased over 

the month, with manufacturing initial claims reaching its lowest level in program history (data begin in 

April 1995). (See table 1.) 

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

3,500

Events

Manufacturing

Chart 1. Mass layoff events, seasonally adjusted,

March 2006-February 2011

Total

Private nonfarm

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

350,000

Claims

Total

Manufacturing

Chart 2. Mass layoff initial claims, seasonally adjusted,

March 2006-February 2011

Private nonfarm

The national unemployment rate was 8.9 percent in February, essentially unchanged from the prior 

month and down from 9.7 percent a year earlier. In February, total nonfarm payroll employment 

increased by 192,000 over the month and by 1,269,000 from a year earlier. 

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted) 

The number of mass layoff events in February was 1,024, not seasonally adjusted, resulting in 85,585 

initial claims. (See table 2.) The number of mass layoff events was down by 159 from February 2010, 

and associated initial claims decreased by 17,233. Eleven of the 19 major industry sectors in the private 

economy reported over-the-year declines in initial claims, with manufacturing and construction having 

the largest decreases. The six-digit industry with the largest number of initial claims in February 2011 

was temporary help services. (See table A. The table includes both publicly and privately owned 

entities.) 
- 2 - 

Table A. Industries with the largest number of mass layoff initial claims in February 2011,

not seasonally adjusted

Year Initial claims

Temporary help services 1

 ................................... 8,334 2001 18,893 

Motion picture and video production .................. 6,260 2011 6,260 

School and employee bus transportation ............. 2,935 2008 4,254 

Professional employer organizations 1

 ................ 2,286 2009 6,452 

Discount department stores ................................. 2,214 2004 2,669 

Farm labor contractors and crew leaders ............. 1,642 2000 12,516 

Food service contractors ...................................... 1,503 2009 2,580 

Fruit and vegetable canning ................................. 1,281 2001 2,561 

Supermarkets and other grocery stores ................ 1,273 2010 2,470 

Department stores, except discount ..................... 1,252 2001 2,994 

 1 See the Technical Note for more information on these industries.

Industry Initial claims February peak

The manufacturing sector accounted for 22 percent of all mass layoff events and initial claims filed in 

February. A year earlier, manufacturing made up 24 percent of events and 30 percent of initial claims. 

Within manufacturing, the number of claimants in February was greatest in the food subsector. (See 

table 3.) Fourteen of the 21 manufacturing subsectors experienced over-the-year decreases in initial 

claims, with the largest declines in transportation equipment and in machinery. 

Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted) 

Three of the 4 regions and 8 of the 9 divisions experienced over-the-year decreases in initial claims due 

to mass layoffs in February. Among the census regions, the South registered the largest over-the-year 

decrease in initial claims. Of the geographic divisions, the East South Central had the largest over-theyear decline in initial claims. (See table 5.) 

California recorded the highest number of initial claims in February, followed by Pennsylvania and 

Florida. Thirty-two states and the District of Columbia experienced over-the-year decreases in initial 

claims, led by Kentucky and Pennsylvania. (See table 6.) 

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 Mass Layoffs news release for March is scheduled to be released on Friday, April 22, 2011, at 

10:00 a.m. (EDT). 
Technical Note 

The Mass Layoff Statistics (MLS) program is a federalstate program that uses a standardized automated approach to 

identifying, describing, and tracking the effects of major job 

cutbacks, using data from each state's unemployment 

insurance database. Each month, states report on employers 

which have at least 50 initial claims filed against them during 

a consecutive 5-week period. These employers then are 

contacted by the state agency to determine whether these 

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

information concerning the layoff is collected. States report 

on layoffs lasting more than 1 month on a quarterly basis. 

A given month contains an aggregation of the weekly 

unemployment insurance claims filings for the Sunday 

through Saturday weeks in that month. All weeks are 

included for the particular month, except if the first day of the 

month falls on Saturday. In this case, the week is included in 

the prior month's tabulations. This means that some months 

will contain 4 weeks and others, 5 weeks. The number of 

weeks in a given month may be different from year to year, 

and the number of weeks in a year may vary. Therefore, 

analysis of over-the-month and over-the-year change in not 

seasonally adjusted series should take this calendar effect into 

consideration. 

The MLS program resumed operations in April 1995 

after it had been terminated in November 1992 due to lack of 

funding. Prior to April 1995, monthly layoff statistics were 

not available. 

Information in this release will be made available to 

sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 

(202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339 

Definitions 

Employer. Employers in the MLS program include 

those covered by state unemployment insurance laws. 

Information on employers is obtained from the Quarterly 

Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, which 

is administered by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). 

Industry. Employers are classified according to the 

2007 version of the North American Industry Classification 

System (NAICS). For temporary help and professional 

employer organization industries, monthly MLS-related 

statistics generally reflect layoffs related to underlying client 

companies in other industries. An individual layoff action at 

a client company can be small, but when initial claimants 

associated with many such layoffs are assigned to a temporary help or professional employer organization firm, a 

mass layoff event may trigger. 

Initial claimant. A person who files any notice of unemployment to initiate a request either for a determination of 

entitlement to and eligibility for compensation, or for a 

subsequent period of unemployment within a benefit year or 

period of eligibility. 

Mass layoff event. Fifty or more initial claims for 

unemployment insurance benefits filed against an employer 

during a 5-week period, regardless of duration. 

Seasonal adjustment 

Effective with the release of data for January 2005, BLS 

began 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 1 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, March 2007 to February 2011,

seasonally adjusted

2007

March ........................................................... 1,202 124,521 1,092 115,835 384 47,658 

April .............................................................. 1,238 126,334 1,102 115,271 358 42,989 

May .............................................................. 1,159 113,578 1,064 106,573 347 44,637 

June ............................................................. 1,207 127,776 1,097 119,007 342 37,552 

July ............................................................... 1,295 136,168 1,193 128,208 401 55,906 

August .......................................................... 1,217 122,450 1,126 115,305 312 34,877 

September ................................................... 1,233 121,998 1,140 115,675 430 51,731 

October ........................................................ 1,330 133,063 1,210 124,455 439 56,970 

November .................................................... 1,397 145,339 1,269 135,651 408 56,985 

December .................................................... 1,553 154,275 1,435 144,785 463 59,445 

2008

January ........................................................ 1,437 146,900 1,302 135,622 431 55,562 

February ....................................................... 1,604 175,128 1,441 163,475 471 59,118 

March ........................................................... 1,500 150,502 1,388 140,424 435 56,156 

April .............................................................. 1,292 128,901 1,162 118,016 449 58,402 

May .............................................................. 1,582 161,944 1,444 152,230 468 62,452 

June ............................................................. 1,631 164,508 1,488 153,014 491 68,198 

July ............................................................... 1,581 164,497 1,443 153,720 463 62,425 

August .......................................................... 1,791 181,107 1,653 171,705 583 77,874 

September ................................................... 2,192 233,034 2,024 219,532 635 82,471 

October ........................................................ 2,221 229,254 2,062 215,787 697 92,408 

November .................................................... 2,415 228,107 2,256 214,631 900 102,284 

December .................................................... 2,443 245,661 2,264 231,138 927 114,280 

2009

January ........................................................ 2,272 238,717 2,103 224,850 756 100,927 

February ....................................................... 2,801 315,507 2,636 300,042 1,194 138,583 

March ........................................................... 2,950 295,543 2,758 279,027 1,205 144,713 

April .............................................................. 2,579 251,032 2,368 234,796 997 121,435 

May .............................................................. 2,758 288,319 2,557 271,425 1,187 147,548 

June ............................................................. 2,506 250,275 2,293 232,814 1,048 135,389 

July ............................................................... 2,192 223,697 1,977 203,365 620 72,932 

August .......................................................... 2,419 220,262 2,177 201,951 778 83,837 

September ................................................... 2,305 219,924 2,095 204,596 799 91,665 

October ........................................................ 1,975 195,347 1,780 177,977 570 63,646 

November .................................................... 1,754 154,223 1,585 141,439 464 51,891 

December .................................................... 1,725 156,274 1,545 141,649 420 43,584 

2010

January ........................................................ 1,716 171,633 1,541 157,597 494 60,059 

February ....................................................... 1,492 149,369 1,318 135,490 351 40,564 

March ........................................................... 1,635 146,901 1,436 131,953 347 37,273 

April .............................................................. 1,675 159,358 1,498 143,814 371 48,646 

May .............................................................. 1,665 155,352 1,405 133,913 314 30,967 

June ............................................................. 1,729 153,937 1,504 134,837 326 32,646 

July ............................................................... 1,528 138,581 1,316 121,378 296 30,752 

August .......................................................... 1,658 163,325 1,453 141,489 409 47,668 

September ................................................... 1,541 137,941 1,331 119,654 336 34,641 

October ........................................................ 1,649 147,204 1,445 130,264 353 37,394 

November .................................................... 1,579 148,800 1,397 133,845 350 39,072 

December .................................................... 1,483 137,992 1,272 122,688 319 35,977 

2011

January ........................................................ 1,534 149,799 1,344 132,730 341 39,189 

February ....................................................... 1,421 130,818 1,220 116,190 291 26,060 

Date

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Events Initial

claimants Events Initial

claimants Events Initial

claimants
Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, March 2007 to February 2011,

not seasonally adjusted

2007

March ........................................................... 1,082 123,974 1,015 118,431 367 49,886 

April .............................................................. 1,219 127,444 1,115 118,040 309 35,229 

May .............................................................. 923 85,816 856 81,153 224 26,527 

June ............................................................. 1,599 172,810 1,318 148,669 313 36,571 

July ............................................................... 1,599 175,419 1,450 164,939 684 101,390 

August .......................................................... 963 93,458 908 88,345 220 23,361 

September ................................................... 717 67,385 667 64,026 246 29,381 

October ........................................................ 1,083 108,455 929 97,716 338 50,918 

November .................................................... 1,799 198,220 1,593 181,184 514 75,413 

December .................................................... 2,167 224,214 2,071 216,898 699 91,754 

2008

January ........................................................ 1,647 154,503 1,520 144,191 488 54,418 

February ....................................................... 1,269 119,508 1,178 113,587 361 42,527 

March ........................................................... 1,089 114,541 1,039 110,147 333 43,740 

April .............................................................. 1,272 130,810 1,172 121,625 394 48,188 

May .............................................................. 1,552 159,471 1,438 150,462 388 51,698 

June ............................................................. 1,622 166,742 1,315 140,916 309 42,097 

July ............................................................... 1,891 200,382 1,687 186,018 760 108,733 

August .......................................................... 1,427 139,999 1,343 133,146 414 51,912 

September ................................................... 1,292 129,586 1,202 122,505 361 46,391 

October ........................................................ 2,125 221,784 1,917 205,553 689 100,457 

November .................................................... 2,574 241,589 2,389 226,657 997 107,620 

December .................................................... 3,377 351,305 3,232 340,220 1,378 172,529 

2009

January ........................................................ 3,806 388,813 3,633 375,293 1,461 172,757 

February ....................................................... 2,262 218,438 2,173 210,755 945 103,588 

March ........................................................... 2,191 228,387 2,107 221,397 940 114,747 

April .............................................................. 2,547 256,930 2,385 243,321 887 100,872 

May .............................................................. 2,738 289,628 2,572 274,047 1,005 123,683 

June ............................................................. 2,519 256,357 2,051 216,063 674 85,726 

July ............................................................... 3,054 336,654 2,659 296,589 1,133 154,208 

August .......................................................... 1,428 125,024 1,334 117,193 436 41,151 

September ................................................... 1,371 123,177 1,258 115,141 448 51,126 

October ........................................................ 1,934 193,904 1,678 172,883 566 69,655 

November .................................................... 1,870 164,496 1,679 150,751 517 55,053 

December .................................................... 2,310 214,648 2,166 203,655 615 64,540 

2010

January ........................................................ 2,860 278,679 2,682 265,074 962 104,846 

February ....................................................... 1,183 102,818 1,091 96,022 282 30,728 

March ........................................................... 1,197 111,727 1,111 105,514 273 29,745 

April .............................................................. 1,840 199,690 1,697 184,654 424 55,178 

May .............................................................. 1,354 123,333 1,170 109,203 216 19,334 

June ............................................................. 1,861 171,190 1,355 125,872 212 21,083 

July ............................................................... 2,124 206,254 1,732 172,248 532 64,200 

August .......................................................... 976 92,435 897 83,021 230 23,088 

September ................................................... 920 77,654 806 67,987 187 19,403 

October ........................................................ 1,642 148,638 1,373 127,865 351 40,861 

November .................................................... 1,676 158,048 1,477 142,591 389 41,383 

December .................................................... 1,931 184,130 1,763 172,881 465 52,816 

2011

January ........................................................ 2,558 246,463 2,372 229,765 693 75,006 

February ....................................................... 1,024 85,585 919 78,718 222 18,471 

Date

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Events Initial

claimants Events Initial

claimants Events Initial

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

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

February December January February February December January February

2010 2010 2011 2011 2010 2010 2011 2011

Seasonally adjusted

 Total ............................................................... 1,492 1,483 1,534 1,421 149,369 137,992 149,799 130,818 

 Total, private nonfarm ........................................ 1,318 1,272 1,344 1,220 135,490 122,688 132,730 116,190 

 Manufacturing .................................................. 351 319 341 291 40,564 35,977 39,189 26,060 

Not seasonally adjusted

 Total 1

 ............................................................ 1,183 1,931 2,558 1,024 102,818 184,130 246,463 85,585 

Total, private ........................................................ 1,128 1,830 2,438 976 98,241 176,405 234,708 82,230 

 Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ......... 37 67 66 57 2,219 3,524 4,943 3,512 

 Total, private nonfarm ........................................ 1,091 1,763 2,372 919 96,022 172,881 229,765 78,718 

 Mining .............................................................. 5 29 15 4 761 2,439 1,188 322 

 Utilities ............................................................. – ( 2 ) 5 ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) 390 ( 2 )

 Construction .................................................... 166 379 325 104 12,200 29,458 23,906 7,003 

 Manufacturing .................................................. 282 465 693 222 30,728 52,816 75,006 18,471 

 Food ............................................................ 45 52 94 58 4,031 6,590 9,313 5,115 

 Beverage and tobacco products .................. 6 8 5 5 407 856 752 287 

 Textile mills .................................................. 5 21 31 5 431 2,239 4,455 468 

 Textile product mills ..................................... 5 8 9 4 557 981 793 270 

 Apparel ........................................................ 4 18 20 5 265 1,294 1,776 693 

 Leather and allied products ......................... ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 850 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Wood products ............................................ 27 39 43 22 1,850 3,623 4,930 1,872 

 Paper ........................................................... 10 14 14 12 721 1,055 1,049 750 

 Printing and related support activities .......... 12 13 12 6 960 934 983 679 

 Petroleum and coal products ....................... ( 2 ) 10 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 892 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Chemicals .................................................... 9 8 18 7 872 561 1,612 759 

 Plastics and rubber products ....................... 10 25 51 5 1,014 2,392 4,569 262 

 Nonmetallic mineral products ...................... 12 48 56 16 794 4,212 4,239 1,141 

 Primary metals ............................................. 9 21 23 8 981 1,919 3,046 794 

 Fabricated metal products ........................... 12 29 51 8 681 2,380 4,174 446 

 Machinery .................................................... 20 18 46 11 2,466 2,724 5,446 897 

 Computer and electronic products ............... 18 13 14 13 1,538 1,214 1,020 847 

 Electrical equipment and appliances ........... 12 12 15 4 1,386 2,372 1,572 1,078 

 Transportation equipment ............................ 45 78 128 19 10,104 12,534 19,478 1,275 

 Furniture and related products .................... 16 20 44 9 1,346 2,521 4,263 533 

 Miscellaneous manufacturing ...................... ( 2 ) 7 14 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 673 1,073 ( 2 )

 Wholesale trade ............................................... 27 23 32 24 1,754 1,706 2,839 2,187 

 Retail trade ...................................................... 128 105 241 114 10,802 9,985 27,038 9,346 

 Transportation and warehousing ..................... 51 114 212 49 5,372 13,341 22,440 5,630 

 Information ....................................................... 40 25 53 58 3,753 2,818 7,915 8,959 

 Finance and insurance .................................... 32 29 31 22 2,671 2,151 2,758 1,407 

 Real estate and rental and leasing .................. 9 13 17 7 622 1,408 1,150 369 

 Professional and technical services ................ 33 44 52 43 2,292 3,549 4,019 3,729 

 Management of companies and enterprises ... 6 ( 2 ) 6 ( 2 ) 1,990 ( 2 ) 439 ( 2 )

 Administrative and waste services .................. 191 225 381 166 13,594 17,203 34,996 13,894 

 Educational services ........................................ 4 9 19 8 242 958 2,672 474 

 Health care and social assistance ................... 31 46 56 28 2,118 3,904 3,880 1,685 

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ................. 16 24 55 11 1,419 1,843 5,494 629 

 Accommodation and food services .................. 61 208 158 50 5,044 27,239 12,107 4,088 

 Other services, except public administration ... 8 15 21 4 552 1,153 1,528 161 

 Unclassified ..................................................... 1 1 – – 108 92 – –

Government ......................................................... 55 101 120 48 4,577 7,725 11,755 3,355 

 Federal ............................................................ 8 10 23 5 631 1,215 2,922 384 

 State ................................................................ 12 22 32 17 947 1,724 3,272 1,029 

 Local ................................................................ 35 69 65 26 2,999 4,786 5,561 1,942 

 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, January 2009 to February 2011,

not seasonally adjusted

Extended mass layoffs 

lasting more than 30 days Realization rates 1

Events Initial

claimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants

2009

January ...................................... 3,806 388,813 3,633 375,293 

February .................................... 2,262 218,438 2,173 210,755 

March ......................................... 2,191 228,387 2,107 221,397 

First Quarter ............................... 8,259 835,638 7,913 807,445 3,979 835,551 50.3 103.5 

April ............................................ 2,547 256,930 2,385 243,321 

May ............................................ 2,738 289,628 2,572 274,047 

June ........................................... 2,519 256,357 2,051 216,063 

Second Quarter ......................... 7,804 802,915 7,008 733,431 3,395 731,049 48.4 99.7 

July ............................................ 3,054 336,654 2,659 296,589 

August ........................................ 1,428 125,024 1,334 117,193 

September ................................. 1,371 123,177 1,258 115,141 

Third Quarter ............................. 5,853 584,855 5,251 528,923 2,034 406,823 38.7 76.9 

October ...................................... 1,934 193,904 1,678 172,883 

November .................................. 1,870 164,496 1,679 150,751 

December .................................. 2,310 214,648 2,166 203,655 

Fourth Quarter ........................... 6,114 573,048 5,523 527,289 2,416 468,577 43.7 88.9 

2010

January ...................................... 2,860 278,679 2,682 265,074 

February .................................... 1,183 102,818 1,091 96,022 

March ......................................... 1,197 111,727 1,111 105,514 

First Quarter ............................... 5,240 493,224 4,884 466,610 1,870 368,459 38.3 79.0 

April ............................................ 1,840 199,690 1,697 184,654 

May ............................................ 1,354 123,333 1,170 109,203 

June ........................................... 1,861 171,190 1,355 125,872 

Second Quarter ......................... 5,055 494,213 4,222 419,729 2,008 395,224 47.6 94.2 

July ............................................ 2,124 206,254 1,732 172,248 

August ........................................ 976 92,435 897 83,021 

September ................................. 920 77,654 806 67,987 

Third Quarter ............................. 4,020 376,343 3,435 323,256 1,370 256,636 39.9 79.4 

October ...................................... 1,642 148,638 1,373 127,865 

November .................................. 1,676 158,048 1,477 142,591 

December .................................. 1,931 184,130 1,763 172,881 

Fourth Quarter ........................... 5,249 490,816 4,613 443,337 2,p 1,910 2,p 268,431 p

 41.4 p 60.5 

2011

January ...................................... 2,558 246,463 2,372 229,765 

February .................................... 1,024 85,585 919 78,718 

 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.

Date

Total mass layoffs

Private nonfarm

Mass layoffs
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

February December January February February December January February

2010 2010 2011 2011 2010 2010 2011 2011

 United States 1

 ......................................... 1,183 1,931 2,558 1,024 102,818 184,130 246,463 85,585 

Northeast .......................................................... 215 356 591 173 21,705 35,601 58,802 16,047 

 New England ................................................ 39 50 81 32 4,682 5,278 7,047 4,259 

 Middle Atlantic .............................................. 176 306 510 141 17,023 30,323 51,755 11,788 

South ................................................................ 319 493 687 260 29,681 51,554 66,552 19,998 

 South Atlantic ............................................... 178 287 431 166 13,052 27,744 40,880 11,371 

 East South Central ....................................... 69 110 156 44 9,917 12,784 16,508 4,343 

 West South Central ...................................... 72 96 100 50 6,712 11,026 9,164 4,284 

Midwest ............................................................ 221 565 613 180 21,128 58,560 63,468 15,075 

 East North Central ........................................ 169 394 464 130 16,776 42,375 45,790 11,550 

 West North Central ....................................... 52 171 149 50 4,352 16,185 17,678 3,525 

West ................................................................. 428 517 667 411 30,304 38,415 57,641 34,465 

 Mountain ....................................................... 58 90 66 35 4,276 7,274 6,046 2,440 

 Pacific ........................................................... 370 427 601 376 26,028 31,141 51,595 32,025 

 1

 See footnote 1, table 3. Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee; West South Central: Arkansas, 

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

comprise the census divisions are: New England: Connecticut, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin; West North Central: Iowa, Kansas,

Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota;

and Vermont; Middle Atlantic: New Jersey, New York, and Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, 

Pennsylvania; South Atlantic: Delaware, District of Columbia, Utah, and Wyoming; and Pacific: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon,

Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Washington.

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

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

February December January February February December January February

2010 2010 2011 2011 2010 2010 2011 2011

 Total 1

 .............................................. 1,183 1,931 2,558 1,024 102,818 184,130 246,463 85,585 

Alabama .............................................. 17 34 70 12 1,758 3,758 7,730 1,583 

Alaska ................................................. 3 9 4 ( 2 ) 267 915 392 ( 2 ) Arizona ................................................ 8 9 13 12 700 940 1,075 838 

Arkansas ............................................. ( 2 ) 6 6 3 ( 2 ) 563 768 283 

California ............................................. 335 365 530 349 23,191 25,602 44,274 29,769 

Colorado ............................................. 10 14 11 4 706 964 1,126 383 

Connecticut ......................................... 10 7 11 4 847 576 1,048 331 

Delaware ............................................. 5 6 5 3 378 429 411 239 

District of Columbia ............................. ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 452 ( 2 ) Florida ................................................. 87 92 128 85 5,523 7,554 9,464 5,071 

Georgia ............................................... 34 42 84 28 2,708 4,306 8,952 2,221 

Hawaii ................................................. ( 2 ) – 6 3 ( 2 ) – 388 232 

Idaho ................................................... 11 15 8 4 709 1,006 698 225 

Illinois .................................................. 40 110 86 35 4,311 13,672 7,516 3,508 

Indiana ................................................ 22 49 43 15 1,907 5,314 6,487 1,471 

Iowa .................................................... 13 39 39 9 1,122 3,897 4,007 870 

Kansas ................................................ – 23 23 5 – 2,923 5,440 308 

Kentucky ............................................. 32 38 47 13 6,844 5,003 5,472 1,682 

Louisiana ............................................ 12 21 29 6 1,442 1,741 2,309 518 

Maine .................................................. ( 2 ) 6 11 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 431 900 ( 2 ) Maryland ............................................. 7 9 25 4 724 611 1,888 306 

Massachusetts .................................... 8 19 34 6 646 2,372 3,225 534 

Michigan ............................................. 32 67 127 17 3,694 8,985 10,398 1,091 

Minnesota ........................................... 13 34 19 10 1,456 2,932 1,988 675 

Mississippi .......................................... 5 19 13 8 282 2,128 1,163 446 

Missouri .............................................. 24 54 55 17 1,667 4,763 4,713 1,038 

Montana .............................................. 4 8 6 ( 2

 ) 258 470 560 ( 2 )

Nebraska ............................................ ( 2 ) 14 9 9 ( 2 ) 1,157 1,086 634 

Nevada ............................................... 16 26 12 5 1,331 2,449 1,299 394 

New Hampshire .................................. 7 3 9 4 1,095 326 722 537 

New Jersey ......................................... 16 49 109 19 1,408 6,036 9,853 2,243 

New Mexico ........................................ 6 8 7 3 391 640 467 164 

New York ............................................ 52 115 207 45 6,833 12,383 24,950 4,161 

North Carolina 3

 .................................. 5 80 100 27 451 8,876 9,865 1,984 

North Dakota ....................................... ( 2 ) 5 3 – ( 2 ) 375 390 –

Ohio .................................................... 35 87 93 30 3,790 7,826 9,241 2,473 

Oklahoma ........................................... 3 6 11 9 306 1,410 1,048 1,015 

Oregon ................................................ 19 25 36 9 1,571 2,234 4,390 896 

Pennsylvania ...................................... 108 142 194 77 8,782 11,904 16,952 5,384 

Rhode Island ....................................... 7 10 8 10 1,545 1,264 555 2,125 

South Carolina .................................... 11 26 41 5 886 2,648 5,124 340 

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

Tennessee .......................................... 15 19 26 11 1,033 1,895 2,143 632 

Texas .................................................. 56 63 54 32 4,894 7,312 5,039 2,468 

Utah .................................................... ( 2 ) 10 7 6 ( 2 ) 805 720 370 

Vermont .............................................. 6 5 8 6 483 309 597 558 

Virginia ................................................ 22 30 42 10 1,704 3,177 4,497 899 

Washington ......................................... 11 28 25 13 769 2,390 2,151 955 

West Virginia ....................................... 5 – ( 2 ) 3 509 – ( 2 ) 216 

Wisconsin ........................................... 40 81 115 33 3,074 6,578 12,148 3,007 

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

Puerto Rico ......................................... 21 10 25 16 2,459 940 2,854 1,808 

 1 See footnote 1, table 3. data due to a change in MLS unemployment insurance 2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. input procedures. 3 Data starting in November 2010 may not be comparable to prior NOTE: Dash represents zero.

State