For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Wednesday, May 12, 2010 USDL-10-0644 

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

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

EXTENDED MASS LAYOFFS – FIRST QUARTER 2010 

Employers initiated 1,564 mass layoff events in the first quarter of 2010 that resulted in the separation 

of 221,150 workers from their jobs for at least 31 days, according to preliminary figures released by the 

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Both events and separations decreased by record amounts from the 

same period a year earlier, when layoffs and associated separated workers reached program highs (with 

data available back to 1995). (See table A.) 

Seventeen of 18 major industry sectors in the private nonfarm economy registered sharp declines over 

the year in the number of extended mass layoff events, with 12 industries registering record declines in 

the number of events. Forty-two percent of employers expected to recall at least some laid-off workers, 

up from 25 percent a year earlier. First quarter 2010 layoff data are preliminary and are subject to revision. (See the Technical Note.) 

The national unemployment rate averaged 10.4 percent, not seasonally adjusted, in the first quarter of 

2010, up from 8.8 percent a year earlier. Private nonfarm payroll employment, not seasonally adjusted, 

decreased by 2.8 percent (-3,032,000) over the year. 

Industry Distribution of Extended Layoffs 

Manufacturing firms reported 380 events involving the separation of 51,333 workers. Manufacturing accounted for 24 percent of private nonfarm extended layoff events and 23 percent of related separations 

in the first quarter of 2010, the lowest proportions for any first quarter. A year earlier, manufacturing 

made up 40 percent of events and 39 percent of separations. (See table 1.) The largest numbers of separations within the manufacturing sector were associated with food (largely from fruit and vegetable 

canning) and transportation equipment (largely from automobile manufacturing). All 21 manufacturing 

subsectors experienced over-the-year decreases in the number of layoff events. 

Construction firms recorded 400 events and 42,040 separations, primarily in specialty trade contractors 

(largely from nonresidential electrical contractors) and heavy and civil engineering construction (largely 

from highway, street, and bridge construction). In the first quarter of 2010, layoffs in this sector comprised 26 percent of events and 19 percent of separations. 

Seventeen of 18 major industry sectors in the private nonfarm economy registered sharp declines over 

the year in the number of extended mass layoff events. Layoff events in 12 industries decreased by 

record levels—mining; manufacturing; wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing; 
- 2 - 

Table A. Selected measures of extended mass layoff activity

Period Layoff events Separations Initial claimants

2006

January-March..................... 963 183,089 193,510 

April-June............................ 1,353 295,964 264,927 

July-September.................... 929 160,254 161,764 

October-December.............. 1,640 296,662 330,954 

2007

January-March..................... 1,110 225,600 199,250 

April-June............................ 1,421 278,719 259,234 

July-September.................... 1,018 160,024 173,077 

October-December.............. 1,814 301,592 347,151 

2008

January-March..................... 1,340 230,098 259,292 

April-June............................ 1,756 354,713 339,630 

July-September.................... 1,581 290,453 304,340 

October-December.............. 3,582 641,714 766,780 

2009

January-Marchr

 ................... 3,979 705,141 835,551 

April-Juner 

........................... 3,395 651,318 731,035 

July-Septemberr

 .................. 2,034 345,529 406,715 

October-Decemberr

 ............ 2,419 406,815 466,539 

2010

January-Marchp

 ................... 1,564 221,150 214,204 

 r

 = revised.

 p

 = preliminary.

information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional and technical services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and waste services; and other services, 

except public administration. 

Reasons for Extended Layoffs 

Among the seven categories of economic reasons for extended mass layoffs, business demand factors 

accounted for 41 percent of events and 38 percent of related separations during the first quarter of 2010, 

down from 54 percent of events and 48 percent of separations in the same period a year earlier. (See 

table 2.) Separations related to business demand factors decreased over the year by 250,749, or 75 

percent. Within the business demand category, the largest over-the-year decrease in separations was due 

to slack work/insufficient demand (-205,424). (See chart 1.) 
- 3 - 

Table B. Metropolitan areas with the largest number of initial claimants associated with

extended mass layoff events in the first quarter of 2010, by residency of claimants

 Total, 372 metropolitan areas ................. 661,323 171,438 

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Calif. .... 50,412 1 15,005 1 

New York-Northern New Jersey-Long

 Island, N.Y.-N.J.-Pa. ................................ 34,215 3 14,600 2 

Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, Ill.-Ind.-Wis. ......... 27,239 4 9,687 3 

Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif. ....... 19,226 6 7,086 4 

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, Calif. ......... 21,131 5 6,376 5 

San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, Calif. ........ 11,016 9 3,586 6 

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif. .......... 10,245 10 3,334 7 

Sacramento--Arden-Arcade--Roseville, Calif. 8,759 14 3,311 8 

Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas ............ 8,864 13 3,094 9 

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-

 N.J.-Del.-Md. ........................................... 7,556 19 3,056 10 

 r

 = revised.

 p

 = preliminary.

 NOTE: The geographic boundaries of the metropolitan areas shown in this table are defined in

 Office of Management and Budget Bulletin 10-02, December 01, 2009.

Metropolitan area

2009 Ir 2010 Ip

Rank Rank Initial 

claimants

Initial 

claimants

Movement of Work 

In the first quarter of 2010, 61 extended mass layoffs involved movement of work and were associated 

with 8,499 separated workers. The number of events decreased by 31 from the first quarter of 2009, and 

the number of separations decreased by 7,002 over the year. Movement of work layoffs accounted for 5 

percent of both nonseasonal layoff events and separations during the first quarter of 2010. (See table 9.) 

Nearly 6 out of 10 extended mass layoff events related to movement of work were from manufacturing 

industries. In comparison, manufacturing accounted for more than 2 out of 10 events in the total private 

nonfarm economy. (See table 6.) Employers cited organizational changes in 44 percent of the extended 

mass layoff events involving the movement of work. (See table 7.) The largest numbers of workers affected by the movement of work among the regions were in the South and Midwest. (See table 8.) 

Among the states, California, New Jersey, and Tennessee reported the highest numbers of separations 

associated with movement of work. 

The 61 extended layoff events with movement of work for the first quarter of 2010 involved 82 identifiable relocations of work actions. Employers were able to provide more complete separations information for 58 of the actions. Of these, 86 percent involved work moving within the same company, and 

78 percent were domestic reassignments. (See table 10.) 
- 4 - 

Recall Expectations 

Forty-two percent of employers reporting an extended mass layoff in the first quarter of 2010 indicated 

they anticipated some type of recall, up from 25 percent a year earlier. Excluding extended mass layoff 

events due to seasonal work and vacation period, in which 88 percent of the employers expected a recall, 

employers anticipated recalling laid-off workers in just 27 percent of the events. Of those employers expecting to recall workers, 27 percent indicated that the offer would be extended to all displaced employees, and 67 percent of employers anticipated extending the offer to at least half of the workers. Sixtyseven percent of employers expecting to recall laid-off employees intend to do so within 6 months. (See 

table 11.) 

Size of Extended Layoffs

In the first quarter of 2010, the average size of a layoff (as measured by separations per layoff event) 

was 141, the smallest average size in program history. (See table 12.) Events during the first quarter of 

2010 were concentrated at the lower end of the extended layoff-size spectrum, with 75 percent involving 

fewer than 150 workers, up from 64 percent a year ago. The percentage distribution of extended mass 

layoff events involving 500 or more workers registered program lows for both events (3 percent) and 

separated workers (19 percent). (See table 13.) 

Initial Claimant Characteristics 

A total of 214,204 initial claimants for unemployment insurance were associated with extended mass 

layoffs in the first quarter of 2010. Of these claimants, 13 percent were black, 17 percent were Hispanic, 

35 percent were women, and 19 percent were 55 years of age or older. (See table 3.) Among persons in 

the civilian labor force for the same period, 12 percent were black, 15 percent were Hispanic, 47 percent 

were women, and 19 percent were 55 years of age or older. 

Geographic Distribution 

Among the four census regions, the Midwest and the West recorded the highest numbers of separations 

due to extended mass layoff events in the first quarter of 2010. Among the nine census divisions, the 

highest numbers of separations were in the East North Central and Pacific. All regions and divisions 

registered record level over-the-year decreases in the number of separations with the exception of the 

West South Central division. (See table 4.) 

California recorded the largest number of worker separations, followed by Illinois, Ohio, New York, 

and Pennsylvania. (See table 5.) After excluding the impact of seasonal reasons, these five states still 

reported the highest numbers of separated workers. Over the year, 49 states reported decreased numbers of laid-off workers, led by California, Florida, and Michigan. Of these 49 states, twenty registered 

record over-the-year decreases in the number of separations—Arkansas, California, Florida, Illinois, 

Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, 

Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. 

Eighty percent of the initial claimants associated with extended mass layoff events in the first quarter 

of 2010 resided within metropolitan areas, nearly the same as a year earlier (79 percent). Among the 372 

metropolitan areas, Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Calif., reported the highest number of resident 

initial claimants. Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas, Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-

Del.-Md., and Sacramento—Arden-Arcade—Roseville, Calif., moved into the top 10 metropolitan areas 
- 5 - 

in terms of initial claims by residency of claimant in the first quarter of 2010, replacing Detroit-WarrenLivonia, Mich., Las Vegas-Paradise, Nev., and Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Fla., from the 

previous year. (See table B.) 

Note 

The quarterly series on extended mass layoffs cover layoffs of at least 31-days duration that involve 

50 or more individuals from a single employer filing initial claims for unemployment insurance during 

a consecutive 5-week period. Approximately 30 days after a mass layoff is triggered, the employer is 

contacted for additional information. Data for the current quarter are preliminary and subject to revision. 

This release also includes revised data for previous quarters. Data are not seasonally adjusted, but survey 

data suggest that there is a seasonal pattern to layoffs. Thus, comparisons between consecutive quarters 

should not be used as an indicator of trend. For additional information about the program, see the Technical Note. 

____________ 

The Mass Layoffs in April 2010 news release is scheduled to be released on Friday, May 21, 2010, 

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

The Mass Layoff Statistics (MLS) program is a federalstate program which identifies, describes, and tracks the 

effects of major job cutbacks, using data from each state's 

unemployment insurance database. Employers which have at 

least 50 initial claims filed against them during a consecutive 

5-week period are contacted by the state agency to determine 

whether these separations are of at least 31 days duration, 

and, if so, information is obtained on the total number of 

persons separated and the reasons for these separations. 

Employers are identified according to industry classification 

and location, and unemployment insurance claimants are 

identified by such demographic factors as age, race, gender, 

ethnic group, and place of residence. The program yields 

information on an individual's entire spell of unemployment, 

to the point when regular unemployment insurance benefits 

are exhausted. 

Definitions 

Domestic relocation. A movement of work from an 

establishment within the U.S. to a location also inside the 

U.S., either within the same company or to a different 

company altogether (domestic outsourcing). 

Employer. A firm 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). 

Extended mass layoff event. A layoff defined by the 

filing of 50 or more initial claims for unemployment 

insurance benefits from an employer during a 5-week period, 

with at least 50 workers separated for more than 30 days. 

Such layoffs involve both persons subject to recall and those 

who are terminated. 

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. 

Movement of work. The reassignment of work activities 

previously performed at the worksite by the company 

experiencing the layoff (1) to another worksite within the 

company; (2) to another company under formal contractual 

arrangements at the same worksite; or (3) to another company 

under formal contractual arrangements at another worksite 

either within or outside of the U.S. 

Outsourcing. A movement of work that was formerly 

conducted in-house by employees paid directly by a company 

to a different company under a contractual arrangement. 

Overseas relocation. A movement of work from an 

establishment within the U.S. to a location outside of the U.S. 

(offshoring), either within the same company or to a different 

company altogether (offshore outsourcing). 

Relocation of work action. A movement-of-work action 

where the employer provides information on the new location 

of work and/or the number of workers affected by the 

movement. Events may involve more than one action per 

employer if work is moved to more than one location. 

Separations. The number of individuals who have 

become displaced during an extended mass layoff event as 

provided by the employer, regardless of whether they file for 

unemployment insurance or not. 

Worksite closure. The complete closure of an employer 

or the partial closure of an employer with multiple locations 

where entire worksites affected by layoffs are closed. 

Revisions to preliminary data 

The latest quarterly data in this news release are 

considered preliminary. After the initial publication of 

quarterly information, more data are collected as remaining 

employer interviews for the quarter are completed and 

additional initial claimant information associated with 

extended layoff events is received. 

Movement of work concepts and questions 

Beginning in 2004, the economic reasons "domestic 

relocation" and "overseas relocation" were replaced by the 

movement of work concept. The movement of work data are 

not collected in the same way as the relocation reasons in 

releases prior to 2004; therefore, the movement of work data 

are not comparable to the data for those discontinued reasons. 

Questions on movement of work and location are asked 

for all layoff events when the reason for separation is other 

than “seasonal work” or “vacation period,” as these are 

unlikely. Movement of work questions are asked after the 

analyst verifies that a layoff in fact occurred and lasted more 

than 30 days. If the reason for layoff is other than seasonal or 

vacation, the employer was asked the following: 

(1) “Did this layoff include your company moving work 

from this location(s) to a different geographic location(s) 

within your company?” 

(2) “Did this layoff include your company moving work 

that was performed in-house by your employees to a different 

company, through contractual arrangements?” 

A “yes” response to either question is followed by: “Is 
the location inside or outside of the U.S.?” and “How many 

of the layoffs were a result of this relocation?” 

Layoff actions are classified as “domestic relocation” if 

the employer responds “yes” to questions 1 and/or 2 and 

indicates the location(s) was inside the U.S.; “overseas 

relocation” indicates that the location(s) was outside the U.S. 

Reliability of the data 

The identification of employers and layoff events in the 

MLS program and associated characteristics of claimants is 

based on administrative data on covered employers and 

unemployment insurance claims, and, therefore, is not subject 

to issues associated with sampling error. Nonsampling errors 

such as typographical errors may occur but are not likely to 

be significant. While the MLS employers and layoff events 

are not subject to sampling error, and all such employers are 

asked the interview questions, the employer responses are 

subject to nonsampling error. Nonsampling error can occur 

for many reasons, including the inability to obtain information for all respondents, inability or unwillingness of 

respondents to provide correct information, and errors made 

in the collection or processing of the data. For the first 

quarter of 2010, outright refusal to participate in the employer 

interview accounted for 4.2 percent of all private nonfarm 

events. Although included in the total number of instances 

involving the movement of work, for the first quarter, 

employers in 24 relocations were unable to provide the 

number of separations specifically associated with the 

movement of work, 1 of which involved out-of-country 

moves. 

Additional information 

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. 
Table 1. Industry distribution: Extended mass layoff events, separations, and initial claimants for unemployment insurance,

private nonfarm sector, selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

Industry

I IV I I IV I I IV I

 2009r 2009r 2010p 2009r 2009r 2010p 2009r 2009r 2010p 

 Total, private nonfarm1 .................................. 3,979 2,419 1,564 705,141 406,815 221,150 835,551 466,539 214,204 

 Mining ............................................................. 82 39 16 14,408 4,887 2,176 15,112 5,485 1,866 

 Utilities ............................................................ 3 9 3 480 1,637 282 799 1,585 282 

 Construction .................................................... 526 762 400 63,121 95,945 42,040 76,236 120,423 45,052 

 Manufacturing ................................................. 1,597 592 380 276,772 99,051 51,333 378,642 121,669 51,870 

 Food ........................................................... 85 93 69 13,925 19,961 9,151 16,348 21,480 9,511 

 Beverage and tobacco products ................ 14 ( 2 ) 6 2,141 ( 2 ) 845 3,032 ( 2 ) 1,229 

 Textile mills ................................................ 27 11 ( 2 ) 3,137 2,055 ( 2 ) 6,268 6,980 ( 2 )

 Textile product mills ................................... 9 – 7 1,315 – 937 2,356 – 1,068 

 Apparel ....................................................... 24 18 4 3,250 2,380 396 3,280 2,371 516 

 Leather and allied products ........................ 5 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 680 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 679 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Wood products ........................................... 91 35 16 11,039 4,680 1,347 14,625 6,834 1,803 

 Paper ......................................................... 41 14 7 5,309 1,604 1,215 6,104 1,726 918 

 Printing and related support activities ........ 43 10 18 5,580 2,400 2,015 6,237 1,934 1,952 

 Petroleum and coal products ..................... 6 21 5 809 3,092 368 631 3,519 397 

 Chemicals ................................................. 30 23 13 4,795 3,056 1,742 4,791 2,659 1,372 

 Plastics and rubber products ..................... 82 19 13 8,958 1,880 1,179 10,357 1,966 1,349 

 Nonmetallic mineral products ..................... 82 60 29 8,485 7,822 2,861 11,254 9,511 3,186 

 Primary metals ........................................... 106 34 19 16,205 4,202 2,758 21,466 6,914 2,045 

 Fabricated metal products ......................... 159 44 22 18,187 5,894 2,191 27,176 7,064 2,020 

 Machinery .................................................. 157 47 32 28,203 6,375 4,671 38,551 8,920 4,800 

 Computer and electronic products ............. 147 40 25 25,497 5,135 4,510 30,776 6,658 3,508 

 Electrical equipment and appliances ......... 66 15 14 9,005 2,173 1,821 12,729 2,283 1,377 

 Transportation equipment .......................... 322 72 49 95,247 21,400 9,141 142,759 24,465 9,888 

 Furniture and related products ................... 63 14 17 10,182 2,021 2,261 14,468 2,907 2,550 

 Miscellaneous manufacturing .................... 38 13 10 4,823 1,898 1,449 4,755 1,685 1,166 

 Wholesale trade .............................................. 131 56 41 16,960 6,981 4,158 18,019 6,729 3,808 

 Retail trade ...................................................... 382 91 152 90,459 19,464 34,133 83,333 23,695 35,506 

 Transportation and warehousing .................... 157 88 83 28,757 17,705 14,397 28,467 17,799 11,749 

 Information ...................................................... 98 62 44 14,688 12,264 6,290 21,329 17,082 6,099 

 Finance and insurance .................................... 175 75 54 36,533 15,114 8,338 37,680 16,697 7,753 

 Real estate and rental and leasing ................. 39 20 9 4,332 2,454 804 4,526 2,775 937 

 Professional and technical services ................ 154 77 53 21,862 14,379 5,735 24,343 14,111 6,032 

 Management of companies and enterprises ... 21 9 10 2,753 1,073 2,005 2,641 3,479 1,180 

 Administrative and waste services .................. 327 254 166 85,366 52,786 28,179 91,794 63,168 24,094 

 Educational services ....................................... 10 8 4 1,288 959 837 1,195 1,050 470 

 Health care and social assistance .................. 44 42 29 6,937 6,216 3,599 7,530 6,507 2,764 

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ................. 45 68 34 7,147 18,959 5,920 7,435 11,724 3,857 

 Accommodation and food services ................. 158 143 73 29,871 33,136 9,441 32,584 29,105 9,787 

 Other services, except public administration .. 29 23 13 3,338 3,609 1,483 3,817 3,260 1,098 

 Unclassified ..................................................... 1 1 – 69 196 – 69 196 –

 1

 For the first quarter of 2010, data on layoffs were reported by employers r = revised.

in all states and the District of Columbia. p

 = preliminary.

 2

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

Separations Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance Layoff events
Table 2. Reason for layoff: Extended mass layoff events, separations, and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, 

private nonfarm sector, selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

Reason for layoff

I IV I I IV I I IV I

 2009r 2009r 2010p 2009r 2009r 2010p 2009r 2009r 2010p 

 Total, private nonfarm1 ................................................... 3,979 2,419 1,564 705,141 406,815 221,150 835,551 466,539 214,204 

Business demand ............................................................. 2,160 846 636 334,973 126,983 84,224 460,308 177,743 79,530 

 Contract cancellation ..................................................... 87 37 35 12,784 6,953 4,884 16,954 7,968 3,617 

 Contract completion ....................................................... 327 290 218 64,033 49,017 30,452 78,458 66,047 30,096 

 Domestic competition ..................................................... 6 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 822 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 1,085 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Excess inventory/saturated market ................................ 32 10 8 4,096 1,184 722 6,889 1,656 887 

 Import competition ......................................................... 6 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 1,016 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 1,023 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Slack work/insufficient demand/non-seasonal

 business slowdown ................................................. 1,702 502 371 252,222 69,104 46,798 355,899 101,463 44,569 

Organizational changes .................................................... 201 89 91 46,373 17,736 15,004 54,668 15,642 13,363 

 Business-ownership change .......................................... 31 29 23 9,313 9,000 3,586 6,070 4,544 2,384 

 Reorganization or restructuring of company .................. 170 60 68 37,060 8,736 11,418 48,598 11,098 10,979 

Financial issues ................................................................ 428 180 139 98,770 29,580 19,681 92,377 34,170 24,129 

 Bankruptcy ..................................................................... 87 21 13 28,675 5,262 1,983 16,874 4,857 1,451 

 Cost control/cost cutting/increase profitability ................ 234 113 84 36,859 16,570 10,614 52,653 20,744 17,434 

 Financial difficulty ........................................................... 107 46 42 33,236 7,748 7,084 22,850 8,569 5,244 

Production specific ............................................................ 17 16 12 4,394 1,982 2,236 3,022 1,833 1,797 

 Automation/technological advances .............................. ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 312 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 277 

 Energy related ................................................................ ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) – –

 Governmental regulations/intervention .......................... 3 5 3 1,043 576 416 998 541 211 

 Labor dispute/contract negotiations/strike ..................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Material or supply shortage ............................................ ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

 Model changeover ......................................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Plant or machine repair/maintenance ............................ ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 540 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 449 ( 2 ) Product line discontinued ............................................... 6 ( 2 ) – 1,165 ( 2 ) – 810 ( 2 ) –

Disaster/safety .................................................................. 6 6 6 686 840 712 646 1,060 564 

 Hazardous work environment ........................................ ( 2

 ) – – ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) – –

 Natural disaster (not weather related) ............................ – – – – – – – – –

 Non-natural disaster ....................................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Extreme weather-related event ...................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Seasonal ........................................................................... 340 828 398 56,225 137,206 60,438 61,618 143,641 56,771 

 Seasonal ........................................................................ ( 2

 ) 817 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 134,910 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 139,955 ( 2 )

 Vacation period–school related or otherwise ................. ( 2 ) 11 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 2,296 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 3,686 ( 2 )

Other/miscellaneous ......................................................... 827 454 282 163,720 92,488 38,855 162,912 92,450 38,050 

 Other .............................................................................. 35 22 20 6,207 3,501 3,467 5,332 3,680 2,763 

 Data not provided: refusal .............................................. 162 109 66 38,473 29,257 9,767 38,403 29,257 9,753 

 Data not provided: does not know ................................. 630 323 196 119,040 59,730 25,621 119,177 59,513 25,534 

 1

 See footnote 1, table 1. p = preliminary.

 2

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

Layoff events Separations Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance
Table 3. State and selected claimant characteristics: Extended mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, 

private nonfarm sector, fourth quarter, 2009 and first quarter, 2010

Total Percent of total

State

Layoff events initial

claimants Black Hispanic

origin Women Persons age 55and over

IV I IV I IV I IV I IV I IV I

 2009r 2010p 2009r 2010p 2009r 2010p 2009r 2010p 2009r 2010p 2009r 2010p 

 Total, private nonfarm1 ........... 2,419 1,564 466,539 214,204 12.0 13.5 18.5 17.1 30.5 34.8 18.2 19.3 

Alabama ...................................... 12 9 3,648 2,255 43.7 38.4 1.7 1.3 54.5 32.9 15.8 13.7 

Alaska .......................................... 14 6 3,050 944 4.5 4.8 9.7 14.8 30.1 33.5 20.4 25.5 

Arizona ........................................ 20 11 2,519 1,431 5.5 10.5 38.1 30.0 38.4 34.8 16.2 12.7 

Arkansas ..................................... 12 ( 2 ) 2,232 ( 2 ) 19.6 22.1 5.0 4.8 29.9 53.0 17.6 16.4 

California ..................................... 578 389 119,705 53,428 8.1 8.4 37.0 37.9 37.4 37.7 16.7 17.3 

Colorado ...................................... 38 14 4,891 1,487 4.0 7.4 29.8 19.0 22.0 37.4 20.2 18.2 

Connecticut ................................. 15 19 1,877 1,798 13.5 13.1 16.5 9.7 32.3 38.8 26.1 19.5 

Delaware ..................................... 7 – 957 – 21.4 – 4.4 – 18.6 – 21.1 –

District of Columbia ..................... 6 3 816 248 59.6 56.5 15.9 3.6 46.3 48.4 20.1 25.8 

Florida ......................................... 100 14 21,276 4,164 13.8 15.4 27.3 26.7 39.3 34.4 19.9 17.8 

Georgia ........................................ 20 21 9,466 3,126 40.5 46.6 7.4 5.2 47.9 45.9 19.5 23.8 

Hawaii .......................................... 5 ( 2 ) 689 ( 2 ) .7 .7 6.7 3.3 20.9 34.0 12.5 17.6 

Idaho ........................................... 16 7 2,584 729 .2 .1 12.1 8.1 28.1 29.6 17.1 17.4 

Illinois .......................................... 203 119 36,333 15,748 13.1 18.6 19.7 14.7 23.8 37.9 15.2 17.4 

Indiana ......................................... 43 30 7,370 3,473 7.2 7.1 3.7 2.2 19.4 22.2 15.8 19.1 

Iowa ............................................. 13 4 1,860 483 3.1 1.7 7.5 5.6 16.5 19.7 20.2 21.5 

Kansas ........................................ 17 9 3,976 982 10.6 10.9 4.4 6.0 30.4 35.3 19.3 18.3 

Kentucky ...................................... 26 23 2,946 2,551 2.9 5.6 .1 – 10.1 13.6 17.8 19.0 

Louisiana ..................................... 27 19 3,556 1,866 43.5 55.8 4.2 3.2 19.3 40.2 21.0 13.0 

Maine ........................................... 7 6 1,255 1,098 2.3 3.1 .6 .4 24.4 48.8 22.2 26.5 

Maryland ...................................... 18 7 2,303 834 45.6 23.4 3.7 1.6 41.9 10.3 18.1 31.3 

Massachusetts ............................ 19 18 2,658 1,962 7.4 10.4 1.3 1.7 35.5 43.1 20.9 22.0 

Michigan ...................................... 79 40 11,428 4,115 10.6 8.7 8.0 4.3 23.4 32.7 16.2 19.9 

Minnesota .................................... 93 34 15,214 3,667 3.0 3.8 8.4 5.0 17.5 25.2 18.0 20.8 

Mississippi ................................... 12 6 901 553 53.8 78.1 1.8 2.5 34.7 37.4 19.1 10.1 

Missouri ....................................... 58 48 9,198 4,372 12.3 10.3 1.5 1.4 30.7 40.4 22.1 22.0 

Montana ...................................... 12 4 1,404 663 .1 .6 3.1 2.0 22.5 17.2 23.7 34.8 

Nebraska ..................................... 6 4 565 251 1.4 4.0 6.7 6.0 15.2 13.9 30.4 33.5 

Nevada ........................................ 29 23 8,041 3,515 6.8 7.4 32.2 30.9 28.9 33.1 17.2 19.0 

New Hampshire ........................... 7 ( 2 ) 839 ( 2 ) .7 1.4 1.9 3.8 20.4 35.4 23.5 28.1 

New Jersey .................................. 53 49 8,288 6,536 19.4 20.2 9.2 8.4 34.3 47.0 18.9 25.8 

New Mexico ................................. 12 12 1,655 1,197 1.6 2.8 56.9 44.8 37.6 24.1 17.3 16.4 

New York ..................................... 166 124 31,394 17,027 12.6 12.9 12.6 12.3 32.5 26.6 21.3 20.2 

North Carolina ............................. 40 32 9,492 3,770 47.4 51.4 4.7 5.1 42.8 45.3 15.0 19.7 

North Dakota ............................... 9 5 1,138 697 1.8 .4 3.7 1.9 16.1 10.2 21.3 21.1 

Ohio ............................................. 97 90 21,284 14,263 9.2 12.5 3.5 3.0 20.7 30.4 20.2 22.4 

Oklahoma .................................... 8 ( 2 ) 1,593 ( 2 ) 12.4 10.1 4.6 4.8 26.2 55.0 16.2 20.5 

Oregon ........................................ 33 22 8,435 3,867 1.2 2.2 21.2 15.1 37.1 36.0 19.9 17.4 

Pennsylvania ............................... 143 114 32,622 16,319 4.0 5.8 2.4 3.0 17.8 27.0 21.0 23.5 

Rhode Island ............................... 7 3 570 582 1.8 1.9 12.8 33.7 28.1 67.0 20.7 34.5 

South Carolina ............................. 34 8 4,691 747 53.2 40.3 .9 5.0 44.0 41.6 16.8 9.6 

South Dakota ............................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – 3.4 3.7 8.0 12.2 71.6 31.7 19.3 

Tennessee ................................... 27 27 5,320 2,572 21.6 34.8 – .2 27.6 48.6 26.2 19.5 

Texas ........................................... 41 56 8,564 9,123 15.3 20.6 48.2 35.7 23.0 31.3 14.1 14.3 

Utah ............................................. 14 8 2,921 1,044 .8 .4 10.1 7.1 12.1 21.6 15.5 18.3 

Vermont ....................................... 8 – 1,343 – .9 – .6 – 34.0 – 23.8 –

Virginia ........................................ 30 29 7,029 4,640 42.1 34.7 4.9 2.9 42.0 39.9 18.1 25.1 

Washington ................................. 64 35 12,106 4,108 5.0 5.1 18.2 10.9 35.2 33.4 17.0 15.2 

West Virginia ............................... 7 7 857 892 – – .1 .1 2.9 18.2 13.4 15.0 

Wisconsin .................................... 109 47 22,973 8,634 4.7 7.5 8.1 7.6 23.3 43.3 17.5 18.1 

Wyoming ..................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 1.6 2.3 8.0 18.0 35.8 19.5 22.7 19.5 

Puerto Rico .................................. 5 11 666 2,087 .3 .1 98.9 99.4 25.4 43.1 12.6 6.3 

 1 See footnote 1, table 1. p

 = preliminary.

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

 r = revised.
Table 4. Census region and division: Extended mass layoff events, separations, and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, 

private nonfarm sector, selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

Census region and division

Layoff events Separations Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

I IV I I IV I I IV I

 2009r 2009r 2010p 2009r 2009r 2010p 2009r 2009r 2010p 

 United States1 .................................. 3,979 2,419 1,564 705,141 406,815 221,150 835,551 466,539 214,204 

Northeast ................................................. 702 425 335 121,317 64,075 44,844 131,372 80,846 45,610 

 New England ........................................ 135 63 48 22,137 9,334 8,050 23,202 8,542 5,728 

 Middle Atlantic ...................................... 567 362 287 99,180 54,741 36,794 108,170 72,304 39,882 

South ........................................................ 941 427 264 176,984 72,226 37,889 196,280 85,647 39,122 

 South Atlantic ....................................... 515 262 121 88,267 45,032 17,054 106,089 56,887 18,421 

 East South Central ............................... 214 77 65 38,461 13,158 8,104 41,748 12,815 7,931 

 West South Central .............................. 212 88 78 50,256 14,036 12,731 48,443 15,945 12,770 

Midwest .................................................... 1,072 728 431 202,907 121,744 62,771 274,672 131,421 56,773 

 East North Central ............................... 838 531 326 167,882 89,585 51,586 227,209 99,388 46,233 

 West North Central .............................. 234 197 105 35,025 32,159 11,185 47,463 32,033 10,540 

West ......................................................... 1,264 839 534 203,933 148,770 75,646 233,227 168,625 72,699 

 Mountain .............................................. 233 145 81 39,469 24,024 11,976 40,167 24,640 10,199 

 Pacific .................................................. 1,031 694 453 164,464 124,746 63,670 193,060 143,985 62,500 

 1 See footnote 1, table 1. West Virginia; East South Central: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and 

 r = revised. Tennessee; West South Central: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and

 p = preliminary. Texas; East North Central: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin;

 NOTE: The States (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the West North Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North

census divisions are: New England: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Dakota, and South Dakota; Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana,

New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; Middle Atlantic: New Jersey, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming; and Pacific: Alaska, California,

New York, and Pennsylvania; South Atlantic: Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington.

Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and
Table 5. State distribution: Extended mass layoff events, separations, and initial claimants for unemployment insurance,

private nonfarm sector, selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

State

I IV I I IV I I IV I

 2009r 2009r 2010p 2009r 2009r 2010p 2009r 2009r 2010p 

 Total, private nonfarm1 ........................ 3,979 2,419 1,564 705,141 406,815 221,150 835,551 466,539 214,204 

Alabama ................................................... 21 12 9 5,822 3,118 1,249 6,135 3,648 2,255 

Alaska ...................................................... 8 14 6 2,437 6,245 944 1,523 3,050 944 

Arizona ..................................................... 45 20 11 7,287 2,208 1,450 7,250 2,519 1,431 

Arkansas .................................................. 12 12 ( 2 ) 3,153 1,670 ( 2 ) 3,536 2,232 ( 2 ) California .................................................. 879 578 389 134,681 102,696 55,912 158,451 119,705 53,428 

Colorado .................................................. 36 38 14 5,919 5,243 2,257 5,102 4,891 1,487 

Connecticut .............................................. 30 15 19 4,878 2,830 3,448 5,083 1,877 1,798 

Delaware .................................................. 7 7 – 1,548 1,426 – 1,385 957 –

District of Columbia .................................. ( 2 ) 6 3 ( 2 ) 816 248 ( 2 ) 816 248 

Florida ...................................................... 243 100 14 49,572 22,005 4,502 49,348 21,276 4,164 

Georgia .................................................... 59 20 21 7,180 3,781 2,369 13,015 9,466 3,126 

Hawaii ...................................................... 12 5 ( 2 ) 1,086 494 ( 2 ) 1,181 689 ( 2 ) Idaho ........................................................ 24 16 7 3,378 2,686 804 4,115 2,584 729 

Illinois ....................................................... 240 203 119 43,738 36,294 18,336 47,090 36,333 15,748 

Indiana ..................................................... 112 43 30 14,323 4,335 3,132 21,057 7,370 3,473 

Iowa ......................................................... 37 13 4 4,347 1,287 245 10,985 1,860 483 

Kansas ..................................................... 26 17 9 5,773 3,863 928 8,691 3,976 982 

Kentucky .................................................. 88 26 23 19,234 3,597 2,988 19,789 2,946 2,551 

Louisiana .................................................. 29 27 19 5,789 4,469 2,473 4,626 3,556 1,866 

Maine ....................................................... 13 7 6 3,630 1,110 1,375 2,146 1,255 1,098 

Maryland .................................................. 40 18 7 4,700 2,064 807 4,943 2,303 834 

Massachusetts ......................................... 63 19 18 9,336 2,192 2,010 11,544 2,658 1,962 

Michigan ................................................... 183 79 40 47,872 11,487 4,560 78,694 11,428 4,115 

Minnesota ................................................ 73 93 34 10,220 14,483 3,731 11,243 15,214 3,667 

Mississippi ................................................ 19 12 6 1,855 1,613 874 1,740 901 553 

Missouri .................................................... 78 58 48 12,607 10,611 5,068 14,065 9,198 4,372 

Montana ................................................... 9 12 4 1,241 1,320 736 1,300 1,404 663 

Nebraska .................................................. 5 6 4 362 829 359 844 565 251 

Nevada ..................................................... 74 29 23 12,772 5,473 3,735 14,416 8,041 3,515 

New Hampshire ....................................... 8 7 ( 2 ) 1,292 996 ( 2 ) 1,433 839 ( 2 )

New Jersey .............................................. 110 53 49 18,710 10,184 7,698 18,123 8,288 6,536 

New Mexico ............................................. 14 12 12 3,704 1,769 1,333 3,158 1,655 1,197 

New York ................................................. 213 166 124 41,333 24,798 15,461 39,321 31,394 17,027 

North Carolina .......................................... 86 40 32 10,804 4,039 2,866 22,115 9,492 3,770 

North Dakota ............................................ 9 9 5 1,010 1,013 704 1,010 1,138 697 

Ohio ......................................................... 212 97 90 41,636 17,240 16,231 56,413 21,284 14,263 

Oklahoma ................................................. 31 8 ( 2 ) 6,192 2,102 ( 2 ) 6,768 1,593 ( 2 ) Oregon ..................................................... 73 33 22 12,897 6,407 3,687 18,237 8,435 3,867 

Pennsylvania ............................................ 244 143 114 39,137 19,759 13,635 50,726 32,622 16,319 

Rhode Island ............................................ 11 7 3 1,068 684 699 1,090 570 582 

South Carolina ......................................... 50 34 8 7,152 4,365 887 9,183 4,691 747 

South Dakota ........................................... 6 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 706 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 625 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Tennessee ............................................... 86 27 27 11,550 4,830 2,993 14,084 5,320 2,572 

Texas ....................................................... 140 41 56 35,122 5,795 9,207 33,513 8,564 9,123 

Utah ......................................................... 27 14 8 4,582 1,695 1,378 4,510 2,921 1,044 

Vermont ................................................... 10 8 – 1,933 1,522 – 1,906 1,343 –

Virginia ..................................................... 14 30 29 3,141 5,677 4,427 3,268 7,029 4,640 

Washington .............................................. 59 64 35 13,363 8,904 3,072 13,668 12,106 4,108 

West Virginia ............................................ 14 7 7 3,927 859 948 2,589 857 892 

Wisconsin ................................................. 91 109 47 20,313 20,229 9,327 23,955 22,973 8,634 

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

Puerto Rico .............................................. 20 5 11 2,623 299 771 4,722 666 2,087 

 1 See footnote 1, table 1. p

 = preliminary.

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

 r = revised.

Layoff events Separations Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance
Table 6. Industry distribution: Extended mass layoff events and separations associated with the movement of work,

selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

I IVI IIV I

2009 2009r 2010p 2009 2009r 2010p 

 Total, private nonfarm1 ............................................... 92 66 61 15,501 11,974 8,499 

 Mining .......................................................................... 3 – – 543 – –

 Utilities ......................................................................... – – – – – –

 Construction ................................................................. – ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) –

 Manufacturing .............................................................. 65 38 34 11,138 7,226 4,859 

 Food ........................................................................ ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Beverage and tobacco products ............................. – – ( 2 ) – – ( 2 )

 Textile mills ............................................................. – – – – – –

 Textile product mills ................................................ ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 )

 Apparel ................................................................... ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) – –

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

 Wood products ........................................................ 3 – – 577 – –

 Paper ...................................................................... 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 312 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Printing and related support activities ..................... ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 )

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

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

 ) 4 ( 2 )( 2 ) 760 ( 2 )

 Plastics and rubber products .................................. ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Nonmetallic mineral products ................................. ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) – –

 Primary metals ........................................................ 4 ( 2 ) 3 603 ( 2 ) 431 

 Fabricated metal products ...................................... 6 ( 2 ) 3 629 ( 2 ) 373 

 Machinery ............................................................... 4 4 6 464 890 908 

 Computer and electronic products .......................... 12 9 5 2,930 930 380 

 Electrical equipment and appliances ...................... 6 3 3 987 807 670 

 Transportation equipment ....................................... 11 6 ( 2 ) 2,036 2,103 ( 2 )

 Furniture and related products ................................ 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 647 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Miscellaneous manufacturing ................................. 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 460 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Wholesale trade ........................................................... ( 2

 ) 7 3 ( 2 ) 905 408 

 Retail trade .................................................................. 4 ( 2 ) 8 828 ( 2 ) 883 

 Transportation and warehousing ................................. 5 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 761 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Information ................................................................... 5 5 4 906 696 507 

 Finance and insurance ................................................ ( 2 ) 3 4 ( 2 ) 939 588 

 Real estate and rental and leasing .............................. – ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) –

 Professional and technical services ............................. ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

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

 Administrative and waste services ............................... ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 650 ( 2 )

 Educational services .................................................... – – – – – –

 Health care and social assistance ............................... – – – – – –

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ............................. – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Accommodation and food services .............................. ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 )

 Other services, except public administration ............... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Unclassified ................................................................. ––––––

 

 1 See footnote 1, table 1. p = preliminary.

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

 r = revised.

Layoff events Separations

Industry
Table 7. Reason for layoff: Extended mass layoff events and separations associated with the movement of 

 work, selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

Reason for layoff

I IV I I IV I

2009 2009r 2010p 2009 2009r 2010p 

 Total, private nonfarm1 ................................................... 92 66 61 15,501 11,974 8,499 

Business demand ............................................................. 44 18 ( 2

 ) 6,374 3,071 ( 2 )

 Contract cancellation ..................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

 Contract completion ....................................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Domestic competition ..................................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

 Excess inventory/saturated market ................................ ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Import competition ......................................................... 5 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 868 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Slack work/insufficient demand/non-seasonal

 business slowdown ................................................. 33 11 9 4,385 2,451 1,038 

Organizational changes .................................................... 24 21 27 3,564 3,190 4,656 

 Business-ownership change .......................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 590 

 Reorganization or restructuring of company .................. ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 24 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 4,066 

Financial issues ................................................................ 18 23 18 4,514 4,953 2,134 

 Bankruptcy ..................................................................... – ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Cost control/cost cutting/increase profitability ................ ( 2 ) 18 15 ( 2 ) 3,964 1,729 

 Financial difficulty ........................................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Production specific ............................................................ ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

 Automation/technological advances .............................. ––––––

 Energy related ................................................................ – – – – – –

 Governmental regulations/intervention .......................... – – – – – –

 Labor dispute/contract negotiations/strike ..................... – – – – – –

 Material or supply shortage ............................................ – – – – – –

 Model changeover ......................................................... – – – – – –

 Plant or machine repair/maintenance ............................ – – – – – –

 Product line discontinued ............................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

Disaster/safety .................................................................. ––––––

 Hazardous work environment ........................................ ––––––

 Natural disaster (not weather related) ............................ – – – – – –

 Non-natural disaster ....................................................... – – – – – –

 Extreme weather-related event ...................................... – – – – – –

Other/miscellaneous ......................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Other .............................................................................. ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Data not provided: refusal .............................................. – – – – – –

 Data not provided: does not know ................................. – – – – – –

 1 See footnote 1, table 1. p = preliminary.

 2

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

 r

 = revised.

Layoff events Separations
Table 8. Census region and division: Extended mass layoff events and separations associated with the movement of work,

selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

Census region and division

Layoff events Separations

I IV I I IV I

2009 2009r 2010p 2009 2009r 2010p 

 United States1 ...................................... 92 66 61 15,501 11,974 8,499 

Northeast ..................................................... 9 13 12 1,729 2,420 1,772 

 New England ........................................... 4 6 7 721 1,280 883 

 Middle Atlantic ......................................... 5 7 5 1,008 1,140 889 

South ........................................................... 25 22 22 4,786 4,129 2,773 

 South Atlantic ........................................... 10 13 11 1,667 2,010 1,216 

 East South Central ................................... 9 6 8 1,276 1,419 1,107 

 West South Central .................................. 6 3 3 1,843 700 450 

Midwest ........................................................ 40 16 13 6,009 2,413 2,369 

 East North Central ................................... 30 13 9 4,708 1,853 1,870 

 West North Central .................................. 10 3 4 1,301 560 499 

West ............................................................. 18 15 14 2,977 3,012 1,585 

 Mountain .................................................. 3 ( 2

 ) 3 669 ( 2 ) 484 

 Pacific ...................................................... 15 ( 2 ) 11 2,308 ( 2 ) 1,101 

 1 See footnote 1, table 1. District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South 

 2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia; East South Central: Alabama, 

 r = revised. Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee; West South Central: Arkansas,

 p = preliminary. Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas; East North Central: Illinois, Indiana, 

 NOTE: The States (including the District of Columbia) that comprise Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin; West North Central: Iowa, Kansas, 

 the census divisions are: New England: Connecticut, Maine, Massa- Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota; Mountain: 

chusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; Middle Atlantic: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and 

New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania; South Atlantic: Delaware, Wyoming; and Pacific: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington.
Table 9. Extended mass layoff events and separations, selected measures, selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

I IVI IIV I

2009 2009r 2010p 2009r 2009r 2010p

Total, private nonfarm1 ................................................... 3,979 2,419 1,564 705,141 406,815 221,150 

 Total, excluding seasonal

 and vacation events2

 .............................................. 3,639 1,591 1,166 648,916 269,609 160,712 

 Total, movement of work3

 ....................................... 92 66 61 15,501 11,974 8,499 

 Movement of work actions ................................. 124 100 82 ( 4 ) ( 4 ) ( 4 )

 With separations reported ............................ 87 55 58 9,089 4,573 5,453 

 With separations unknown ........................... 37 45 24 ( 4 ) ( 4 ) ( 4 )

 1 See footnote 1, table 1. 4 Data are not available.

 2 The questions on movement of work were not asked of employers r = revised.

when the reason for layoff was either seasonal work or vacation period. p = preliminary.

 3 Movement of work can involve more than one action.

Layoff events Separations

Action
Table 10. Movement of work actions by type of separation where number of separations is known by employers,

selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

I IVI IIV I

2009 2009r 2010p 2009 2009r 2010p

With separations reported2 ................................. 87 55 58 9,089 4,573 5,453 

By location

 Out-of-country relocations ................................ 25 15 13 3,967 1,556 998 

 Within company ............................................ 23 12 11 3,794 1,291 933 

 Different company ........................................ 2 3 2 173 265 65 

 Domestic relocations ........................................ 62 38 45 5,122 2,722 4,455 

 Within company ............................................ 57 34 39 4,776 2,360 3,521 

 Different company ........................................ 5 4 6 346 362 934 

 Unable to assign place of 

 relocation ....................................................... – 2 – – 295 –

By company

 Within company ................................................ 80 48 50 8,570 3,946 4,454 

 Domestic ....................................................... 57 34 39 4,776 2,360 3,521 

 Out of country ............................................... 23 12 11 3,794 1,291 933 

 Unable to assign ........................................... – 2 – – 295 –

 Different company ............................................ 7 7 8 519 627 999 

 Domestic ....................................................... 5 4 6 346 362 934 

 Out of country ............................................... 2 3 2 173 265 65 

 Unable to assign ........................................... ––––––

 1

 Only actions for which separations associated with the r = revised.

movement of work were reported are shown. p = preliminary.

 2

 See footnote 1, table 1. Note: Dash represents zero.

Activities

Actions1 Separations
Table 11. Summary of employer expectations of a recall from extended mass layoffs, private nonfarm sector, selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

I IVI IIVI IIV I

2009 2009r 2010p 2009 2009r 2010p 2009 2009r 2010p

Anticipate a recall .................................. 25.2 47.5 42.1 87.6 95.8 87.7 19.3 22.4 26.6

 Timeframe

Within 6 months ..................................... 61.5 79.2 66.8 77.9 89.7 79.4 54.6 55.9 52.6

 Within 3 months ............................... 39.2 32.6 44.0 43.6 29.6 48.4 37.3 39.0 39.0

 Size of recall

At least half ............................................ 62.6 81.3 66.9 80.2 91.7 81.9 55.2 58.1 50.0

 All workers ....................................... 19.8 38.6 26.9 30.5 46.8 39.0 15.2 20.5 13.2

 1

 See footnote 1, table 1.

 r

 = revised.

 p = preliminary.

Percent of total layoff events1 Percent of layoff events due to seasonal work 

and vacation period

Percent of layoff events, excluding those due 

to seasonal and vacation period Nature of recall
measures, private nonfarm sector, selected quarters, 2009 and 2010

I IV I

2009r 2009r 2010p

 Total, private nonfarm1 .................................................... 177 168 141 

Industry

Mining ................................................................................... 176 125 136 

Utilities .................................................................................. 160 182 94 

Construction .......................................................................... 120 126 105 

Manufacturing ....................................................................... 173 167 135 

Wholesale trade .................................................................... 129 125 101 

Retail trade ............................................................................ 237 214 225 

Transportation and warehousing .......................................... 183 201 173 

Information ............................................................................ 150 198 143 

Finance and insurance .......................................................... 209 202 154 

Real estate and rental and leasing ....................................... 111 123 89 

Professional and technical services ...................................... 142 187 108 

Management of companies and enterprises ......................... 131 119 201 

Administrative and waste services ........................................ 261 208 170 

Educational services ............................................................. 129 120 209 

Health care and social assistance ........................................ 158 148 124 

Arts, entertainment, and recreation ....................................... 159 279 174 

Accommodation and food services ....................................... 189 232 129 

Other services, except public administration ........................ 115 157 114 

Unclassified establishments .................................................. 69 196 –

Reason for layoff groupings

Business demand ................................................................. 155 150 132 

Organizational changes ........................................................ 231 199 165 

Financial issues .................................................................... 231 164 142 

Production specific ................................................................ 258 124 186 

Disaster/Safety ...................................................................... 114 140 119 

Seasonal ............................................................................... 165 166 152 

Other/miscellaneous ............................................................. 198 204 138 

 1

 See footnote 1, table 1. p = preliminary.

 r

 = revised. NOTE: Dash represents zero.

Table 12. Average number of separations in extended mass layoff events by selected

Measure

Average number of separations
Table 13. Distribution of extended layoff events by size of layoff, private nonfarm sector, 

first quarter 2010p

Number Percent Number Percent

 Total ...................................................... 1,564 100.0 221,150 100.0 

 50-99 ................................................... 824 52.7 57,164 25.8 

 100-149 ............................................... 346 22.1 40,404 18.3 

 150-199 ................................................ 154 9.8 25,945 11.7 

 200-299 ................................................ 136 8.7 30,926 14.0 

 300-499 ................................................ 62 4.0 23,613 10.7 

 500-999 ................................................ 27 1.7 17,764 8.0 

 1,000 or more ....................................... 15 1.0 25,334 11.5 

 p

 = preliminary.

Layoff events Separations Size
Chart 1. Extended Mass Layoff Events by Reason Categories1

First quarters, 2004-10

2200200018001600140012001000

800600400

0

200

2004:1 2005:1 2006:1 2007:1 2008:1 2009:1 2010:1p 2004:1 2005:1 2006:1 2007:1 2008:1 2009:1 2010:1

Seasonal Business demand Organizational changes Financial issues Production specific Disaster/Safety 

1 The chart excludes information on layoffs due to other/miscellaneous reasons.p = preliminary.