1

Technical information: (202) 691-6392

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

Media contact: 691-5902

USDL 05-1980

For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT

Tuesday, October 25, 2005

MASS LAYOFFS IN SEPTEMBER 2005

Mass layoff data for September 2005 reflect the impact of Hurricane Katrina on workers in Louisiana

and Mississippi and, to a lesser extent, the impact of Hurricane Rita on workers in Texas. In September

2005, employers took 2,069 mass layoff actions, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for

unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of

Labor reported today. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single establishment, and the number

of workers involved totaled 257,454, on a seasonally adjusted basis. (See table 1.) The number of layoff

Chart 1. Mass layoff events, seasonally 

adjusted, October 2000-September 2005

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

Events

2001 

Note: Shaded area represents recession period.

2002 2003 2004 2005 

Private nonfarm

Total

Manufacturing

Chart 2. Mass layoff initial claims, seasonally 

adjusted, October 2000-September 2005

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

Claims

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 

Manufacturing

Total

Private nonfarm

Note: Shaded area represents recession period.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

Data for September are the first from the Mass Layoff Statistics (MLS) program to reflect the

initial job losses associated with Hurricane Katrina, which struck the Gulf Coast on August 29,

and Hurricane Rita, which made landfall on September 24. In the MLS program, the September

2005 reference period includes the Sunday through Saturday calendar weeks from August 28

through October 1.

For additional information on the storms’ impacts on MLS data, including questions and

answers on concepts and definitions, data collection, and future publication plans, please see http://

www.bls.gov/katrina/mlsquestions.htm or call (202) 691-6392.
2

events in September rose by 927 to 2,069, the highest number of events for any month since November

2001 and the fourth highest number of events since the program began in April 1995. The number of

associated initial claims increased by 129,988 from August to 257,544 and was at its highest total for any

month since the series high in September 2001. In the manufacturing sector, 422 mass layoff events were

reported during September 2005, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 54,245 initial claims; both figures were

higher than a month earlier. (See table 1.)

From January through September 2005, the total number of events (seasonally adjusted), at 11,884, was

lower than in January-September 2004 (12,054), while the number of initial claims (seasonally adjusted), at

1,309,263, was higher (1,213,262).

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

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

adjusted, accounted for 70,955 initial claims, 37 percent of the total. (See table A.) More than 4 out of 5

of these claims were filed against employers located in Louisiana (59 percent) and Mississippi (23 percent).

In 7 of these 10 industries, the share of initial claims accounted for by Louisiana or Mississippi employers

was 90 percent or higher.

In the U.S. as a whole, the manufacturing sector accounted for 20 percent of all mass layoff events and

24 percent of all initial claims filed in September 2005. A year earlier, manufacturing comprised 27 percent

of events and 37 percent of initial claims. Within manufacturing, the number of claimants in September 2005

was highest in transportation equipment (14,934, largely in the ship building and repairing industry in the

Katrina-affected areas), followed by food manufacturing (5,584). (See table 3.)

Accommodation and food services accounted for 13 percent of events and 12 percent of initial claims

filed in September, with layoffs mostly from restaurants. Twelve percent of all layoff events and 11 percent

of initial claims filed during the month were from retail trade, primarily from general merchandise stores.

Administrative and waste services accounted for 12 percent of events and 10 percent of initial claims in

September, mainly from temporary help services. Healthcare and social assistance accounted for 8 percent

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

Industry

Initial claims

September peak

Year

p = preliminary.

Elementary and secondary schools ......................... 14,126 91.8 2005

Temporary help services......................................... 11,057 29.0 2001

General medical and surgical hospitals .................... 9,943 92.6 2005 9,943

Casino hotels.......................................................... 6,404 90.0 2001 9,453

Ship building and repairing...................................... 6,168 98.0 2005 6,168

Hotels and motels, except casino hotels.................. 5,148 87.7 2001

Limited-service restaurants ..................................... 4,867 95.9 2005 4,867

Full-service restaurants ........................................... 4,625 94.8 2005 4,625

Supermarkets and other grocery stores .................. 4,325 68.9 2005 4,325

Casinos, except casino hotels ................................. 4,292 94.2 2005 4,292

Total

U.S.

Initial claims

Percent in

 La. and

 Miss.

10,886

14,126

12,752
3

of events and initial claims during the month, largely from hospitals. An additional 7 percent of events and

4 percent of initial claims were from construction, largely among specialty trade contractors.

Government establishments accounted for 8 percent of events and 15 percent of initial claims filed in

September, mostly from educational services.

Over the year, the number of layoff events increased by 840 to 1,548 and the number of associated

initial claims rose by 121,934 to 190,906, the highest totals for any September on record (not seasonally

adjusted). In addition to the impact of the hurricanes, September 2005 contained 5 weeks for possible mass

layoffs, compared with 4 weeks in each September of the prior 2 years. (See the Technical Note for an

explanation of how the number of weeks for data collection can vary from month to month.) The largest

over-the-year increases in initial claims were reported in educational services (+15,186), hospitals (+10,839),

food services and drinking places (+9,893), and accommodation (+9,534). The largest over-the-year

decreases in initial claims were reported in agriculture and forestry support activities (-549).

Excluding layoffs in Louisiana and Mississippi, the number of mass layoff events rose over-the-year by

68, and the number of associated initial claims rose by 16,103. These increases were most likely due to the

additional week present in September 2005. The over-the-year increases in initial claims excluding those in

Louisiana and Mississippi were mostly in machinery manufacturing (+3,353), general merchandise stores

(+2,863), and textile mills (+1,935). The largest over-the-year decrease was in food services and drinking

places (-1,260).

Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

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

in the South (129,647). (See table 5.) Eighty-one percent of events and 82 percent of initial claims in the

South were from Louisiana and Mississippi. The number of mass layoff events and initial claims in the South

was the highest for any September since the program began. Educational services, food services and

drinking places, hospitals, and accommodation accounted for 37 percent of the South total. The West had

the next largest number of initial claims (28,517), followed by the Midwest (22,952) and the Northeast

(9,790).

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

largest increase occurred in the South (+110,180), followed by the Midwest (+6,572), the West (+4,193),

and the Northeast (+989). Each of the nine geographic divisions had over-the-year increases in the number

of initial claims associated with mass layoffs, with the largest in the West South Central (+89,195), which

includes Louisiana, followed by the East South Central division (+20,890), which includes Mississippi.

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

in September (87,449). Fifteen detailed industries in the state each had more than 1,000 initial claims; five

had more than 4,000 each. California had the next highest initial claims total, with 24,865 initial claims,

followed by Mississippi (19,098). Four detailed industries in Mississippi each had more than 1,000 initial

claims. These three states accounted for 67 percent of all mass layoff events and 69 percent of all initial

claims for unemployment insurance. (See table 6.)

The weekly initial claims data by state provide a clearer picture of the impact of the two hurricanes. As

shown in table B, mass layoff initial claims in Louisiana were highest in the first week of the September 2005

reference period, the first week following Hurricane Katrina’s landfall. In Mississippi, they peaked in the

second week. The significant rise in initial claims in Texas occurred in the last week of the reporting period,

which followed Hurricane Rita’s landfall. Louisiana also reported an increase in that week.
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Louisiana had the largest over-the-year increase in the number of initial claims (+87,047), with the

greatest rises occurring in educational services, food services and drinking places, hospitals, and administrative and support services. Mississippi had the next highest over-the-year increase (+18,784). The

largest over-the-year decreases occurred in Florida (-3,035) and Michigan (-2,762).

From January to September, California reported 274,820 mass-layoff initial claims, 21 percent of the

national total. Louisiana had the next largest number of claims over this period (98,548), followed by Ohio

(91,624) and Michigan (89,693).

Note

The monthly data series in this release cover mass layoffs of 50 or more workers beginning in a given

month, regardless of the duration of the layoffs. For private nonfarm establishments, information on the length

of the layoff is obtained later and issued in a quarterly release that reports on mass layoffs lasting more than

30 days (referred to as “extended mass layoffs”). The quarterly release provides more information on the

industry classification and location of the establishment and on the demographics of the laid-off workers.

Because monthly figures include short-term layoffs of 30 days or less, the sum of the figures for the 3 months

in a quarter will be higher than the quarterly figure for mass layoffs of more than 30 days. (See table 4.)

See the Technical Note for more detailed definitions.

______________________________

The report on Extended Mass Layoffs in the Third Quarter of 2005 is scheduled to be released on

Thursday, November 17, 2005. The report on Mass Layoffs in October 2005 is scheduled to be released

on Wednesday, November 23, 2005.

Intial claims

Louisiana Mississippi Texas

Week

ending

Sept. 3 ................. 73,101 7,936 353

Sept. 10 ............... 8,010 10,482 381

Sept. 17 ............... 1,282 399 568

Sept. 24 ............... 214 201 809

Oct. 1 .................. 4,842 80 2,947

Total .................... 87,449 19,098 5,058

p = preliminary.

Table B. Mass-layoff initial claims by week, selected states,

September 2005 p
Technical Note

The Mass Layoff Statistics (MLS) program is a federal-state

program that uses a standardized, automated approach to

identifying, describing, and tracking the effects of major job

cutbacks, using data from each state’s unemployment insurance

database. Each month, states report on establishments which

have at least 50 initial claims filed against them during a

consecutive 5-week period. These establishments then are

contacted by the state agency to determine whether these

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

information concerning the layoff is collected. States report on

layoffs lasting more than 1 month on a quarterly basis.

A given month contains an aggregation of the weekly

unemployment insurance claims filings for the Sunday through

Saturday weeks in that month. All weeks are included for the

particular month, except if the first day of the month falls on

Saturday. In this case, the week is included in the prior month’s

tabulations. This means that some months will contain 4 weeks

and others, 5 weeks, the number of weeks in a given month may

be different from year to year, and the number of weeks in a year

may vary. Therefore, analysis of over-the-month and over-theyear change in not seasonally adjusted series should take this

calendar effect into consideration.

The MLS program resumed operations in April 1995 after it

had been terminated in November 1992 due to lack of funding.

Prior to April 1995, monthly layoff statistics were not available.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory

impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200;

TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-877-8339.

Definitions

Initial claimant . A person who files any notice of

unemployment to initiate a request either for a determination of

entitlement to and eligibility for compensation, or for a

subsequent period of unemployment within a benefit year or

period of eligibility.

Mass layoff event. Fifty or more initial claims for

unemployment insurance benefits filed against an

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

Seasonal adjustment

Effective with the release of data for January 2005, BLS

began publishing six seasonally adjusted monthly MLS series.

The six series are the numbers of mass layoff events and mass

layoff initial claims for the total, private nonfarm, and

manufacturing sectors.

Seasonal adjustment is the process of estimating and

removing the effect on time series data of regularly recurring

seasonal events such as changes in the weather, holidays, and

the beginning and ending of the school year. The use of

seasonal adjustment makes it easier to observe fundamental

changes in time series, particularly those associated with

general economic expansions and contractions.

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

ARIMA seasonal adjustment method on a concurrent basis.

Concurrent seasonal adjustment uses all available monthly

estimates, including those for the current month, in developing

seasonal adjustment factors. Revisions to the most recent

5 years of seasonally adjusted data will be made once a

year with the issuance of December data. Before the data are

seasonally adjusted, prior adjustments are made to the

original data to adjust them for differences in the number of

weeks used to calculate the monthly data. Because weekly

unemployment insurance claims are aggregated to form

monthly data, a particular month’s value could be calculated

with 5 weeks of data in one year and 4 weeks in another. The effects of these differences could seriously distort

the seasonal factors if they were ignored in the seasonal

adjustment process. These effects are modeled in the X-12-

ARIMA program and are permanently removed from the final

seasonally adjusted series.
Table 1. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, October 2001 to September 2005,

seasonally adjusted

2001

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

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

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

2002

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2003

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2004

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2005

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

August

p

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

September

p

 ............................................................. 2,069 257,454 1,833 212,725 422 54,245 

 p

 = preliminary.

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Date

Events Events Events Initial

claimants

Initial

claimants

Initial

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

not seasonally adjusted

2001

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

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

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

2002

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2003

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2004

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2005

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

August

p

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

September

p

 ............................................................. 1,548 190,906 1,400 160,630 315 46,353 

 p

 = preliminary.

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Date

Events Events Events Initial

claimants

Initial

claimants

Initial

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

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

September July August September September July August September

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

Seasonally adjusted

 Total ............................................................ 1,281 1,249 1,142 2,069 123,761 131,326 127,466 257,454 

 Total, private nonfarm ............................................... 1,153 1,107 1,002 1,833 114,223 118,835 115,674 212,725 

 Manufacturing ................................................ 332 360 328 422 45,917 48,967 48,155 54,245 

Not seasonally adjusted

 Total1

 ..................................................................... 708 1,981 645 1,548 68,972 244,216 67,582 190,906 

Total, private ................................................................ 669 1,849 610 1,423 64,917 231,250 64,211 162,013 

 Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ................. 32 104 12 23 1,815 8,873 727 1,383 

 Total, private nonfarm............................................... 637 1,745 598 1,400 63,102 222,377 63,484 160,630 

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

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

 Construction ............................................................ 65 80 51 109 4,160 6,252 3,458 8,203 

 Manufacturing........................................................... 189 856 188 315 25,808 136,210 22,531 46,353 

 Food .................................................................... 56 72 28 56 4,848 6,874 2,762 5,584 

 Beverage and tobacco products .......................... 3 7 ( 2 ) 4 271 377 ( 2 ) 261 

 Textile mills .......................................................... 6 16 13 20 701 1,682 1,177 2,636 

 Textile product mills ............................................. 4 12 3 6 438 1,597 268 956 

 Apparel ................................................................ 9 27 10 12 1,878 2,666 560 2,286 

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

 Wood products .................................................... 4 39 7 20 268 5,109 547 2,058 

 Paper ................................................................... 4 9 7 10 369 582 615 1,206 

 Printing and related support activities ................. – 4 5 5 – 271 452 312 

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

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

 ) 18 ( 2 ) 6 ( 2 ) 2,164 ( 2 ) 787 

 Plastics and rubber products ............................... 12 77 7 13 976 9,202 588 1,824 

 Nonmetallic mineral products .............................. 8 16 6 9 759 2,178 420 637 

 Primary metals .................................................... ( 2 ) 53 7 11 ( 2 ) 7,984 852 1,112 

 Fabricated metal products ................................... 11 67 13 18 794 7,052 1,012 1,297 

 Machinery ............................................................ 11 44 20 30 1,118 5,426 1,815 4,947 

 Computer and electronic products ...................... 11 32 12 17 742 3,729 1,235 1,330 

 Electrical equipment and appliances ................... 5 24 6 12 3,211 3,409 1,693 3,127 

 Transportation equipment ................................... 21 286 27 52 7,400 69,393 6,855 14,934 

 Furniture and related products ............................ 10 26 3 9 912 2,917 383 567 

 Miscellaneous manufacturing .............................. 10 20 8 ( 2 ) 842 2,172 910 ( 2 )

 Wholesale trade ...................................................... 14 33 15 29 1,028 2,889 1,259 2,073 

 Retail trade .............................................................. 68 102 72 190 5,974 10,765 5,434 20,202 

 Transportation and warehousing ............................. 21 123 50 46 1,692 11,543 5,878 5,641 

 Information .............................................................. 26 32 21 40 3,455 5,599 6,889 5,871 

 Finance and insurance ............................................ 16 18 14 29 1,211 1,416 1,493 2,242 

 Real estate and rental and leasing .......................... ( 2 ) 12 ( 2 ) 13 ( 2 ) 1,083 ( 2 ) 782 

 Professional and technical services ........................ 19 51 18 28 1,709 7,387 3,104 2,495 

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

 Administrative and waste services .......................... 106 239 84 192 10,255 23,794 6,764 18,794 

 Educational services................................................ ( 2 ) 16 6 10 ( 2 ) 1,118 454 1,467 

 Health care and social assistance ........................... 15 56 19 128 975 4,000 1,227 14,460 

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ......................... 21 34 7 33 1,366 2,517 486 5,528 

 Accommodation and food services ......................... 61 73 35 200 4,173 5,857 2,436 23,548 

 Other services, except public administration............ 8 10 9 28 525 619 1,400 2,101 

 Unclassified ............................................................ 1 4 1 3 71 354 96 154 

Government ................................................................. 39 132 35 125 4,055 12,966 3,371 28,893 

 Federal .................................................................... 5 19 8 10 364 2,243 1,041 957 

 State ........................................................................ 3 20 11 34 233 1,553 862 4,895 

 Local ........................................................................ 31 93 16 81 3,458 9,170 1,468 23,041 

 1

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

 2

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

 

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

not seasonally adjusted

Extended mass layoffs 

lasting more than 30 days Realization rates1

Events Initial

claimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants

2003

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2004

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Second Quarter .................................. 3,825 379,403 3,271 332,247 1,358 254,063 41.5 76.5 

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

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

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

Third Quarter ...................................... 3,611 391,934 3,242 361,855 886 148,549 27.3 41.1 

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

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

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

Fourth Quarter ................................... 4,255 419,612 3,789 385,016 1,427 262,049 37.7 68.1 

2005

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Augustp

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

September

p

 ........................................ 1,548 190,906 1,400 160,630 

Third Quarterp

 .................................... 4,174 502,704 3,743 446,491 

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

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

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

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

 2

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

Mass layoffs Total mass layoffs

Private nonfarm

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

not seasonally adjusted

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

September July August September September July August September

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

 United States1 .................................................... 708 1,981 645 1,548 68,972 244,216 67,582 190,906 

Northeast .................................................................... 101 319 126 118 8,801 32,958 13,090 9,790 

 New England .......................................................... 9 45 23 14 637 4,353 1,868 1,247 

 Middle Atlantic ........................................................ 92 274 103 104 8,164 28,605 11,222 8,543 

South .......................................................................... 204 415 170 965 19,467 44,995 18,286 129,647 

 South Atlantic ......................................................... 123 193 92 81 10,152 18,350 8,771 10,247 

 East South Central ................................................. 41 136 34 147 5,643 17,428 5,988 26,533 

 West South Central ................................................ 40 86 44 737 3,672 9,217 3,527 92,867 

Midwest ...................................................................... 125 695 138 164 16,380 114,158 14,023 22,952 

 East North Central .................................................. 99 581 111 136 13,827 94,359 10,618 19,035 

 West North Central ................................................. 26 114 27 28 2,553 19,799 3,405 3,917 

West ........................................................................... 278 552 211 301 24,324 52,105 22,183 28,517 

 Mountain ................................................................. 15 56 17 22 1,163 5,836 1,717 1,901 

 Pacific ..................................................................... 263 496 194 279 23,161 46,269 20,466 26,616 

 1

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

 = preliminary. Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee; West South Central: Arkansas, NOTE: The States (including the District of Columbia) that comprise Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas; East North Central: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, 

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

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

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

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

 

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

not seasonally adjusted

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

September July August September September July August September

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

 Total1 ....................................................................... 708 1,981 645 1,548 68,972 244,216 67,582 190,906 

Alabama ..................................................................... 18 58 5 20 1,793 6,449 709 1,968 

Alaska ......................................................................... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – 280 

Arizona ....................................................................... – 22 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – 2,288 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

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

California .................................................................... 246 445 182 260 21,752 41,741 19,530 24,865 

Colorado ..................................................................... 3 5 ( 2 ) 3 199 434 ( 2 ) 185 

Connecticut ................................................................ ( 2 ) 7 4 3 ( 2 ) 553 397 254 

Delaware .................................................................... ––––––––

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

Florida ........................................................................ 86 86 35 40 6,349 6,526 2,031 3,314 

Georgia ....................................................................... 11 46 22 14 815 4,374 3,488 3,230 

Hawaii ......................................................................... ( 2 ) 3 – 3 ( 2 ) 246 – 249 

Idaho .......................................................................... 3 7 6 3 331 981 684 239 

Illinois ......................................................................... 26 57 27 46 2,567 6,808 2,128 5,779 

Indiana ........................................................................ 19 82 10 13 2,767 15,176 1,000 2,336 

Iowa ............................................................................ 6 23 6 3 764 5,154 1,755 996 

Kansas ....................................................................... 4 8 5 3 380 720 487 259 

Kentucky ..................................................................... 11 62 13 24 2,892 9,576 3,954 4,779 

Louisiana .................................................................... 5 20 11 684 402 1,916 596 87,449 

Maine .......................................................................... – 4 ( 2 ) 3 – 303 ( 2 ) 224 

Maryland ..................................................................... 5 8 3 – 529 811 219 –

Massachusetts ........................................................... 6 24 12 4 439 2,333 873 493 

Michigan ..................................................................... 23 248 29 23 5,997 34,561 2,838 3,235 

Minnesota ................................................................... 6 27 6 7 441 4,573 502 741 

Mississippi .................................................................. 3 5 6 96 314 374 481 19,098 

Missouri ...................................................................... 3 49 6 10 195 8,285 404 981 

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

 ) – ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) 

Nebraska .................................................................... 6 6 3 4 646 991 200 811 

Nevada ....................................................................... 7 13 5 12 471 1,084 648 997 

New Hampshire .......................................................... – 5 – 3 – 497 – 217 

New Jersey ................................................................. 11 37 20 19 1,630 3,325 1,786 1,867 

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

New York .................................................................... 31 107 42 40 2,950 12,136 6,164 3,213 

North Carolina ............................................................ 10 19 10 6 712 2,121 1,323 601 

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

Ohio ............................................................................ 16 115 26 24 1,352 25,306 2,881 4,353 

Oklahoma ................................................................... ( 2 ) 7 – 3 ( 2 ) 1,303 – 360 

Oregon ....................................................................... 6 26 ( 2 ) 3 370 2,399 ( 2 ) 342 

Pennsylvania .............................................................. 50 130 41 45 3,584 13,144 3,272 3,463 

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

 ) 3 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 419 326 ( 2 ) 

South Carolina ............................................................ 6 11 9 14 921 1,627 678 1,907 

South Dakota .............................................................. ––––––––

Tennessee .................................................................. 9 11 10 7 644 1,029 844 688 

Texas .......................................................................... 32 51 30 50 2,965 5,300 2,730 5,058 

Utah ............................................................................ ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

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

Virginia ....................................................................... 5 20 11 6 826 2,589 918 1,086 

Washington ................................................................ 7 21 10 10 819 1,809 730 880 

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

Wisconsin ................................................................... 15 79 19 30 1,144 12,508 1,771 3,332 

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

Puerto Rico ................................................................. 30 12 8 20 4,059 1,270 1,210 2,245 

 1 See footnote 1, table 3. p

 = preliminary.

2

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

State