1

Technical information: (202) 691-6392

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

Media contact: 691-5902

USDL 07-1446

For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT

Friday, September 21, 2007

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

Events

2003 2004 2005 2006 

Total

Private nonfarm

2007

 Manufacturing

Chart 1. Mass layoff events, seasonally adjusted,

September 2002-August 2007

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

Claims

2003 2004 2005 2006 

Total

Private nonfarm

2007

 Manufacturing

Chart 2. Mass layoff initial claims, seasonally adjusted,

September 2002-August 2007

MASS LAYOFFS IN AUGUST 2007

In August, employers took 1,189 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 employer; the number

of workers involved totaled 118,120, on a seasonally adjusted basis. The number of mass layoff events in

August decreased by 32 from the prior month, and the number of associated initial claims fell by 6,715.

Over the month, 325 mass layoff events were reported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted,

resulting in 35,676 initial claims. Compared with July, mass layoff activity in manufacturing decreased by

58 events, and initial claims declined by 14,360. (See table 1.)

From January through August 2007, the total number of events (seasonally adjusted), at 9,843, and initial

claims (seasonally adjusted), at 1,016,492, were higher than in January-August 2006 (9,063 and 951,202,

respectively).

The national unemployment rate was 4.6 percent in August, unchanged from the prior month and little

changed from a year earlier. Total nonfarm payroll employment decreased by 4,000 over the month; over

the year, payroll employment increased by 1.6 million.
2

Table A. Industries with the largest number of mass layoff initial claims in August 2007

Industry Initial claims

August peak

Year

Initial claims

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

The 10 industries reporting the highest numbers of mass layoff initial claims, not seasonally adjusted, accounted for 35 percent of the total initial claims in August. The industry with the highest number of initial

claims was temporary help services with 8,621, followed by school and employee bus transportation with

5,134, and real estate credit with 5,126. Together, these three industries accounted for 20 percent of all

initial claims due to mass layoffs during the month. (See table A.) Real estate credit and mortgage and nonmortgage loan brokers from the credit intermediation industry had the third and seventh highest number of

mass layoff initial claims, respectively, in August. This month, credit intermediation and related activities

reported its highest number of events and initial claims in program history.

The manufacturing sector accounted for 23 percent of all mass layoff events and 25 percent of all related

initial claims filed in August; a year earlier, manufacturing made up 29 percent of events and 39 percent of

initial claims. In August 2007, the number of manufacturing claimants was highest in transportation equipment

manufacturing (5,596, largely in truck trailer manufacturing, automobile manufacturing, and heavy duty truck

manufacturing), followed by food manufacturing (2,912) and machinery manufacturing (1,846). (See table 3.)

Administrative and waste services accounted for 16 percent of mass layoff events and initial claims in

August, primarily from temporary help services and professional employer organizations. Retail trade made

up 10 percent of events and 11 percent of initial claims, mostly from general merchandise stores. Finance

and insurance comprised 10 percent of events and initial claims filed over the month, with the majority of

layoffs in credit intermediation and related activities. Eleven percent of all mass layoff events and 8 percent

of related initial claims filed were in construction, mainly from the specialty trade contractors industry.

On a not seasonally adjusted basis, the number of mass layoff events in August, at 963, was up by 255

from a year earlier, and the number of associated initial claims increased by 20,614 to 93,458. (See table

2.) While these were the highest number of events and initial claims reported for any August since 2003, this

is due in part to a calendar effect. August 2007 contained 5 weeks for possible mass layoffs, compared with

4 weeks in each August of the prior 3 years. (See the Technical Note for an explanation of how the number

of weeks for data collection can vary from month to month. Also, note that adjustments are made for the

calendar effects in the previously mentioned seasonally adjusted series.) The largest over-the-year increases

Temporary help services ........................................ 8,621 1999 11,533

School and employee bus transportation................. 5,134 2003 6,538

Real estate credit ................................................... 5,126 2007 5,126

Discount department stores.................................... 2,953 2007 2,953

Motion picture and video production...................... 2,913 2003 6,812

Professional employer organizations ....................... 2,550 2002 2,855

Mortgage and nonmortgage loan brokers ............... 1,864 2007 1,864

Payroll services...................................................... 1,348 2001 8,173

Employment placement agencies ............................ 1,284 2007 1,284

Department stores, except discount ........................ 1,203 1996 2,151
3

in initial claims were reported in credit intermediation and related activities (+7,910), administrative and support services (+4,204), and general merchandise stores (+2,871). The largest over-the-year decrease in mass

layoff initial claims was reported in transportation equipment maufacturing (-6,832).

Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

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

the West, with 37,291. Administrative and support services, credit intermediation and related activities, and

motion picture and sound recording industries together accounted for 40 percent of all mass layoff initial

claims in that region during the month. The South had the second largest number of initial claims among the

regions with 21,452, followed by the Midwest with 18,319 and the Northeast with 16,396. (See table 5.)

The number of initial claimants in mass layoffs increased over the year in all four regions—the West

(+13,150), the Midwest (+5,235), the Northeast (+1,890), and the South (+339). Seven of the 9 geographic divisions had over-the-year increases in the numbers of initial claims associated with mass layoffs,

with the largest increases in the Pacific (+11,006), East North Central (+4,610), and Mountain (+2,144)

divisions. The division with the largest over-the-year decrease was the East South Central (-800).

Reflecting administrative and support services layoffs, California recorded the highest number of initial

claims filed due to mass layoff events in August (31,066). Other states with large numbers of mass layoff

related claims were New York (8,776), Florida (5,175), Wisconsin (4,214), and Pennsylvania (4,094).

These five states accounted for 58 percent of all mass layoff events and 57 percent of all initial claims for

unemployment insurance in August. (See table 6.)

California had the largest over-the-year increase in the number of initial claims (+10,727); this was partially due to more mass layoff activity in credit intermediation and related activities. States having the next

largest increases in initial claims were Florida (+2,678), Wisconsin (+2,641), New York (+1,734), and Alabama (+1,671). The largest over-the-year decreases in claims occurred in Virginia (-2,806), Kentucky

(-2,737), and North Carolina (-1,076).

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 employers, 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 nature

of the layoff and the location of the employer, and on the demographics of the laid-off workers. Because

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

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

Technical Note for more detailed definitions.

The report on Mass Layoffs in September 2007 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, October 23.

______________________________
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 employers which have

at least 50 initial claims filed against them during a consecutive

5-week period. These employers then are contacted by the state

agency to determine whether these separations lasted 31 days

or longer, and, if so, other information concerning the layoff is

collected. States report on layoffs lasting more than 1 month

on a quarterly basis.

A given month contains an aggregation of the weekly

unemployment insurance claims filings for the Sunday through

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

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

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

tabulations. This means that some months will contain 4 weeks

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

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

may vary. Therefore, analysis of over-the-month and over-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

Employer. Employers in the MLS program include those

covered by state unemployment insurance laws. Information

on employers is obtained from the Quarterly Census of

Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, which

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

Initial claimant . A person who files any notice of

unemployment to initiate a request either for a determination

entitlement to and eligibility for compensation, or for a

subsequent period of unemployment within a benefit year or

period of eligibility.

Mass layoff event. Fifty or more initial claims for unemployment

insurance benefits filed against an employer during a 5-week

period, regardless of duration.

Seasonal adjustment

Effective with the release of data for January 2005, BLS

began publishing six seasonally adjusted monthly MLS series.

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

layoff initial claims for the total, private nonfarm, and

manufacturing sectors.

Seasonal adjustment is the process of estimating and

removing the effect on time series data of regularly recurring

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

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

seasonal adjustment makes it easier to observe fundamental

changes in time series, particularly those associated with

general economic expansions and contractions.

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

ARIMA seasonal adjustment method on a concurrent basis.

Concurrent seasonal adjustment uses all available monthly

estimates, including those for the current month, in developing

seasonal adjustment factors. Revisions to the most recent

5 years of seasonally adjusted data will be made once a

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

seasonally adjusted, prior adjustments are made to the

original data to adjust them for differences in the number of

weeks used to calculate the monthly data. Because weekly

unemployment insurance claims are aggregated to form

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

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

the seasonal factors if they were ignored in the seasonal

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

ARIMA program and are permanently removed from the final

seasonally adjusted series.
Table 1. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, September 2003 to August 2007,

seasonally adjusted

2003

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,562 147,054 1,370 132,262 479 57,332 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,536 158,137 1,328 140,298 420 52,105 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,366 138,079 1,223 126,597 377 49,716 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,412 139,423 1,243 127,356 445 50,923 

2004

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,428 146,692 1,232 128,191 394 45,544 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,320 134,626 1,170 122,329 367 40,849 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,372 139,716 1,237 130,737 401 59,987 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,374 140,190 1,202 124,962 349 38,197 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,209 113,091 1,047 99,615 330 38,965 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,403 141,048 1,231 128,137 366 47,015 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,330 137,484 1,180 126,106 372 51,424 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,394 127,671 1,224 113,376 345 36,963 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,277 125,351 1,154 115,343 338 46,955 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,288 132,250 1,172 122,831 362 47,571 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,314 130,558 1,171 118,904 378 46,276 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,170 114,641 1,013 103,434 301 33,022 

2005

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,489 160,986 1,353 150,640 383 56,133 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,172 123,377 1,045 112,752 358 45,794 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,219 132,035 1,079 122,013 377 55,061 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,263 137,381 1,132 126,747 398 60,826 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,226 133,221 1,085 120,899 382 54,886 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,194 126,834 1,074 117,712 359 57,018 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,248 131,500 1,101 118,800 353 47,136 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,109 123,125 986 111,879 338 46,915 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,217 292,177 1,998 246,227 419 56,289 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,098 108,665 977 99,402 321 44,666 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,167 115,803 1,036 104,576 330 43,307 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,253 135,721 1,125 124,632 372 48,592 

2006

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,112 109,429 984 99,277 282 29,911 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,065 112,742 973 105,055 329 46,548 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,105 120,954 1,003 112,730 335 50,149 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,175 121,376 1,041 111,369 365 48,038 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,098 113,195 982 103,839 297 42,993 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,130 123,558 1,007 113,037 331 40,500 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,160 118,843 1,038 109,509 372 49,069 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,218 131,105 1,083 120,923 367 58,983 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,158 120,795 1,043 111,876 392 46,802 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,186 119,914 1,069 111,036 401 55,795 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,220 136,340 1,111 127,286 411 60,599 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,201 133,818 1,099 124,526 390 53,828 

2007

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,237 126,368 1,095 115,615 389 51,141 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,280 143,977 1,166 135,252 419 64,072 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,276 130,687 1,165 122,150 420 54,441 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,239 126,194 1,109 115,870 387 43,939 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,182 118,414 1,079 110,880 365 48,872 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,219 127,897 1,094 117,787 340 39,273 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,221 124,835 1,115 116,744 383 50,036 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,189 118,120 1,092 110,946 325 35,676 

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, September 2003 to August 2007,

not seasonally adjusted

2003

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

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

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

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

2004

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2005

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2006

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

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

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

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

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 872 84,809 794 78,663 192 23,570 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,489 164,761 1,224 140,687 319 41,095 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,511 166,857 1,335 154,342 648 96,152 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 708 72,844 656 69,054 203 28,494 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 865 87,699 785 81,274 296 39,076 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 964 98,804 820 88,133 311 46,737 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,315 136,186 1,172 125,009 455 58,473 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,249 254,503 2,126 244,783 735 105,462 

2007

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,407 134,984 1,263 124,475 456 53,615 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 935 86,696 861 82,097 273 36,170 

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

August June July August August June July August

2006 2007 2007 2007 2006 2007 2007 2007

Seasonally adjusted

 Total ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,218 1,219 1,221 1,189 131,105 127,897 124,835 118,120 

 Total, private nonfarm ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,083 1,094 1,115 1,092 120,923 117,787 116,744 110,946 

 Manufacturing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 367 340 383 325 58,983 39,273 50,036 35,676 

Not seasonally adjusted

 Total 1 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 708 1,599 1,599 963 72,844 172,810 175,419 93,458 

Total, private ..................................................................................................................................................................... 675 1,372 1,503 927 70,352 152,740 168,280 89,793 

 Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19 54 53 19 1,298 4,071 3,341 1,448 

 Total, private nonfarm ..................................................................................................................................................................... 656 1,318 1,450 908 69,054 148,669 164,939 88,345 

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

 ) ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) ( 2 )

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

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

 Construction ..................................................................................................................................................................... 50 106 88 106 3,473 8,157 5,844 7,282 

 Manufacturing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 203 313 684 220 28,494 36,571 101,390 23,361 

 Food ..................................................................................................................................................................... 26 50 46 27 1,559 5,901 4,927 2,912 

 Beverage and tobacco products ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 5 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 316 243 

 Textile mills ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 7 19 7 1,302 871 2,272 805 

 Textile product mills ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 ( 2

 ) 8 5 328 ( 2 ) 857 376 

 Apparel ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 9 19 10 264 770 1,678 1,362 

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

 ) 4 7 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 435 1,212 ( 2 )

 Wood products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19 22 27 19 2,240 2,063 2,901 1,562 

 Paper ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 8 4 ( 2

 ) 425 592 259 ( 2 )

 Printing and related support activities ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 11 5 6 325 1,033 499 389 

 Petroleum and coal products ..................................................................................................................................................................... – – – – – – – –

 Chemicals ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 5 8 4 373 367 826 228 

 Plastics and rubber products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 9 10 65 11 645 971 7,487 898 

 Nonmetallic mineral products ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 12 10 5 ( 2 ) 899 1,373 309 

 Primary metals ..................................................................................................................................................................... 9 15 36 11 816 1,613 6,318 1,399 

 Fabricated metal products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 10 15 63 10 673 1,377 6,364 689 

 Machinery ..................................................................................................................................................................... 14 24 49 16 2,210 4,268 6,994 1,846 

 Computer and electronic products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 16 20 20 16 1,590 1,668 2,549 1,252 

 Electrical equipment and appliances ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 13 20 10 1,517 1,540 3,271 1,238 

 Transportation equipment ..................................................................................................................................................................... 44 59 249 39 12,428 9,438 48,795 5,596 

 Furniture and related products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 19 14 12 935 1,840 1,394 855 

 Miscellaneous manufacturing ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 4 10 6 ( 2 ) 314 1,098 745 

 Wholesale trade ..................................................................................................................................................................... 17 21 18 16 1,076 1,398 1,347 1,247 

 Retail trade ..................................................................................................................................................................... 69 77 83 101 5,975 8,548 6,663 10,680 

 Transportation and warehousing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 61 173 90 63 5,513 24,861 9,132 5,968 

 Information ..................................................................................................................................................................... 29 39 37 19 4,477 6,323 4,253 3,432 

 Finance and insurance ..................................................................................................................................................................... 15 31 39 93 1,007 2,323 2,499 9,631 

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

 ) 8 7 6 ( 2 ) 570 605 625 

 Professional and technical services ..................................................................................................................................................................... 24 29 45 25 2,202 4,960 4,072 3,037 

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

 ) 5 5 – ( 2 ) 329 390 

 Administrative and waste services ..................................................................................................................................................................... 113 146 216 153 10,961 14,846 18,257 15,114 

 Educational services ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 17 7 7 ( 2 ) 1,144 486 579 

 Health care and social assistance ..................................................................................................................................................................... 17 166 49 15 1,133 15,124 3,911 914 

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ..................................................................................................................................................................... 12 30 17 16 649 1,620 1,007 1,218 

 Accommodation and food services ..................................................................................................................................................................... 33 109 50 46 2,281 17,231 3,967 3,346 

 Other services, except public administration ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 47 7 12 854 4,441 578 1,064 

 Unclassified ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1 – 3 1 54 – 218 78 

Government ..................................................................................................................................................................... 33 227 96 36 2,492 20,070 7,139 3,665 

 Federal ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 12 8 15 839 1,337 925 1,642 

 State ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 20 10 3 339 1,438 901 248 

 Local ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19 195 78 18 1,314 17,295 5,313 1,775 

1

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

2

 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.

 

Industry
Table 4. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, July 2005 to August 2007,

not seasonally adjusted

Extended mass layoffs 

lasting more than 30 days Realization rates 1

Events Initial

claimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants

2005

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

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

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

Third Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4,288 525,079 3,848 464,903 1,136 190,186 29.5 40.9 

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

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

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

Fourth Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4,482 462,326 4,004 425,629 1,400 246,188 35.0 57.8 

2006

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

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

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

First Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,885 296,339 2,637 277,086 963 193,510 36.5 69.8 

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

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 872 84,809 794 78,663 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,489 164,761 1,224 140,687 

Second Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3,501 371,159 3,056 332,314 1,353 264,927 44.3 79.7 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,511 166,857 1,335 154,342 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 708 72,844 656 69,054 

September ..................................................................................................................................................................... 865 87,699 785 81,274 

Third Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3,084 327,400 2,776 304,670 929 161,743 33.5 53.1 

October ..................................................................................................................................................................... 964 98,804 820 88,133 

November ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,315 136,186 1,172 125,009 

December ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2,249 254,503 2,126 244,783 

Fourth Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4,528 489,493 4,118 457,925 1,640 330,848 39.8 72.2 

2007

January ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,407 134,984 1,263 124,475 

February ..................................................................................................................................................................... 935 86,696 861 82,097 

March ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,082 123,974 1,015 118,431 

First Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3,424 345,654 3,139 325,003 1,111 197,623 35.4 60.8 

April ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,219 127,444 1,115 118,040 

May ..................................................................................................................................................................... 923 85,816 856 81,153 

June ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,599 172,810 1,318 148,669 

Second Quarter ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3,741 386,070 3,289 347,862 2,p 1,249 2,p 173,487 p

 38.0 p 49.9 

July ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,599 175,419 1,450 164,939 

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 963 93,458 908 88,345 

 1 The event realization rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm number of extended mass layoff events is generally revised upwards

mass layoff events lasting more than 30 days. The initial claimant realization by less than 10 percent and the number of initial claimants associated

rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm mass layoff initial claimants with such events increases by 25-40 percent.

associated with layoffs lasting more than 30 days. p = preliminary.

 2 These quarterly numbers are provisional and will be revised as more

data on these layoffs become available. Experience suggests that the

Mass layoffs

Total mass layoffs

Private nonfarm

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

 not seasonally adjusted

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

August June July August August June July August

2006 2007 2007 2007 2006 2007 2007 2007

 United States 1 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 708 1,599 1,599 963 72,844 172,810 175,419 93,458 

Northeast ..................................................................................................................................................................... 150 297 241 173 14,506 36,633 21,035 16,396 

 New England ..................................................................................................................................................................... 10 44 39 15 783 5,098 3,608 1,128 

 Middle Atlantic ..................................................................................................................................................................... 140 253 202 158 13,723 31,535 17,427 15,268 

South ..................................................................................................................................................................... 163 386 360 227 21,113 39,627 35,763 21,452 

 South Atlantic ..................................................................................................................................................................... 96 216 180 128 10,808 18,926 15,861 10,632 

 East South Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 31 82 122 54 7,226 10,813 14,074 6,426 

 West South Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 36 88 58 45 3,079 9,888 5,828 4,394 

Midwest ..................................................................................................................................................................... 117 386 573 181 13,084 44,703 85,557 18,319 

 East North Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 94 296 485 149 10,974 35,106 72,514 15,584 

 West North Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 23 90 88 32 2,110 9,597 13,043 2,735 

West ..................................................................................................................................................................... 278 530 425 382 24,141 51,847 33,064 37,291 

 Mountain ..................................................................................................................................................................... 16 67 44 29 1,018 5,642 4,698 3,162 

 Pacific ..................................................................................................................................................................... 262 463 381 353 23,123 46,205 28,366 34,129 

1

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

NOTE: The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas; East North Central: 

the census divisions are: New England: Connecticut, Maine, Mass- Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin; West North 

achusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; Middle Atlantic: Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North 

New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania; South Atlantic: Delaware, Dakota, and South Dakota; Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, 

District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming; and

Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia; East South Central: Alabama, Pacific: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington.

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

not seasonally adjusted

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

August June July August August June July August

2006 2007 2007 2007 2006 2007 2007 2007

 Total 1 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 708 1,599 1,599 963 72,844 172,810 175,419 93,458 

Alabama ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 19 59 16 762 2,148 6,510 2,433 

Alaska ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) – – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – – ( 2 )

Arizona ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 16 10 8 196 1,605 808 1,192 

Arkansas ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 8 10 ( 2

 ) 577 776 1,133 ( 2 )

California ..................................................................................................................................................................... 227 416 351 320 20,339 40,833 25,054 31,066 

Colorado ..................................................................................................................................................................... – 11 ( 2

 ) 3 – 978 ( 2 ) 220 

Connecticut ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 11 5 ( 2

 ) 232 1,452 357 ( 2 )

Delaware ..................................................................................................................................................................... – 3 ( 2

 ) – – 181 ( 2 ) –

District of Columbia ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

Florida ..................................................................................................................................................................... 40 116 79 70 2,497 9,348 5,214 5,175 

Georgia ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 37 50 25 1,255 3,641 5,133 2,493 

Hawaii ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 5 ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) 413 ( 2 ) 169 

Idaho ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 9 6 5 237 696 1,395 393 

Illinois ..................................................................................................................................................................... 23 66 53 35 2,128 8,155 8,175 3,702 

Indiana ..................................................................................................................................................................... 14 30 55 18 2,227 4,348 7,836 1,911 

Iowa ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 17 20 5 306 2,499 3,631 526 

Kansas ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 9 14 3 279 971 2,294 538 

Kentucky ..................................................................................................................................................................... 15 31 43 23 5,785 5,288 5,958 3,048 

Louisiana ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 22 9 5 282 2,112 604 902 

Maine ..................................................................................................................................................................... – 6 4 – – 447 266 –

Maryland ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 22 4 10 547 1,999 455 828 

Massachusetts ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 6 20 8 277 373 2,173 569 

Michigan ..................................................................................................................................................................... 14 73 211 28 1,274 9,041 36,356 2,693 

Minnesota ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 22 10 8 ( 2 ) 1,923 1,558 553 

Mississippi ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 9 8 6 ( 2 ) 725 822 371 

Missouri ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 36 38 13 930 3,217 3,619 941 

Montana ..................................................................................................................................................................... – 6 4 ( 2

 ) – 361 379 ( 2 )

Nebraska ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 682 ( 2 )

Nevada ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 11 15 7 392 942 1,438 819 

New Hampshire ..................................................................................................................................................................... – 4 5 ( 2

 ) – 581 391 ( 2 )

New Jersey ..................................................................................................................................................................... 24 70 42 32 1,866 12,720 3,176 2,398 

New Mexico ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 11 6 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 756 392 ( 2 )

New York ..................................................................................................................................................................... 63 47 88 74 7,042 5,818 8,175 8,776 

North Carolina ..................................................................................................................................................................... 14 11 3 6 1,712 1,011 219 636 

North Dakota ..................................................................................................................................................................... – 3 3 ( 2

 ) – 344 1,259 ( 2 )

Ohio ..................................................................................................................................................................... 23 68 86 29 3,772 7,301 10,435 3,064 

Oklahoma ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 4 4 3 ( 2 ) 1,375 307 300 

Oregon ..................................................................................................................................................................... 15 26 20 13 1,130 3,507 2,463 1,502 

Pennsylvania ..................................................................................................................................................................... 53 136 72 52 4,815 12,997 6,076 4,094 

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

 ) 10 3 3 ( 2 ) 1,541 222 337 

South Carolina ..................................................................................................................................................................... 12 7 24 10 1,267 652 3,094 940 

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

 ) – ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) – ( 2 )

Tennessee ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 23 12 9 501 2,652 784 574 

Texas ..................................................................................................................................................................... 28 54 35 36 2,127 5,625 3,784 3,085 

Utah ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 3 ( 2 ) 3 ( 2 ) 304 ( 2 ) 327 

Vermont ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) 7 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 704 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Virginia ..................................................................................................................................................................... 12 17 15 7 3,366 1,834 1,400 560 

Washington ..................................................................................................................................................................... 18 16 8 16 1,517 1,452 722 1,341 

West Virginia ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

Wisconsin ..................................................................................................................................................................... 20 59 80 39 1,573 6,261 9,712 4,214 

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

Puerto Rico ..................................................................................................................................................................... 14 17 13 15 1,555 2,417 1,221 1,751 

1

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

2

 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.

State