1

Technical information: (202) 691-6392

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

Media contact: 691-5902

USDL 07-1283

For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT

Thursday, August 23, 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,

August 2002-July 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,

August 2002-July 2007

MASS LAYOFFS IN JULY 2007

In July, employers took 1,221 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; the number of

workers involved totaled 124,835, on a seasonally adjusted basis. The number of mass layoff events in July

remained about the same when compared with the prior month, and the number of associated initial claims

decreased by 3,062. Over the month, 383 mass layoff events were reported in the manufacturing sector,

seasonally adjusted, resulting in 50,036 initial claims. Compared with June, mass layoff activity in manufacturing increased by 43 events, and initial claims increased by 10,763. (See table 1.)

From January through July 2007, the total number of events (seasonally adjusted) at 8,654, and initial

claims (seasonally adjusted) at 898,372, were higher than in January-July 2006 (7,845 and 820,097,

respectively).

The national unemployment rate was 4.6 percent in July, essentially unchanged from 4.5 percent in the

prior month, but down from 4.8 percent a year earlier. Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by

92,000 over the month and by 1.9 million over the year.
2

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

Industry

Initial claims

July 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 34 percent of the total initial claims in July. The industry with the highest number of initial

claims was automobile manufacturing with 13,186, followed by temporary help services with 10,738 and all

other motor vehicle parts manufacturing with 6,748. Together, these three industries accounted for 17 percent of all initial claims due to mass layoffs during the month. (See table A.)

The manufacturing sector accounted for 43 percent of all mass layoff events and 58 percent of all related

initial claims filed in July, unchanged from a year earlier. In July 2007, the number of manufacturing claimants

was highest in transportation equipment manufacturing (48,795, largely in automobile manufacturing, all other

motor vehicle parts manufacturing, and motor vehicle metal stamping), followed by plastics and rubber products manufacturing (7,487) and machinery manufacturing (6,994). (See table 3.)

Administrative and waste services accounted for 14 percent of mass layoff events and 10 percent of

initial claims in July, primarily from temporary help services and professional employer organizations. Transportation and warehousing comprised 6 percent of events and 5 percent of initial claims filed over the month,

with the majority of layoffs in transit and ground passenger transportation and truck transportation. Six percent of all mass layoff events and 4 percent of related initial claims filed were from government, mainly from

elementary and secondary schools. Retail trade made up 5 percent of events and 4 percent of initial claims,

mostly from general merchandise stores.

On a not seasonally adjusted basis, the number of mass layoff events in July, at 1,599, was up by 88

from a year earlier, and the number of associated initial claims increased by 8,562 to 175,419. (See

table 2.) The largest over-the-year increases in initial claims were reported in primary metal manufacturing

(+2,673), machinery manufacturing (+2,278), and administrative and support services (+1,617). The largest

over-the-year decreases in mass layoff initial claims were reported in transportation equipment manufacturing

(-2,313) and in agriculture and forestry support activities (-1,368).

Automobile manufacturing...................................... 13,186 1996 22,644

Temporary help services........................................ 10,738 1998 24,601

All other motor vehicle parts manufacturing ........... 6,748 2004 9,691

Motor vehicle metal stamping ................................ 6,167 2005 8,198

All other plastics product manufacturing................. 4,465 2004 8,864

Professional employer organizations ....................... 4,019 2004 4,425

Motor vehicle seating and interior trim

 manufacturing..................................................... 4,012 2005 9,238

Elementary and secondary schools ........................ 3,739 2005 7,104

School and employee bus transportation................ 3,627 1997 8,081

Motion picture and video production..................... 3,323 1998 12,310
3

Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

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

Midwest, with 85,557. Transportation equipment manufacturing accounted for 47 percent of all mass layoff

initial claims in that region during the month. In each July of the years 2002-2006, between 40 and 51 percent of all mass layoff initial claims in the Midwest were due to layoffs in transportation equipment manufacturing. In July 2007, the South had the second largest number of initial claims among the regions with

35,763, followed by the West with 33,064 and the Northeast with 21,035. (See table 5.)

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

largest increase was in the South (+4,897), followed by the Northeast (+3,992). The Midwest (-1,229)

reported the only over-the-year decrease in initial claims. Six 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 East

South Central (+5,533), West North Central (+3,418), and Mountain (+2,374) divisions. The division with

the largest over-the-year decrease was the East North Central (-4,647).

Reflecting transportation equipment manufacturing layoffs, Michigan recorded the highest number of initial

claims filed due to mass layoff events in July (36,356). Other states with large numbers of mass layoff related claims were California (25,054), Ohio (10,435), Wisconsin (9,712), and Illinois (8,175). These five

states accounted for 49 percent of all mass layoff events and 51 percent of all initial claims for unemployment

insurance in July. (See table 6.)

Alabama had the largest over-the-year increase in the number of initial claims (+5,000); this was partially

due to more mass layoff activity in transportation equipment manufacturing. States having the next largest

increases in initial claims were New York (+3,338), South Carolina (+1,951), Wisconsin (+1,818), and

Massachusetts (+1,732). The largest over-the-year decreases in claims occurred in Michigan (-5,366),

Indiana (-2,268), and Louisiana (-2,025).

Note

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

See the Technical Note for more detailed definitions.

______________________________

The report on Mass Layoffs in August 2007 is scheduled to be released on Friday, September 21.
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, August 2003 to July 2007,

seasonally adjusted

2003

August ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,498 169,799 1,362 156,687 546 74,509 

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 

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, August 2003 to July 2007,

not seasonally adjusted

2003

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

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

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

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

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

2004

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2005

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2006

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

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

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

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

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 

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

July May June July July May June July

2006 2007 2007 2007 2006 2007 2007 2007

Seasonally adjusted

 Total ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,160 1,182 1,219 1,221 118,843 118,414 127,897 124,835 

 Total, private nonfarm ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,038 1,079 1,094 1,115 109,509 110,880 117,787 116,744 

 Manufacturing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 372 365 340 383 49,069 48,872 39,273 50,036 

Not seasonally adjusted

 Total 1 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,511 923 1,599 1,599 166,857 85,816 172,810 175,419 

Total, private ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,414 880 1,372 1,503 160,148 82,760 152,740 168,280 

 Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ..................................................................................................................................................................... 79 24 54 53 5,806 1,607 4,071 3,341 

 Total, private nonfarm ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,335 856 1,318 1,450 154,342 81,153 148,669 164,939 

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

 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 )

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

 ) 5 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 439 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Construction ..................................................................................................................................................................... 69 91 106 88 4,457 6,230 8,157 5,844 

 Manufacturing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 648 224 313 684 96,152 26,527 36,571 101,390 

 Food ..................................................................................................................................................................... 60 34 50 46 5,607 2,579 5,901 4,927 

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

 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 5 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 316 

 Textile mills ..................................................................................................................................................................... 16 9 7 19 2,217 920 871 2,272 

 Textile product mills ..................................................................................................................................................................... 9 ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 8 663 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 857 

 Apparel ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19 5 9 19 2,009 562 770 1,678 

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

 ) – 4 7 ( 2 ) – 435 1,212 

 Wood products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 35 20 22 27 3,480 1,823 2,063 2,901 

 Paper ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 8 8 4 522 680 592 259 

 Printing and related support activities ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 7 11 5 418 551 1,033 499 

 Petroleum and coal products ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – –

 Chemicals ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 6 5 8 1,503 377 367 826 

 Plastics and rubber products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 57 11 10 65 6,842 810 971 7,487 

 Nonmetallic mineral products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19 7 12 10 2,070 583 899 1,373 

 Primary metals ..................................................................................................................................................................... 32 13 15 36 3,645 963 1,613 6,318 

 Fabricated metal products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 54 10 15 63 5,549 699 1,377 6,364 

 Machinery ..................................................................................................................................................................... 33 16 24 49 4,716 1,430 4,268 6,994 

 Computer and electronic products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 20 11 20 20 1,979 758 1,668 2,549 

 Electrical equipment and appliances ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19 7 13 20 1,943 1,622 1,540 3,271 

 Transportation equipment ..................................................................................................................................................................... 233 40 59 249 51,048 10,268 9,438 48,795 

 Furniture and related products ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 11 19 14 490 1,063 1,840 1,394 

 Miscellaneous manufacturing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 5 4 10 508 613 314 1,098 

 Wholesale trade ..................................................................................................................................................................... 17 10 21 18 1,218 1,021 1,398 1,347 

 Retail trade ..................................................................................................................................................................... 85 87 77 83 7,540 7,827 8,548 6,663 

 Transportation and warehousing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 88 31 173 90 8,327 2,782 24,861 9,132 

 Information ..................................................................................................................................................................... 37 23 39 37 4,274 4,355 6,323 4,253 

 Finance and insurance ..................................................................................................................................................................... 26 33 31 39 1,695 2,414 2,323 2,499 

 Real estate and rental and leasing ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 4 8 7 895 344 570 605 

 Professional and technical services ..................................................................................................................................................................... 40 41 29 45 4,530 3,168 4,960 4,072 

 Management of companies and enterprises ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 5 204 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 329 

 Administrative and waste services ..................................................................................................................................................................... 190 119 146 216 16,115 9,762 14,846 18,257 

 Educational services ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 4 17 7 533 204 1,144 486 

 Health care and social assistance ..................................................................................................................................................................... 40 54 166 49 3,068 4,684 15,124 3,911 

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ..................................................................................................................................................................... 18 20 30 17 1,018 1,166 1,620 1,007 

 Accommodation and food services ..................................................................................................................................................................... 46 87 109 50 3,419 8,401 17,231 3,967 

 Other services, except public administration ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 20 47 7 442 1,684 4,441 578 

 Unclassified ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1 – – 3 192 – – 218 

Government ..................................................................................................................................................................... 97 43 227 96 6,709 3,056 20,070 7,139 

 Federal ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 8 12 8 685 634 1,337 925 

 State ..................................................................................................................................................................... 12 7 20 10 826 594 1,438 901 

 Local ..................................................................................................................................................................... 78 28 195 78 5,198 1,828 17,295 5,313 

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 July 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 r

 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 r

 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 r

 330,848 39.8 r 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 r

 1,111 r 197,623 r 35.4 r 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 

 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. r = revised.

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

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

July May June July July May June July

2006 2007 2007 2007 2006 2007 2007 2007

 United States 1 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,511 923 1,599 1,599 166,857 85,816 172,810 175,419 

Northeast ..................................................................................................................................................................... 218 150 297 241 17,043 12,593 36,633 21,035 

 New England ..................................................................................................................................................................... 23 25 44 39 1,618 1,887 5,098 3,608 

 Middle Atlantic ..................................................................................................................................................................... 195 125 253 202 15,425 10,706 31,535 17,427 

South ..................................................................................................................................................................... 313 222 386 360 30,866 22,490 39,627 35,763 

 South Atlantic ..................................................................................................................................................................... 178 113 216 180 15,176 9,597 18,926 15,861 

 East South Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 82 55 82 122 8,541 7,748 10,813 14,074 

 West South Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 53 54 88 58 7,149 5,145 9,888 5,828 

Midwest ..................................................................................................................................................................... 569 217 386 573 86,786 23,747 44,703 85,557 

 East North Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 487 153 296 485 77,161 15,731 35,106 72,514 

 West North Central ..................................................................................................................................................................... 82 64 90 88 9,625 8,016 9,597 13,043 

West ..................................................................................................................................................................... 411 334 530 425 32,162 26,986 51,847 33,064 

 Mountain ..................................................................................................................................................................... 32 29 67 44 2,324 2,309 5,642 4,698 

 Pacific ..................................................................................................................................................................... 379 305 463 381 29,838 24,677 46,205 28,366 

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

July May June July July May June July

2006 2007 2007 2007 2006 2007 2007 2007

 Total 1 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1,511 923 1,599 1,599 166,857 85,816 172,810 175,419 

Alabama ..................................................................................................................................................................... 12 14 19 59 1,510 1,379 2,148 6,510 

Alaska ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 ( 2

 ) – – 217 ( 2 ) – –

Arizona ..................................................................................................................................................................... 14 6 16 10 1,101 524 1,605 808 

Arkansas ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 5 8 10 414 432 776 1,133 

California ..................................................................................................................................................................... 341 270 416 351 26,385 21,582 40,833 25,054 

Colorado ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 3 11 ( 2

 ) 375 276 978 ( 2 )

Connecticut ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 6 11 5 297 521 1,452 357 

Delaware ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) – 3 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – 181 ( 2 )

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

 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Florida ..................................................................................................................................................................... 81 60 116 79 5,371 4,066 9,348 5,214 

Georgia ..................................................................................................................................................................... 39 21 37 50 4,104 2,641 3,641 5,133 

Hawaii ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 3 5 ( 2

 ) 183 251 413 ( 2 )

Idaho ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 ( 2

 ) 9 6 262 ( 2 ) 696 1,395 

Illinois ..................................................................................................................................................................... 46 30 66 53 7,333 3,074 8,155 8,175 

Indiana ..................................................................................................................................................................... 66 18 30 55 10,104 1,416 4,348 7,836 

Iowa ..................................................................................................................................................................... 22 5 17 20 2,846 481 2,499 3,631 

Kansas ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 10 9 14 1,757 613 971 2,294 

Kentucky ..................................................................................................................................................................... 53 19 31 43 5,767 4,593 5,288 5,958 

Louisiana ..................................................................................................................................................................... 12 8 22 9 2,629 878 2,112 604 

Maine ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 6 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 447 266 

Maryland ..................................................................................................................................................................... 13 5 22 4 1,421 426 1,999 455 

Massachusetts ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 9 6 20 441 649 373 2,173 

Michigan ..................................................................................................................................................................... 228 46 73 211 41,722 4,520 9,041 36,356 

Minnesota ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 9 22 10 922 1,090 1,923 1,558 

Mississippi ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 9 9 8 364 461 725 822 

Missouri ..................................................................................................................................................................... 32 35 36 38 2,979 5,459 3,217 3,619 

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

 ) 6 6 4 ( 2 ) 419 361 379 

Nebraska ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 3 685 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 682 

Nevada ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 6 11 15 439 429 942 1,438 

New Hampshire ..................................................................................................................................................................... ( 2

 ) ( 2 ) 4 5 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 581 391 

New Jersey ..................................................................................................................................................................... 42 31 70 42 3,662 2,936 12,720 3,176 

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

 ) 3 11 6 ( 2 ) 312 756 392 

New York ..................................................................................................................................................................... 62 29 47 88 4,837 2,358 5,818 8,175 

North Carolina ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 8 11 3 1,233 547 1,011 219 

North Dakota ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 ( 2

 ) 3 3 436 ( 2 ) 344 1,259 

Ohio ..................................................................................................................................................................... 79 34 68 86 10,108 3,350 7,301 10,435 

Oklahoma ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 5 4 4 1,290 428 1,375 307 

Oregon ..................................................................................................................................................................... 20 15 26 20 2,186 1,528 3,507 2,463 

Pennsylvania ..................................................................................................................................................................... 91 65 136 72 6,926 5,412 12,997 6,076 

Rhode Island ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 ( 2

 ) 10 3 272 ( 2 ) 1,541 222 

South Carolina ..................................................................................................................................................................... 13 6 7 24 1,143 473 652 3,094 

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

 ) ( 2 ) – – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) –

Tennessee ..................................................................................................................................................................... 11 13 23 12 900 1,315 2,652 784 

Texas ..................................................................................................................................................................... 29 36 54 35 2,816 3,407 5,625 3,784 

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

 ) 3 ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) 304 ( 2 )

Vermont ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 5 7 ( 2

 ) 235 317 704 ( 2 )

Virginia ..................................................................................................................................................................... 18 12 17 15 1,666 1,370 1,834 1,400 

Washington ..................................................................................................................................................................... 12 15 16 8 867 1,206 1,452 722 

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

 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 )

Wisconsin ..................................................................................................................................................................... 68 25 59 80 7,894 3,371 6,261 9,712 

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

 ) – – – ( 2 ) – –

Puerto Rico ..................................................................................................................................................................... 10 12 17 13 860 978 2,417 1,221 

1

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

2

 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.

State