For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Wednesday, June 22, 2011 USDL-11-0920 

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

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

MASS LAYOFFS — MAY 2011 

Employers took 1,599 mass layoff actions in May involving 143,540 workers, seasonally adjusted, as 

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

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

The number of mass layoff events in May increased by 35, or 2 percent, from April, while the number of 

associated initial claims decreased by 387, or less than 1 percent. In May, 373 mass layoff events were 

reported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 38,673 initial claims; both figures 

increased over the month. (See table 1.) 

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

3,500

Events

Manufacturing

Chart 1. Mass layoff events, seasonally adjusted,

June 2006-May 2011

Total

Private nonfarm

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

350,000

Claims

Total

Manufacturing

Chart 2. Mass layoff initial claims, seasonally adjusted,

June 2006-May 2011

Private nonfarm

The national unemployment rate was 9.1 percent in May, essentially unchanged from the prior month 

but down from 9.6 percent a year earlier. In May, total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 

54,000 over the month and by 870,000 over the year. 

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted) 

The number of mass layoff events in May was 1,367, not seasonally adjusted, resulting in 119,911 initial 

claims for unemployment insurance. The number of mass layoff events was about the same (1,354 

events) as recorded in May 2010, while associated initial claims decreased by 3,422, or 3 percent. (See 

table 2.) Fourteen of the 19 major industry sectors in the private economy reported over-the-year 

declines in initial claims, with the largest decreases occurring in construction, retail trade, and 

professional and technical services. The six-digit industry with the largest number of initial claims in 
- 2 - 

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

not seasonally adjusted

Year Initial claims

Temporary help services 1

 .................................. 9,546 2002 16,992 

Food service contractors ................................... 8,601 2009 11,216 

Child day care services ...................................... 7,120 2011 7,120 

Motion picture and video production .................. 4,142 1999 8,985 

Colleges and universities .................................... 2,095 2011 2,095 

Full-service restaurants ...................................... 1,998 2009 2,437 

Junior colleges ................................................... 1,857 2010 2,049 

Other individual and family services .................... 1,824 2011 1,824 

Nonresidential plumbing and HVAC contractors 1,705 2009 2,176 

Casino hotels ..................................................... 1,694 2009 2,323 

 1 See the Technical Note for more information on this industry.

Industry Initial claims May peak

May 2011 was temporary help services. (See table A. The table includes both publicly and privately 

owned entities.) 

The manufacturing sector accounted for 20 percent of all mass layoff events and 21 percent of initial 

claims filed in May. A year earlier, manufacturing made up 16 percent of events and initial claims. 

Within this sector, the number of claimants in May 2011 was greatest in the food and transportation 

equipment subsectors. Twelve of the 21 manufacturing subsectors experienced over-the-year increases 

in initial claims, with the largest increases occurring in food and in transportation equipment. (See 

table 3.) 

Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted) 

Two of the 4 regions and 5 of the 9 divisions experienced over-the-year decreases in initial claims for 

unemployment insurance due to mass layoffs in May. Among the census regions, the West registered the 

largest over-the-year decrease in initial claims. Of the geographic divisions, the Pacific had the largest 

over-the-year decline in initial claims. The East South Central division registered the largest over-theyear increase in initial claims. (See table 5.) 

California recorded the highest number of mass layoff initial claims in May, followed by Pennsylvania, 

Florida, and Mississippi. Twenty-nine states experienced over-the-year increases in initial claims, led by 

Mississippi. (See table 6.) 

Note 

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

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

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

more than 30 days (referred to as "extended mass layoffs"). The quarterly release provides more 
- 3 - 

information on the industry classification and location of the establishment and on the demographics of 

the laid-off workers. Because monthly figures include short-term layoffs of 30 days or less, the sum of 

the figures for the 3 months in a quarter will be higher than the quarterly figure for mass layoffs of more 

than 30 days. (See table 4.) See the Technical Note for more detailed definitions. 

____________ 

The Mass Layoffs news release for June is scheduled to be released on Friday, July 22, 2011, at 

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

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

identifying, describing, and tracking the effects of major job 

cutbacks, using data from each state's unemployment 

insurance database. Each month, states report on employers 

which have at least 50 initial claims filed against them during 

a consecutive 5-week period. These employers then are 

contacted by the state agency to determine whether these 

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

information concerning the layoff is collected. States report 

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

A given month contains an aggregation of the weekly 

unemployment insurance claims filings for the Sunday 

through Saturday weeks in that month. All weeks are 

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

seasonally adjusted series should take this calendar effect into 

consideration. 

The MLS program resumed operations in April 1995 

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

funding. Prior to April 1995, monthly layoff statistics were 

not available. 

Information in this release will be made available to 

sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 

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

Definitions 

Employer. Employers in the MLS program include 

those covered by state unemployment insurance laws. 

Information on employers is obtained from the Quarterly 

Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, which 

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

Industry. Employers are classified according to the 

2007 version of the North American Industry Classification 

System (NAICS). For temporary help and professional 

employer organization industries, monthly MLS-related 

statistics generally reflect layoffs related to underlying client 

companies in other industries. An individual layoff action at 

a client company can be small, but when initial claimants 

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

mass layoff event may trigger. 

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

entitlement to and eligibility for compensation, or for a 

subsequent period of unemployment within a benefit year or 

period of eligibility. 

Mass layoff event. Fifty or more initial claims for 

unemployment insurance benefits filed against an employer 

during a 5-week period, regardless of duration. 

Seasonal adjustment 

Effective with the release of data for January 2005, BLS 

began publishing six seasonally adjusted monthly MLS 

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

and mass layoff initial claims for the total, private nonfarm, 

and manufacturing sectors. 

Seasonal adjustment is the process of estimating and 

removing the effect on time series data of regularly recurring 

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

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

seasonal adjustment makes it easier to observe fundamental 

changes in time series, particularly those associated with 

general economic expansions and contractions. 

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

ARIMA seasonal adjustment method on a concurrent basis. 

Concurrent seasonal adjustment uses all available monthly 

estimates, including those for the current month, in developing seasonal adjustment factors. Revisions to the most 

recent 5 years of seasonally adjusted data will be made once a 

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

seasonally adjusted, prior adjustments are made to the 

original data to adjust them for differences in the number of 

weeks used to calculate the monthly data. Because weekly 

unemployment insurance claims are aggregated to form 

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

with 5 weeks of data in 1 year and 4 weeks in another. The 

effects of these differences could seriously distort the 

seasonal factors if they were ignored in the seasonal 

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

ARIMA program and are permanently removed from the 

final seasonally adjusted series.
Table 1. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, June 2007 to May 2011,

seasonally adjusted

2007

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2008

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2009

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2010

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2011

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

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

March ........................................................... 1,286 118,523 1,128 105,636 253 27,619 

April .............................................................. 1,564 143,927 1,401 129,702 327 35,022 

May .............................................................. 1,599 143,540 1,405 127,494 373 38,673 

Date

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Events Initial

claimants Events Initial

claimants Events Initial

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

not seasonally adjusted

2007

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2008

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2009

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2010

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2011

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

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

March ........................................................... 908 85,095 844 80,014 191 20,869 

April .............................................................. 1,750 189,919 1,625 176,478 397 47,104 

May .............................................................. 1,367 119,911 1,221 108,531 270 25,199 

Date

Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing

Events Initial

claimants Events Initial

claimants Events Initial

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

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

May March April May May March April May

2010 2011 2011 2011 2010 2011 2011 2011

Seasonally adjusted

 Total ............................................................. 1,665 1,286 1,564 1,599 155,352 118,523 143,927 143,540 

 Total, private nonfarm ...................................... 1,405 1,128 1,401 1,405 133,913 105,636 129,702 127,494 

 Manufacturing ................................................ 314 253 327 373 30,967 27,619 35,022 38,673 

Not seasonally adjusted

 Total 1

 ........................................................... 1,354 908 1,750 1,367 123,333 85,095 189,919 119,911 

Total, private ...................................................... 1,197 874 1,685 1,243 110,968 82,046 183,436 109,881 

 Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ........ 27 30 60 22 1,765 2,032 6,958 1,350 

 Total, private nonfarm ...................................... 1,170 844 1,625 1,221 109,203 80,014 176,478 108,531 

 Mining ............................................................ ( 2 ) 3 4 5 ( 2 ) 247 270 308 

 Utilities ............................................................ 5 4 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 449 547 ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Construction ................................................... 159 99 161 137 12,129 7,569 12,121 9,875 

 Manufacturing ................................................ 216 191 397 270 19,334 20,869 47,104 25,199 

 Food ........................................................... 47 45 84 64 4,015 4,338 9,064 6,036 

 Beverage and tobacco products ................ 5 4 6 ( 2 ) 386 242 438 ( 2 )

 Textile mills ................................................ 3 3 5 12 391 328 792 1,045 

 Textile product mills ................................... 3 3 6 ( 2 ) 407 481 536 ( 2 )

 Apparel ....................................................... 8 4 10 10 498 374 964 1,174 

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

 Wood products ........................................... 11 24 19 10 913 2,354 1,681 755 

 Paper ......................................................... 3 7 6 9 277 622 590 934 

 Printing and related support activities ........ 12 5 8 14 1,065 359 858 1,182 

 Petroleum and coal products ..................... 3 ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) 205 ( 2 ) – ( 2 )

 Chemicals .................................................. 8 ( 2

 ) 5 8 530 ( 2 ) 453 503 

 Plastics and rubber products ..................... 6 4 21 14 329 321 2,113 1,082 

 Nonmetallic mineral products ..................... 5 5 9 6 342 404 926 635 

 Primary metals ........................................... 12 8 12 11 1,147 536 944 1,053 

 Fabricated metal products ......................... 12 12 21 11 910 916 1,758 848 

 Machinery .................................................. 20 11 16 12 1,971 1,077 2,552 2,054 

 Computer and electronic products ............. 13 10 18 12 1,015 808 1,675 731 

 Electrical equipment and appliances ......... 11 8 16 7 865 2,886 1,736 1,049 

 Transportation equipment .......................... 20 19 117 45 2,860 2,887 18,328 4,146 

 Furniture and related products ................... 5 10 9 12 409 1,099 831 888 

 Miscellaneous manufacturing .................... 9 5 9 5 799 530 865 456 

 Wholesale trade ............................................. 18 18 27 21 1,183 1,393 2,005 1,777 

 Retail trade ..................................................... 121 89 147 108 9,982 9,012 16,501 8,244 

 Transportation and warehousing ................... 47 44 194 38 4,781 5,133 26,537 3,371 

 Information ..................................................... 41 36 42 36 6,310 3,788 5,689 5,394 

 Finance and insurance ................................... 23 19 42 24 1,761 1,354 3,482 1,616 

 Real estate and rental and leasing ................ 9 6 15 7 698 452 1,389 457 

 Professional and technical services ............... 61 35 80 50 5,534 3,771 8,572 4,062 

 Management of companies and enterprises .. ( 2 ) 3 7 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 194 550 ( 2 )

 Administrative and waste services ................. 175 151 262 203 17,363 11,303 23,380 15,938 

 Educational services ...................................... 10 4 17 15 766 265 2,522 1,201 

 Health care and social assistance ................. 84 33 46 102 7,337 2,038 3,397 11,059 

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ................ 32 13 45 24 2,063 893 4,650 1,835 

 Accommodation and food services ................ 129 88 127 148 16,045 10,491 17,269 15,483 

 Other services, except public administration . 34 8 9 28 2,933 695 845 2,361 

 Unclassified .................................................... – – ( 2 ) – – – ( 2 ) –

Government ....................................................... 157 34 65 124 12,365 3,049 6,483 10,030 

 Federal ........................................................... 19 5 6 12 1,864 532 582 1,160 

 State ............................................................... 39 10 18 32 2,904 1,389 1,714 2,136 

 Local .............................................................. 99 19 41 80 7,597 1,128 4,187 6,734 

 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, April 2009 to May 2011,

not seasonally adjusted

Extended mass layoffs 

lasting more than 30 days Realization rates 1

Events Initial

claimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants Events Initialclaimants

2009

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2010

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

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

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

First Quarter ............................... 5,240 493,224 4,884 466,610 1,870 368,642 38.3 79.0 

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

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

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

Second Quarter ......................... 5,055 494,213 4,222 419,729 2,008 395,573 47.6 94.2 

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

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

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

Third Quarter ............................. 4,020 376,343 3,435 323,256 1,370 259,886 39.9 80.4 

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

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

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

Fourth Quarter ........................... 5,249 490,816 4,613 443,337 1,999 388,285 43.3 87.6 

2011

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

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

March ......................................... 908 85,095 844 80,014 

First Quarter ............................... 4,490 417,143 4,135 388,497 2,p 1,397 2,p 179,686 p

 33.8 p 46.3 

April ............................................ 1,750 189,919 1,625 176,478 

May ............................................ 1,367 119,911 1,221 108,531 

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

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

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

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

 2

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

Date

Total mass layoffs

Private nonfarm

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

not seasonally adjusted

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

May March April May May March April May

2010 2011 2011 2011 2010 2011 2011 2011

 United States 1

 ......................................... 1,354 908 1,750 1,367 123,333 85,095 189,919 119,911 

Northeast .......................................................... 203 169 402 210 17,575 15,540 54,129 17,726 

 New England ................................................ 29 22 67 30 2,421 1,883 8,926 2,505 

 Middle Atlantic .............................................. 174 147 335 180 15,154 13,657 45,203 15,221 

South ................................................................ 428 250 431 468 38,299 26,112 42,685 43,457 

 South Atlantic ............................................... 216 116 210 234 19,282 9,765 17,371 18,785 

 East South Central ....................................... 94 61 125 131 8,431 6,539 16,048 14,830 

 West South Central ...................................... 118 73 96 103 10,586 9,808 9,266 9,842 

Midwest ............................................................ 261 172 383 288 26,176 17,168 44,126 26,017 

 East North Central ........................................ 175 124 310 217 17,981 11,640 37,250 18,948 

 West North Central ....................................... 86 48 73 71 8,195 5,528 6,876 7,069 

West ................................................................. 462 317 534 401 41,283 26,275 48,979 32,711 

 Mountain ....................................................... 73 46 118 68 6,357 4,292 12,547 5,948 

 Pacific ........................................................... 389 271 416 333 34,926 21,983 36,432 26,763 

 1

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

not seasonally adjusted

Mass layoff events Initial claimants for

unemployment insurance

May March April May May March April May

2010 2011 2011 2011 2010 2011 2011 2011

 Total 1

 .............................................. 1,354 908 1,750 1,367 123,333 85,095 189,919 119,911 

Alabama .............................................. 24 18 28 37 2,171 2,072 3,080 3,604 

Alaska ................................................. 11 ( 2 ) 9 6 1,259 ( 2 ) 1,137 489 

Arizona ................................................ 24 11 40 15 2,369 1,045 5,635 1,394 

Arkansas ............................................. 6 3 ( 2 ) 15 553 232 ( 2 ) 1,647 

California ............................................. 345 230 348 285 31,197 17,478 29,264 22,874 

Colorado ............................................. 10 5 15 10 1,024 557 1,750 1,171 

Connecticut ......................................... 10 5 10 11 823 410 1,056 769 

Delaware ............................................. ( 2 ) – 8 5 ( 2 ) – 551 334 

District of Columbia ............................. 4 – ( 2 ) 5 301 – ( 2 ) 276 

Florida ................................................. 104 56 98 102 7,027 4,060 7,600 6,363 

Georgia ............................................... 39 16 40 40 4,227 1,593 3,380 4,038 

Hawaii ................................................. 4 5 6 5 264 659 420 351 

Idaho ................................................... 6 10 10 6 367 886 896 370 

Illinois .................................................. 56 37 56 47 6,699 3,495 6,701 4,749 

Indiana ................................................ 21 12 41 28 1,931 1,336 4,689 2,189 

Iowa .................................................... 16 10 17 6 1,984 2,060 2,143 1,069 

Kansas ................................................ 15 5 5 12 1,464 727 381 1,365 

Kentucky ............................................. 28 20 56 33 2,758 2,387 9,722 3,431 

Louisiana ............................................ 29 11 22 29 2,646 1,239 1,669 2,531 

Maine .................................................. 3 5 7 4 204 575 818 318 

Maryland ............................................. 12 4 5 5 816 431 365 462 

Massachusetts .................................... 9 7 17 10 865 624 2,040 1,068 

Michigan ............................................. 24 21 50 38 2,924 2,359 6,813 3,368 

Minnesota ........................................... 11 9 16 10 965 707 1,023 932 

Mississippi .......................................... 11 14 27 40 922 1,413 1,987 5,957 

Missouri .............................................. 30 21 23 32 2,396 1,755 2,259 2,620 

Montana .............................................. 4 ( 2

 ) 7 4 267 ( 2 ) 438 414 

Nebraska ............................................ 6 3 9 8 593 279 768 860 

Nevada ............................................... 13 7 23 13 994 524 1,703 1,133 

New Hampshire .................................. 3 ( 2 ) 7 3 264 ( 2 ) 1,107 233 

New Jersey ......................................... 34 19 70 34 2,685 1,494 11,776 2,937 

New Mexico ........................................ 8 7 9 10 673 640 711 783 

New York ............................................ 67 49 153 56 6,338 5,159 22,636 4,743 

North Carolina 3

 .................................. 13 18 14 40 2,462 1,917 1,240 3,928 

North Dakota ....................................... 7 – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 681 – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Ohio .................................................... 47 22 87 63 3,909 1,891 11,082 5,170 

Oklahoma ........................................... 6 5 6 9 350 367 392 902 

Oregon ................................................ 18 20 25 21 1,324 2,337 2,886 1,586 

Pennsylvania ...................................... 73 79 112 90 6,131 7,004 10,791 7,541 

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

 ) 9 ( 2 ) 265 ( 2 ) 2,105 ( 2 )

South Carolina .................................... 10 7 19 11 839 489 1,913 949 

South Dakota ...................................... ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) ( 2 ) Tennessee .......................................... 31 9 14 21 2,580 667 1,259 1,838 

Texas .................................................. 77 54 67 50 7,037 7,970 7,118 4,762 

Utah .................................................... 8 3 13 8 663 423 1,232 554 

Vermont .............................................. – ( 2 ) 17 ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) 1,800 ( 2 ) Virginia ................................................ 26 13 23 21 3,151 1,102 2,063 2,050 

Washington ......................................... 11 14 28 16 882 1,099 2,725 1,463 

West Virginia ....................................... 5 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 5 297 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 385 

Wisconsin ........................................... 27 32 76 41 2,518 2,559 7,965 3,472 

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

Puerto Rico ......................................... 19 11 17 24 1,735 1,114 1,676 2,815 

 1 See footnote 1, table 3. data due to a change in MLS unemployment insurance

 2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. input procedures.

 3 Data starting in November 2010 may not be comparable to prior NOTE: Dash represents zero.

State