Technical information:   (202) 691-6392     USDL 06-512
http://www.bls.gov/mls/

                                            For release: 10:00 A.M. EST
Media contact:                 691-5902     Wednesday, March 22, 2006


                       MASS LAYOFFS IN FEBRUARY 2006
   
   In February 2006, employers took 1,073 mass layoff actions, seasonally
adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits
during the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department
of Labor reported today.  Each action involved at least 50 persons from a
single establishment, and the number of workers involved totaled 111,468,
on a seasonally adjusted basis.  (See table 1.)  The number of layoff 
events fell by 40 from January 2006, and was the lowest for any month
since October 2000.  The number of initial claims due to mass layoff
actions increased by 3,090 over the month.  In the manufacturing sector,
321 mass layoff events were reported during February 2006, seasonally
adjusted, resulting in 45,073 initial claims.  Both figures were higher
than a month earlier.  (See table 1.)

   In February 2006, the national unemployment rate was 4.8 percent,
seasonally adjusted, compared with 4.7 percent in January 2006 and 5.4
percent in February 2005.  Total nonfarm payroll employment, seasonally
adjusted, increased by 243,000 in February and by 2 million over the
year.
   
Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
   
   The 10 industries reporting the highest number of mass layoff initial
claims, not seasonally adjusted, accounted for 21,904 initial claims in
February, 33 percent of the total.  (See table A.)  Temporary help ser-
vices, with 5,339 initial claims, and light truck and utility vehicle manu-
facturing, with 3,994, together accounted for 14 percent of all initial
claims in February.
   
   The manufacturing sector accounted for 29 percent of all mass layoff
events and 37 percent of all initial claims filed in February; a year
earlier, manufacturing comprised 28 percent of events and 33 percent of
initial claims.  In February 2006, the number of manufacturing claimants
was highest in transportation equipment manufacturing (9,113, mostly 
automotive-related), followed by food processing (4,255).  (See table 3.)
   
   Administrative and waste services accounted for 15 percent of events
and 13 percent of initial claims filed in February 2006, with layoffs
mainly in temporary help services.  Eleven percent of all layoff events
and 10 percent of initial claims filed during the month were from retail
trade, primarily in general merchandise stores.  Construction accounted
for 11 percent of events and 9 percent of initial claims in February,
mostly in specialty trade contractors.
   
                                  - 2 -

Table A.  Industries with the largest mass layoff initial claims in
February 2006p
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                          |        |
                                          | Initial|        February peak
                 Industry                 | claims |--------------------------
                                          |        |   Year  | Initial claims
------------------------------------------|--------|---------|----------------
Temporary help services ..................|  5,339 |   2001  |     18,893
Light truck and utility vehicle mfg. .....|  3,994 |   2006  |      3,994                                  
Motion picture and video production ......|  2,622 |   2002  |      5,844                                  
Discount department stores ...............|  2,078 |   2004  |      2,669                          
School and employee bus transportation ...|  1,806 |   2004  |      2,997
Food service contractors .................|  1,314 |   2003  |      1,700
Aircraft manufacturing ...................|  1,227 |   2000  |      4,514
Highway, street, and bridge construction .|  1,188 |   2003  |      3,316
Professional employer organizations ......|  1,187 |   2001  |      3,241
Farm labor contractors and crew leaders ..|  1,149 |   2000  |     12,516
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   p = preliminary.

   Government establishments accounted for 4 percent of events and 3 percent
of initial claims filed in February, largely in executive, legislative, and
general government agencies.
   
   On a not seasonally adjusted basis, the number of layoff events in
February 2006, at 719, was down by 91 from a year earlier, and the number
of associated initial claims decreased by 8,089 to 66,555.  These were the
lowest event and initial claim totals for any February since 1997.  The
largest over-the-year decreases in initial claims were reported in adminis-
trative and support services (-3,793), motion picture and sound recording
industries (-1,764), agriculture and forestry support activities (-1,689),
and food and beverage stores (-1,151).  The largest over-the-year increases
in initial claims were reported in transportation equipment manufacturing
(+2,198) and professional and technical services (+1,326).
   
Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
   
   Among the four census regions, the highest number of initial claims
in February due to mass layoffs was in the West, 22,740.  (See table 5.)
Administrative and support services, motion picture and sound recording
industries, and food manufacturing accounted for 36 percent of all mass
layoff initial claims in that region during the month.  The Midwest had
the second largest number of initial claims, 16,622, followed by the South
with 14,941, and the Northeast, with 12,252.
   
   The number of initial claimants in mass layoffs declined over the year
in two of the four regions.  The largest decrease was in the West (-8,761),
followed by the Midwest (-507).  The Northeast (+1,026) reported the larg-
est over-the-year increase in initial claims.  Six of the nine geographic
divisions had over-the-year decreases in the number of initial claims as-
sociated with mass layoffs, with the largest in the Pacific division
(-7,717).  The New England division reported the largest over-the-year in-
crease in initial claims (+1,858).
   
   Among the states, California recorded the highest number of initial
claims filed due to mass layoff events in February (19,455), followed by
Illinois (3,385), New York (3,144), Pennsylvania (3,009), and Ohio (2,772).
These five states accounted for 52 percent of all mass layoff events and 48
percent of all initial claims for unemployment insurance.  (See table 6.)
   
   California had the largest over-the-year decrease in the number of ini-
tial claims (-8,112), largely due to fewer layoffs in administrative and
support services and in motion picture and sound recording industries.
Kentucky had the next largest decline in initial claims (-1,932), followed
by New Jersey (-1,167).  The largest over-the-year increase occurred in
Virginia (+1,439).

                                  - 3 -

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 lay-
offs.  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 lay-
offs").  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 March 2006 is scheduled to be released on
Thursday, April 20, 2006.
   
   
   
   
   
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 con-
tacted 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 quart-
erly 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; 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 publish-
ing 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 expan-
sions and contractions.
   
   The MLS data are seasonally adjusted using the X-12-ARIMA seasonal adjust-
ment method on a concurrent basis.  Concurrent seasonal adjustment uses all
available monthly estimates, including those for the current month, in devel-
oping 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, March 2002 to February 2006,
seasonally adjusted

                                       Total            Private nonfarm         Manufacturing   

             Date                                                                               
                                           Initial               Initial               Initial  
                                 Events   claimants    Events   claimants     Events  claimants 

            2002                                                                              

March ......................     1,670     187,811     1,515     175,831       615      74,351
April ......................     1,681     186,095     1,494     168,902       590      68,210
May ........................     1,723     190,797     1,559     177,743       610      73,953
June .......................     1,620     170,724     1,443     156,813       550      70,936
July .......................     1,635     179,806     1,460     164,944       564      74,834
August .....................     1,478     162,040     1,324     150,118       569      67,779
September ..................     1,911     218,875     1,747     203,849       617      80,528
October ....................     1,774     186,940     1,582     169,660       625      73,904
November ...................     1,652     178,402     1,507     167,335       613      71,693
December ...................     1,841     198,678     1,659     184,368       661      84,048

            2003                                                                              

January ....................     1,358     131,963     1,168     117,636       387      48,685
February ...................     1,825     190,928     1,647     178,363       646      78,819
March ......................     1,782     175,671     1,595     160,170       617      72,409
April ......................     1,722     174,608     1,564     163,607       640      83,303
May ........................     1,719     184,003     1,542     170,961       625      86,535
June .......................     1,716     164,299     1,524     148,542       636      68,143
July .......................     1,642     163,179     1,442     148,299       580      74,070
August .....................     1,517     171,861     1,367     158,049       551      74,602
September ..................     1,562     147,383     1,374     133,383       484      56,472
October ....................     1,558     156,814     1,336     138,691       427      52,009
November ...................     1,393     141,383     1,244     129,231       401      50,460
December ...................     1,426     144,456     1,265     132,324       434      50,994

            2004                                                                              

January ....................     1,421     142,704     1,223     124,192       395      48,519
February ...................     1,293     132,640     1,145     120,811       362      39,360
March ......................     1,364     140,957     1,234     132,152       407      60,296
April ......................     1,381     141,909     1,207     126,106       341      37,686
May ........................     1,189     111,173     1,030      98,230       314      37,405
June .......................     1,390     141,948     1,226     129,344       360      45,398
July .......................     1,329     137,724     1,185     126,945       371      53,248
August .....................     1,436     131,807     1,243     116,672       342      38,192
September ..................     1,283     125,344     1,155     115,499       344      45,691
October ....................     1,302     129,237     1,181     119,653       369      47,888
November ...................     1,350     135,036     1,202     122,954       407      47,517
December ...................     1,188     120,602     1,038     109,508       293      33,123

            2005                                                                              

January ....................     1,465     153,676     1,330     143,295       380      58,778
February ...................     1,135     120,190     1,010     109,964       350      43,966
March ......................     1,204     133,935     1,071     124,273       384      56,253
April ......................     1,278     139,575     1,145     128,478       390      60,726
May ........................     1,194     129,214     1,059     117,660       359      52,055
June .......................     1,184     128,430     1,065     119,271       349      53,930
July .......................     1,248     131,136     1,107     118,994       356      49,070
August .....................     1,145     127,592     1,006     116,011       334      48,904
September ..................     2,219     283,772     1,975     237,831       438      53,399
October ....................     1,114     104,584       986      94,798       328      45,475
November ...................     1,205     120,783     1,074     109,680       359      45,069
December ...................     1,308     149,565     1,185     138,234       365      49,641

            2006                                                                              

January(p) .................     1,113     108,378       985      97,832       274      29,541
February(p) ................     1,073     111,468       973     103,268       321      45,073


    p = preliminary.





Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance,  March 2002 to February 2006,
not seasonally adjusted

                                       Total            Private nonfarm        Manufacturing    

             Date                                                                               
                                           Initial               Initial               Initial  
                                 Events   claimants    Events   claimants    Events   claimants 

            2002                                                                              

March ......................     1,460     161,316     1,335     151,305       500      59,613
April ......................     1,506     165,814     1,378     153,216       461      50,897
May ........................     1,723     179,799     1,571     166,801       488      52,720
June .......................     1,584     162,189     1,266     136,424       336      42,130
July .......................     2,042     245,294     1,819     226,892       907     135,271
August .....................     1,248     128,103     1,151     119,874       427      48,668
September ..................     1,062     124,522       957     114,736       352      43,755
October ....................     1,497     171,100     1,270     149,327       493      64,655
November ...................     2,153     240,171     1,860     216,237       719      92,712
December ...................     2,474     264,158     2,324     252,807       984     126,826

            2003                                                                              

January ....................     2,315     225,430     2,130     210,918       822      90,244
February ...................     1,363     124,965     1,222     116,264       435      48,161
March ......................     1,207     113,026     1,099     104,468       390      41,063
April ......................     1,581     161,412     1,470     152,937       499      62,349
May ........................     1,703     174,204     1,538     160,729       499      61,278
June .......................     1,691     157,552     1,336     127,743       389      40,845
July .......................     2,087     226,435     1,815     206,901       946     136,410
August .....................     1,258     133,839     1,163     124,131       405      52,620
September ..................       868      82,647       756      73,914       271      31,428
October ....................     1,523     158,240     1,265     137,706       438      53,741
November ...................     1,438     138,543     1,234     123,524       408      48,419
December ...................     1,929     192,633     1,793     182,750       648      77,915

            2004                                                                              

January ....................     2,428     239,454     2,226     220,687       848      89,551
February ...................       941      84,201       832      76,577       240      23,043
March ......................       920      92,554       847      87,782       258      34,686
April ......................     1,458     157,314     1,316     142,657       343      36,172
May ........................       988      87,501       878      78,786       219      22,141
June .......................     1,379     134,588     1,077     110,804       222      27,307
July .......................     2,094     253,929     1,860     234,877       885     145,895
August .....................       809      69,033       745      63,876       194      17,698
September ..................       708      68,972       637      63,102       189      25,808
October ....................     1,242     127,918     1,101     117,375       372      48,265
November ...................     1,399     130,423     1,201     115,549       412      44,243
December ...................     1,614     161,271     1,487     152,092       436      50,726

            2005                                                                              

January ....................     2,564     263,952     2,421     253,409       823     108,985
February ...................       810      74,644       722      68,372       230      24,931
March ......................       806      88,937       733      83,793       246      33,030
April ......................     1,373     158,582     1,263     148,133       395      59,129
May ........................       986     101,358       891      93,332       249      30,424
June .......................     1,157     120,463       941     103,307       216      32,783
July .......................     1,981     244,216     1,745     222,377       856     136,210
August .....................       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(p) .................     1,245     117,946     1,123     108,701       331      35,097
February(p) ................       719      66,555       658      62,208       210      24,892


    p = preliminary.




     
Table 3. Industry distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance

                                                                                                          Initial claimants for        
                                                               Mass layoff events                        unemployment insurance        
                    Industry                                                                                                      

                                                    February   December   January   February    February   December   January   February
                                                      2005       2005      2006p     2006p        2005       2005      2006p     2006p  
								         	   				     	      
               Seasonally adjusted                                                                                                     
								         	   				     	      
      Total .....................................     1,135      1,308      1,113     1,073     120,190    149,565    108,378   111,468
								         	   				     	      
  Total, private nonfarm ........................     1,010      1,185        985       973     109,964    138,234     97,832   103,268
    Manufacturing ...............................       350        365        274       321      43,966     49,641     29,541    45,073
								         	   				     	      
             Not seasonally adjusted                                                                                                   
								         	   				     	      
      Total(1) ..................................       810      2,323      1,245       719      74,644    254,258    117,946    66,555
								         	   				     	      
Total, private ..................................       779      2,237      1,185       689      72,331    246,748    112,837    64,296
    Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ..        57         69         62        31       3,959      3,995      4,136     2,088
								         	   				     	      
  Total, private nonfarm ........................       722      2,168      1,123       658      68,372    242,753    108,701    62,208
    Mining ......................................     ( 2 )         33          4         -       ( 2 )      2,802        309         -
    Utilities ...................................     ( 2 )      ( 2 )      ( 2 )     ( 2 )       ( 2 )      ( 2 )      ( 2 )     ( 2 )
    Construction ................................       118        478        125        82       7,245     40,395      7,942     5,997
    Manufacturing ...............................       230        706        331       210      24,931     96,382     35,097    24,892
        Food ....................................        60         88         46        42       5,237     10,681      3,589     4,255
        Beverage and tobacco products ...........         4         11          9     ( 2 )         384        800        599     ( 2 )
        Textile mills ...........................         5         23         13         6         560      3,823      1,214       373
        Textile product mills ...................        10          7          7         4         874        743        655       301
        Apparel .................................         7         19         11        10       1,083      2,297        769     1,644
        Leather and allied products .............     ( 2 )          9      ( 2 )     ( 2 )       ( 2 )      1,032      ( 2 )     ( 2 )
        Wood products ...........................        16         54         27        12       1,606      5,319      2,995     1,230
        Paper ...................................         6          8          6         4         493        943        405       397
        Printing and related support activities .         9         16      ( 2 )         6         668      1,870      ( 2 )       519
        Petroleum and coal products .............         -         14          -     ( 2 )           -      1,478          -     ( 2 )
								         	   				     	      
        Chemicals ...............................     ( 2 )         10          8         4       ( 2 )        862        531       315
        Plastics and rubber products ............        13         60         17         9         902      5,605      1,305       564
        Nonmetallic mineral products ............        10         58         20         9         877      5,756      1,318       694
        Primary metals ..........................     ( 2 )         40         11         7       ( 2 )      4,265        946       523
        Fabricated metal products ...............        11         38         32        12         833      3,815      2,305       972
        Machinery ...............................         9         31         12        14         765      3,091        899     1,029
        Computer and electronic products ........        15         16         22         6         897      1,290      1,678       623
        Electrical equipment and appliances .....         6         18         10         9       1,352      3,716      1,965       773
        Transportation equipment ................        29        144         52        39       6,915     34,508     11,421     9,113
        Furniture and related products ..........         8         27         13         7         644      2,769      1,253       681
        Miscellaneous manufacturing .............         5         15          9         4         316      1,719        821       457
								         	   				     	      
    Wholesale trade .............................        18         37         24         8       1,229      3,214      1,903       416
    Retail trade ................................        75        113        142        79       6,398     10,856     14,773     6,781
    Transportation and warehousing ..............        26        161        102        31       2,955     19,173     10,634     3,274
    Information .................................        26         36         33        28       5,059      6,572      8,998     3,611
    Finance and insurance .......................        24         20         24        26       1,561      1,284      1,592     1,752
    Real estate and rental and leasing ..........     ( 2 )          9      ( 2 )         3       ( 2 )      1,203      ( 2 )       194
    Professional and technical services .........        14         64         22        24         798      6,663      3,258     2,124
    Management of companies and enterprises .....         -      ( 2 )          4         4           -      ( 2 )        287       274
    Administrative and waste services ...........       119        259        155       106      12,354     27,527     12,157     8,492
    Educational services ........................     ( 2 )          5          7     ( 2 )       ( 2 )        353        456     ( 2 )
    Health care and social assistance ...........        12         35         21        15         662      2,731      1,385       938
    Arts, entertainment, and recreation .........         8         26         28         7         430      1,869      1,888       457
    Accommodation and food services .............        37        158         81        26       3,475     19,293      5,898     2,486
    Other services, except public administration          5         19         13         3         300      1,527      1,704       197
    Unclassified  ...............................         1          4          3         3          56        295        179       162
								         	   				     	      
Government ......................................        31         86         60        30       2,313      7,510      5,109     2,259
    Federal .....................................         7         18         16         4         591      1,568      1,596       238
    State .......................................        11         16         10         7         784      1,750      1,210       764
    Local .......................................        13         52         34        19         938      4,192      2,303     1,257


    1 Data were reported by all states and the District of Columbia.
    2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.   
    p = preliminary.
    NOTE: Dash represents zero.





Table 4. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, January 2004 to February 2006,
not seasonally adjusted

                                                                                   Private nonfarm                               

                                Total mass layoffs                              Extended mass layoffs                            
             Date                                        Mass layoffs         lasting more than 30 days     Realization rates(1) 

                                          Initial               Initial                      Initial                    Initial  
                                Events   claimants    Events   claimants        Events      claimants       Events     claimants 


           2004                                                                                                                

January .................         2,428    239,454     2,226     220,687                                                       
February ................           941     84,201       832      76,577                                                       
March ...................           920     92,554       847      87,782                                                       

First Quarter ...........         4,289    416,209     3,905     385,046         1,339       238,392          34.3         61.9

April ...................         1,458    157,314     1,316     142,657                                                       
May .....................           988     87,501       878      78,786                                                       
June ....................         1,379    134,588     1,077     110,804                                                       

Second Quarter ..........         3,825    379,403     3,271     332,247         1,358       254,063          41.5         76.5

July ....................         2,094    253,929     1,860     234,877                                                       
August ..................           809     69,033       745      63,876                                                       
September ...............           708     68,972       637      63,102                                                       

Third Quarter ...........         3,611    391,934     3,242     361,855           886       148,575          27.3         41.1

October .................         1,242    127,918     1,101     117,375                                                       
November ................         1,399    130,423     1,201     115,549                                                       
December ................         1,614    161,271     1,487     152,092                                                       

Fourth Quarter ..........         4,255    419,612     3,789     385,016         1,427       262,049          37.7         68.1

           2005                                                                                                                

January .................         2,564    263,952     2,421     253,409                                                       
February ................           810     74,644       722      68,372                                                       
March ...................           806     88,937       733      83,793                                                       

First Quarter ...........         4,180    427,533     3,876     405,574         1,142       185,420          29.5         45.7

April ...................         1,373    158,582     1,263     148,133                                                       
May .....................           986    101,358       891      93,332                                                       
June ....................         1,157    120,463       941     103,307                                                       

Second Quarter ..........         3,516    380,403     3,095     344,772         1,203       212,364          38.9         61.6

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       189,443          29.5         40.7

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  (2)(p) 1,299(2)(p) 178,896       (p)32.4      (p)42.0

           2006                                                                                                                

January(p) ..............         1,245    117,946     1,123     108,701                                                       
February(p) .............           719     66,555       658      62,208                                                       

    1 The event realization rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm mass layoff events lasting more than 30 days. The
initial claimant realization rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm mass layoff initial claimants associated with
layoffs lasting more than 30 days.
    2 These quarterly numbers are provisional and will be revised as more data on these layoffs become available.
Experience suggests that the number of extended mass layoff events is generally revised upwards by less than 10 percent and
the number of initial claimants associated with such events increases by 25-40 percent.
    p = preliminary.





Table 5. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance by census region and division,
not seasonally adjusted


                                                                                        Initial claimants for         
                                             Mass layoff events                        unemployment insurance        
 Census region and division                                                                                       

                                 February   December   January   February     February   December   January   February
                                   2005       2005      2006p     2006p         2005       2005      2006p     2006p  
						      	       					   	    
        United States(1) ...       810      2,323      1,245       719        74,644    254,258    117,946    66,555
						      	       					   	    
Northeast ..................       120        445        281       115        11,226     42,897     25,777    12,252
						      	       					   	    
    New England ............        17         83         25        23         2,126      9,110      1,765     3,984
    Middle Atlantic ........       103        362        256        92         9,100     33,787     24,012     8,268
						      	       					   	    
South ......................       143        371        228       149        14,788     46,303     22,194    14,941
						      	       					   	    
    South Atlantic .........        75        180        128        66         5,987     23,506     12,893     7,193
    East South Central .....        32        113         61        38         5,778     14,562      5,667     4,136
    West South Central .....        36         78         39        45         3,023      8,235      3,634     3,612
						      	       					   	    
Midwest ....................       173        942        314       168        17,129    111,662     33,750    16,622
						      	       					   	    
    East North Central .....       144        708        264       136        13,041     85,681     28,642    12,702
    West North Central .....        29        234         50        32         4,088     25,981      5,108     3,920
						      	       					   	    
West .......................       374        565        422       287        31,501     53,396     36,225    22,740
						      	       					   	    
    Mountain ...............        31         88         31        16         2,315      7,995      2,337     1,271
    Pacific ................       343        477        391       271        29,186     45,401     33,888    21,469


    1 See footnote 1, table 3.
    p = preliminary.
    NOTE:  The States (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the census divisions are: New England:
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; Middle Atlantic: New Jersey, New York, and
Pennsylvania; South Atlantic: Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina,
Virginia, and West Virginia; East South Central: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee; West South Central:
Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas; East North Central: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin; West North
Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota; Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho,
Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming; and Pacific: Alaska,  California, Hawaii,  Oregon, and Washington.





Table 6. State distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance,
not seasonally adjusted

                                                                                    Initial claimants for           
                                         Mass layoff events                        unemployment insurance           
           State                                                                                                         
                            February  December   January    February    February    December    January    February
                              2005      2005      2006p      2006p        2005        2005       2006p      2006p  

   Total(1) .............     810      2,323      1,245       719        74,644     254,258     117,946     66,555

Alabama .................       8         24          9         7           620       2,119         821        621
Alaska ..................       -          -          -     ( 2 )             -           -           -      ( 2 )
Arizona .................   ( 2 )          4          4         -         ( 2 )         387         362          -
Arkansas ................   ( 2 )          6          3     ( 2 )         ( 2 )         989         346      ( 2 )
California ..............     321        415        346       246        27,567      38,926      30,388     19,455
Colorado ................       4         16          8     ( 2 )           307       1,536         603      ( 2 )
Connecticut .............   ( 2 )          9          3         3         ( 2 )         897         215      1,353
Delaware ................   ( 2 )          -      ( 2 )         -         ( 2 )           -       ( 2 )          -
District of Columbia ....   ( 2 )      ( 2 )          -         -         ( 2 )       ( 2 )           -          -
Florida .................      36         61         30        30         2,018       5,288       1,708      2,055
Georgia .................      14         42         54        10         1,415       8,974       5,159      1,081
Hawaii ..................       3          6          5         3           210         510         282        199
Idaho ...................       6         17          6     ( 2 )           431       1,240         427      ( 2 )

Illinois ................      42        144         37        36         4,138      16,869       3,499      3,385
Indiana .................      15         98         33        16         1,248      12,226       4,053      1,736
Iowa ....................       4         61         12         8           367       7,058       1,255        620
Kansas ..................       5         18          6     ( 2 )           519       1,779         459      ( 2 )
Kentucky ................      15         62         26        20         4,585       9,866       2,152      2,653
Louisiana ...............       7         13         13        10           503         868         936        624
Maine ...................   ( 2 )          7      ( 2 )         3         ( 2 )         449       ( 2 )        338
Maryland ................   ( 2 )          -         11         3         ( 2 )           -         859        233
Massachusetts ...........       8         29         14         3           450       3,229       1,001        163
Michigan ................      26        222         89        29         2,270      30,456       8,786      2,288
Minnesota ...............       6         64         17        11         1,907       6,016       1,834      2,300
Mississippi .............       5      ( 2 )          7         5           308       ( 2 )         469        364
Missouri ................      11         63         11         7           904       7,912       1,305        541

Montana .................       3          9      ( 2 )         3           157         682       ( 2 )        173
Nebraska ................       3         20      ( 2 )         4           391       2,605       ( 2 )        280
Nevada ..................      10         24         10         6           730       2,315         724        487
New Hampshire ...........   ( 2 )         12      ( 2 )         3         ( 2 )       1,386       ( 2 )        265
New Jersey ..............      29         96         28        24         3,282       8,631       2,550      2,115
New Mexico ..............   ( 2 )          7          -     ( 2 )         ( 2 )         766           -      ( 2 )
New York ................      41         91        129        30         3,384       8,907      13,290      3,144
North Carolina ..........       7         19         10        10           777       1,999       1,113        786
North Dakota ............       -          4      ( 2 )         -             -         320       ( 2 )          -
Ohio ....................      26        133         50        23         1,855      13,059       6,484      2,772
Oklahoma ................       4          9          5         4           246         780         400        437
Oregon ..................       4         32         21         9           301       3,830       1,719        802
Pennsylvania ............      33        175         99        38         2,434      16,249       8,172      3,009

Rhode Island ............       3         17          4         9         1,135       2,441         311      1,746
South Carolina ..........       4         20          9         6           525       3,376         822        514
South Dakota ............       -          4      ( 2 )     ( 2 )             -         291       ( 2 )      ( 2 )
Tennessee ...............       4         25         19         6           265       2,408       2,225        498
Texas ...................      24         50         18        29         2,198       5,598       1,952      2,375
Utah ....................       3         11      ( 2 )     ( 2 )           252       1,069       ( 2 )      ( 2 )
Vermont .................   ( 2 )          9      ( 2 )     ( 2 )         ( 2 )         708       ( 2 )      ( 2 )
Virginia ................      11         35         12         7         1,085       3,638       3,084      2,524
Washington ..............      15         24         19        12         1,108       2,135       1,499        951
West Virginia ...........       -      ( 2 )      ( 2 )         -             -       ( 2 )       ( 2 )          -
Wisconsin ...............      35        111         55        32         3,530      13,071       5,820      2,521
Wyoming .................   ( 2 )          -          -         -         ( 2 )           -           -          -

Puerto Rico .............      15         10         12        19         1,494       1,698         964      1,962

    1 See footnote 1, table 3.
    2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.  
    p = preliminary.
    NOTE: Dash represents zero.