Technical information:  (202) 691-6392     USDL 05-307
http://www.bls.gov/mls/
                                           For release: 10:00 A.M. EST
Media contact:                691-5902     Thursday, February 24, 2005


                       MASS LAYOFFS IN JANUARY 2005
   
   In January 2005, employers took 1,457 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 150,990,
on a seasonally adjusted basis.  (See table 1.)  The number of layoff
events rose by 246 from December and was the highest for any month since
January 2004.  The number of initial claims due to mass layoff actions grew
by 31,341 over the month and was the highest for any month since October
2003.  There were 379 mass layoff events in the manufacturing sector during
January 2005, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 58,908 initial claims, both
higher than a month earlier.
   
   The number of mass layoff events and initial claims reached their
respective highs, on a seasonally adjusted basis, of 2,409 and 277,214
in September 2001.  The numbers of seasonally adjusted events and initial
claims were also highest for the private nonfarm sector in September 2001
(2,235 and 263,192).  The seasonally adjusted number of manufacturing e-
vents reached its peak (944) in November 2001, while the seasonally ad-
justed number of initial claims for manufacturing reached its high point
in June 1998, at 190,810.  (See table 1.)

    -------------------------------------------------------------------
   |                Addition of Seasonally Adjusted Data               |
   |                                                                   |
   |    Beginning with this release, the Bureau of Labor Statistics    |
   | is publishing seasonally adjusted mass layoff data series as well |
   | as an analysis of significant over-the-month changes in those     |
   | series.  Seasonal adjustment accounts for the effects of events   |
   | that follow a more or less regular pattern each year, making it   |
   | easier to observe the cyclical and other nonseasonal movements.   |
   | Six mass layoff series are being seasonally adjusted--the number  |
   | of layoff events and the number of associated initial claims for  |
   | unemployment insurance for the U.S. total, the private nonfarm    |
   | sector, and the manufacturing sector.  With this release, histor- |
   | ical data for each of these series are available from April 1995  |
   | forward at http://data.bls.gov/PDQ/outside.jsp?survey=ml.  Addi-  |
   | tional information is contained in the Technical Note.  Staff may |
   | be reached at 202-691-6392.                                       |
    ------------------------------------------------------------------- 

                                  - 2 -

Table A.  Industries with the largest mass-layoff initial claims in
January 2005p
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                          | Initial|      January peak
                 Industry                 | claims |--------------------------
                                          |        |   Year  | Initial claims
------------------------------------------|--------|---------|----------------
Temporary help services ..................| 17,160 |    1998 |     26,224
School and employee bus transportation ...| 14,526 |    2005 |     14,526
Highway, street, and bridge construction .|  9,040 |    2000 |      9,680
Automobile manufacturing .................|  6,071 |    2001 |     21,093
Professional employer organizations ......|  5,258 |    2005 |      5,258
Light truck and utility vehicle mfg. .....|  5,110 |    2001 |      8,450
Motor home manufacturing .................|  4,261 |    2005 |      4,261
All other plastics product manufacturing .|  4,078 |    2005 |      4,078
Discount department stores ...............|  3,569 |    2004 |      6,063
Motor vehicle seating and interior trim   |        |         |
 mfg. ....................................|  3,552 |    2005 |      3,552
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  p=preliminary.

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
   
   The 10 industries reporting the highest number of mass-layoff initial
claims, not seasonally adjusted, accounted for 72,625 initial claims in
January, 28 percent of the total.  (See table A.)  Temporary help services,
with 17,160 initial claims, and school and employee bus transportation,
with 14,526, together accounted for 12 percent of all initial claims in
January.  Five of these industries reached a series peak for January, on a
not seasonally adjusted basis, in 2005.
   
   The manufacturing sector accounted for 32 percent of all mass layoff
events and 41 percent of all initial claims filed in January.  A year
earlier, in January 2004, manufacturing comprised 35 percent of events
and 37 percent of initial claims.  Within manufacturing, almost one-third
of the claimants were in transportation equipment (35,324), mostly automo-
tive-related.  The next largest numbers of claimants in this sector were
in food processing (8,703) and wood product manufacturing (8,243).
(See table 3.)
   
   Construction accounted for 18 percent of events and 13 percent of
initial claims filed in January 2005, with layoffs mainly in highway,
street, and bridge construction.  Twelve percent of all layoff events
and 11 percent of initial claims filed during the month were from ad-
ministrative and waste services, largely in temporary help services.
Transportation and warehousing accounted for 8 percent each of events
and initial claims in January, mostly from school and employee bus
transportation.  Retail trade accounted for 8 percent of events and
7 percent of initial claims, primarily in discount department stores.
An additional 5 percent of events and 4 percent of initial claims were
from accommodation and food services, mostly among food service con-
tractors.
   
   Government establishments accounted for 3 percent of events and
2 percent of initial claims filed in January, mostly in executive,
legislative, and general government agencies.
   
   Compared with January 2004, the largest increases in initial claims
were reported in transportation equipment manufacturing (+20,217), transit
and ground passenger transportation (+5,926), specialty trade contractors
(+5,087), and heavy and civil engineering construction (+5,004).  The larg-
est over-the-year decreases in initial claims were reported in general
merchandise stores (-4,221) and textile mills (-3,741).

                                  - 3 -

Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

   Among the four census regions, the highest number of initial claims in
January due to mass layoffs was in the Midwest, 90,975.  (See table 5.)
Transportation equipment manufacturing and administrative and support
services accounted for 32 percent of all mass-layoff initial claims in that
region during the month.  The West had the second largest number of initial
claims, 60,985, followed by the South, with 57,126, and the Northeast, with
54,886.
   
   The number of initial claimants in mass layoffs rose over the year
in three of the four regions.  The largest increase was in the Midwest
(+22,571), followed by the Northeast (+4,216) and the South (+4,011).
The West had an over-the-year decrease in initial claims (-6,300).  Six
of the nine geographic divisions had over-the-year increases in the number
of initial claims associated with mass layoffs, with the largest increases
in the East North Central (+13,926) and West North Central (+8,645) divi-
sions.  Over-the-year decreases occurred in the Pacific (-5,475) and South
Atlantic (-2,525) divisions.
   
   Among the states, California recorded the highest number of initial
claims filed due to mass layoff events in January (47,222), mostly in
administrative and support services and specialty trade contractors.
New York had the next highest with 22,185 initial claims reported, fol-
lowed by Michigan (20,127), Ohio (18,132), Pennsylvania (16,167), and
Wisconsin (14,437).  These six states accounted for 55 percent of all
mass layoff events and 52 percent of all initial claims for unemployment
insurance.  (See table 6.)
   
   Indiana had the largest over-the-year increase in the number of initial
claims (+5,809), followed by Iowa (+4,983) and Kentucky (+4,192).  The lar-
gest over-the-year decreases occurred in California (-4,173) and Georgia
(-4,092).
   
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 February 2005 is scheduled to be released
on Thursday, March 24, 2005.
   
   
   
   
   
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 begins 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,
February 2001 to January 2005, seasonally adjusted

                                      Total             Private nonfarm        Manufacturing

             Date
                                           Initial               Initial               Initial
                                 Events   claimants    Events   claimants    Events   claimants  

             2001           

February ...................     1,891     252,895     1,662     232,501       826     123,757
March ......................     1,771     202,154     1,578     186,283       797     108,244
April ......................     1,620     199,764     1,483     186,013       773     106,045
May ........................     1,679     207,811     1,523     193,998       755     110,133
June .......................     1,610     195,617     1,433     180,821       739     104,155
July .......................     1,704     200,376     1,568     188,468       719      93,867
August .....................     1,744     206,528     1,586     195,051       788     106,632
September ..................     2,409     277,214     2,235     263,192       834     108,615
October ....................     2,109     233,569     1,986     223,808       897     118,136
November ...................     2,094     218,273     1,935     207,129       944     114,556
December ...................     1,799     194,759     1,658     183,178       722      93,193

             2002           

January ....................     1,801     208,835     1,659     195,862       739      96,689
February ...................     1,773     204,089     1,620     192,450       701      91,285
March ......................     1,674     187,924     1,517     175,998       610      75,367
April ......................     1,685     186,574     1,497     169,228       591      69,481
May ........................     1,720     191,841     1,558     178,993       611      74,809
June .......................     1,615     170,307     1,438     156,759       551      73,064
July .......................     1,637     179,165     1,457     164,398       568      73,230
August .....................     1,475     160,855     1,330     149,148       562      65,564
September ..................     1,909     217,475     1,742     202,640       607      79,413
October ....................     1,716     178,860     1,524     162,411       598      71,765
November ...................     1,644     176,462     1,500     165,578       607      70,640
December ...................     1,825     193,627     1,661     179,368       638      86,714

             2003           

January ....................     1,383     134,258     1,193     120,033       402      49,440
February ...................     1,771     185,502     1,589     173,392       643      75,331
March ......................     1,773     176,540     1,577     161,662       618      75,289
April ......................     1,735     176,645     1,574     165,416       646      86,857
May ........................     1,709     186,158     1,532     173,123       624      87,615
June .......................     1,704     163,646     1,515     148,547       636      70,888
July .......................     1,653     163,061     1,444     147,883       590      71,203
August .....................     1,502     170,353     1,364     156,731       540      71,944
September ..................     1,559     145,961     1,370     132,233       471      56,274
October ....................     1,541     154,908     1,312     136,604       412      49,518
November ...................     1,400     137,651     1,241     125,115       397      46,955
December ...................     1,425     141,780     1,281     129,464       420      53,436

             2004           

January ....................     1,458     146,147     1,257     127,917       413      50,074
February ...................     1,237     126,421     1,091     115,302       358      36,783
March ......................     1,348     142,480     1,211     134,118       409      63,380
April ......................     1,422     149,049     1,239     132,180       360      43,158
May ........................     1,178     114,247     1,016     100,499       314      37,950
June .......................     1,375     141,300     1,215     129,466       361      47,548
July .......................     1,363     139,374     1,200     127,011       390      49,276
August .....................     1,392     130,483     1,208     115,035       330      36,422
September ..................     1,281     123,761     1,153     114,223       332      45,917
October ....................     1,274     125,414     1,145     116,042       350      44,908
November ...................     1,361     130,168     1,201     117,545       402      43,504
December(p) ................     1,211     119,649     1,064     108,157       283      34,940

             2005           

January(p) .................     1,457     150,990     1,321     140,826       379      58,908


    p = preliminary. 






Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance,
February 2001 to January 2005, not seasonally adjusted            

                                      Total             Private nonfarm        Manufacturing

             Date
                                           Initial               Initial               Initial
                                 Events   claimants    Events   claimants    Events   claimants
                                
	     2001

February ...................     1,501     172,908     1,285     156,183       576      79,784
March ......................     1,527     171,466     1,371     158,108       659      86,874
April ......................     1,450     176,265     1,353     166,167       608      78,845
May ........................     1,434     159,365     1,331     151,186       528      64,887
June .......................     2,107     253,826     1,784     226,022       737     116,005
July .......................     2,117     273,807     1,952     259,128     1,144     168,877
August .....................     1,490     166,148     1,386     158,307       603      79,515
September ..................     1,327     160,402     1,214     151,161       485      58,544
October ....................     1,831     215,483     1,676     202,053       742     107,030
November ...................     2,721     295,956     2,373     270,268     1,122     151,969
December ...................     2,440     268,893     2,319     259,497     1,103     136,820

             2002 

January ....................     2,146     263,777     2,028     252,245       892     128,825
February ...................     1,382     138,808     1,253     129,849       481      58,784
March ......................     1,460     161,316     1,335     151,305       500      59,613
April ......................     1,506     165,814     1,378     153,216       461      50,897
May ........................     1,723     179,799     1,571     166,801       488      52,720
June .......................     1,584     162,189     1,266     136,424       336      42,130
July .......................     2,042     245,294     1,819     226,892       907     135,271
August .....................     1,248     128,103     1,151     119,874       427      48,668
September ..................     1,062     124,522       957     114,736       352      43,755
October ....................     1,497     171,100     1,270     149,327       493      64,655
November ...................     2,153     240,171     1,860     216,237       719      92,712
December ...................     2,474     264,158     2,324     252,807       984     126,826
                       
             2003 

January ....................     2,315     225,430     2,130     210,918       822      90,244
February ...................     1,363     124,965     1,222     116,264       435      48,161
March ......................     1,207     113,026     1,099     104,468       390      41,063
April ......................     1,581     161,412     1,470     152,937       499      62,349
May ........................     1,703     174,204     1,538     160,729       499      61,278
June .......................     1,691     157,552     1,336     127,743       389      40,845
July .......................     2,087     226,435     1,815     206,901       946     136,410
August .....................     1,258     133,839     1,163     124,131       405      52,620
September ..................       868      82,647       756      73,914       271      31,428
October ....................     1,523     158,240     1,265     137,706       438      53,741
November ...................     1,438     138,543     1,234     123,524       408      48,419
December ...................     1,929     192,633     1,793     182,750       648      77,915
                       
             2004 

January ....................     2,428     239,454     2,226     220,687       848      89,551
February ...................       941      84,201       832      76,577       240      23,043
March ......................       920      92,554       847      87,782       258      34,686
April ......................     1,458     157,314     1,316     142,657       343      36,172
May ........................       988      87,501       878      78,786       219      22,141
June .......................     1,379     134,588     1,077     110,804       222      27,307
July .......................     2,094     253,929     1,860     234,877       885     145,895
August .....................       809      69,033       745      63,876       194      17,698
September ..................       708      68,972       637      63,102       189      25,808
October ....................     1,242     127,918     1,101     117,375       372      48,265
November ...................     1,399     130,423     1,201     115,549       412      44,243
December(p) ................     1,614     161,271     1,487     152,092       436      50,726

             2005 

January(p) .................     2,564     263,952     2,421     253,409       823     108,985


    p = preliminary. 





Table 3. Industry distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance
                                                 
                                                                                                    Initial claimants for          
                                                             Mass layoff events                     unemployment insurance         
                     Industry                    

                                                   January  November  December January    January    November   December    January
                                                     2004     2004     2004p    2005p       2004       2004       2004p      2005p 

              Seasonally adjusted 

      Total .....................................    1,458    1,361    1,211    1,457      146,147    130,168    119,649    150,990

 Total, private nonfarm .........................    1,257    1,201    1,064    1,321      127,917    117,545    108,157    140,826
  Manufacturing .................................      413      402      283      379       50,074     43,504     34,940     58,908
           
            Not seasonally adjusted
     
      Total(1) ..................................    2,428    1,399    1,614    2,564      239,454    130,423    161,271    263,952

Total, private ..................................    2,339    1,336    1,527    2,488      228,578    125,008    154,496    257,761
  Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting ....      113      135       40       67        7,891      9,459      2,404      4,352

 Total, private nonfarm .........................    2,226    1,201    1,487    2,421      220,687    115,549    152,092    253,409
  Mining ........................................       17        7       18       17        1,329        701      1,492      1,272
  Utilities .....................................        3    ( 2 )        6    ( 2 )          345      ( 2 )      1,395      ( 2 )
  Construction ..................................      324      231      342      470       23,405     17,884     27,433     33,590
  Manufacturing .................................      848      412      436      823       89,551     44,243     50,726    108,985
      Food ......................................      108       77       59       88       11,083      7,717      6,309      8,703
      Beverage and tobacco products .............        9        6        7       11          834        387        497        888
      Textile mills .............................       48       15       15       17        6,376      1,767      1,249      2,635
      Textile product mills .....................       19        7        8       19        1,933        638        932      2,677
      Apparel ...................................       44       20       16       38        5,836      2,154      2,720      3,893
      Leather and allied products ...............       11    ( 2 )        4    ( 2 )        1,195      ( 2 )        757      ( 2 )
      Wood products .............................       46       32       25       61        5,651      3,437      2,346      8,243
      Paper .....................................       20        7        7       13        1,847        530        575      1,048
      Printing and related support activities ...       24        9        3       15        2,147        610        331      1,237
      Petroleum and coal products ...............        5    ( 2 )       11    ( 2 )          362      ( 2 )      1,126      ( 2 )

      Chemicals .................................       23        7        8       15        2,384        525        669      1,294
      Plastics and rubber products ..............       50       17       30       58        4,821      1,385      2,327      6,006
      Nonmetallic mineral products ..............       42       24       32       55        3,813      2,126      3,168      4,815
      Primary metals ............................       44       18       23       39        4,579      1,616      2,246      4,359
      Fabricated metal products .................       72       28       34       59        6,960      2,548      2,546      5,796
      Machinery .................................       39       25       16       48        3,017      4,583      2,218      6,828
      Computer and electronic products ..........       44       27       19       30        3,561      2,534      2,039      2,918
      Electrical equipment and appliances .......       23       13       13       39        2,263      1,757      3,741      5,662
      Transportation equipment ..................      114       53       85      165       15,107      6,961     12,547     35,324
      Furniture and related products ............       36       16       13       30        3,541      1,548      1,096      4,757
      Miscellaneous manufacturing ...............       27        5        8       14        2,241        975      1,287      1,154

  Wholesale trade ...............................       27       24       18       35        2,391      2,196      1,853      2,954
  Retail trade ..................................      188       65       80      198       22,145      6,498      8,092     18,822
  Transportation and warehousing ................      128       32       96      197       14,038      2,900     10,687     22,226
  Information ...................................       67       45       30       47        9,394      5,492      8,002      6,141
  Finance and insurance .........................       41       22       18       35        3,547      1,442      1,455      3,289
  Real estate and rental and leasing ............       15    ( 2 )        4       16        1,202      ( 2 )        249      1,491
  Professional and technical services ...........       47       22       48       48        4,288      2,303      5,955      4,729
  Management of companies and enterprises .......        3    ( 2 )        3        5          895      ( 2 )        296        358
  Administrative and waste services .............      285      187      163      302       27,855     17,370     13,192     28,865
  Educational services ..........................        8    ( 2 )        4    ( 2 )          553      ( 2 )        245      ( 2 )
  Health care and social assistance .............       35       27       28       35        2,991      2,012      2,539      2,739
  Arts, entertainment, and recreation ...........       41       25       30       40        3,149      2,126      1,967      4,558
  Accommodation and food services ...............      113       81      146      117        9,614      8,995     14,923      9,364
  Other services, except public administration ..       26       10       13       28        2,992        647      1,342      3,408
  Unclassified ..................................       10        1        4        3        1,003         40        249        264

 Government .....................................       89       63       87       76       10,876      5,415      6,775      6,191
  Federal .......................................       26       12        8       23        2,725      1,290        842      1,920
  State .........................................       13       25       16       18        1,405      2,342      1,472      1,736
  Local .........................................       50       26       63       35        6,746      1,783      4,461      2,535


    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. 





Table 4. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, January 2003 to January 2005, 
not seasonally adjusted

                                                                                   Private nonfarm                               

                                 Total mass layoffs                             Extended mass layoffs           Realization
             Date                                       Mass layoffs          lasting more than 30 days          rates (1)   

                                          Initial               Initial                     Initial                    Initial  
                                Events   claimants    Events   claimants        Events     claimants        Events    claimants 
             2003           

January ....................     2,315     225,430     2,130     210,918
February ...................     1,363     124,965     1,222     116,264
March ......................     1,207     113,026     1,099     104,468

First Quarter ..............     4,885     463,421     4,451     431,650         1,502       297,608          33.7         68.9

April ......................     1,581     161,412     1,470     152,937
May ........................     1,703     174,204     1,538     160,729
June .......................     1,691     157,552     1,336     127,743

Second Quarter .............     4,975     493,168     4,344     441,409         1,799       348,966          41.4         79.1

July .......................     2,087     226,435     1,815     206,901
August .....................     1,258     133,839     1,163     124,131
September ..................       868      82,647       756      73,914

Third Quarter ..............     4,213     442,921     3,734     404,946         1,190       227,909          31.9         56.3

October ....................     1,523     158,240     1,265     137,706
November ...................     1,438     138,543     1,234     123,524
December ...................     1,929     192,633     1,793     182,750

Fourth Quarter .............     4,890     489,416     4,292     443,980         1,690       326,328          39.4         73.5

             2004           

January ....................     2,428     239,454     2,226     220,687
February ...................       941      84,201       832      76,577
March ......................       920      92,554       847      87,782

First Quarter ..............     4,289     416,209     3,905     385,046         1,339    (r)238,305          34.3      (r)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      (r)1,358   (r) 253,231          41.5      (r)76.2

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        (r)887    (r)145,889       (r)27.4      (r)40.3

October ....................     1,242     127,918     1,101     117,375
November ...................     1,399     130,423     1,201     115,549
December(p) ................     1,614     161,271     1,487     152,092

Fourth Quarter(p) ..........     4,255     419,612     3,789     385,016      (2)1,295    (2)178,834          34.2         46.4

             2005           

January(p) .................     2,564     263,952     2,421     253,409


    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. 
    r = revised.
    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
                             
                              January    November   December   January      January    November    December     January
                                2004       2004      2004p      2005p         2004       2004        2004p       2005p

      United States(1) ....    2,428      1,399      1,614      2,564       239,454     130,423     161,271     263,952

Northeast .................      498        198        285        556        50,650      19,346      27,387      54,866

  New England .............       64         26         47         88         5,689       1,998       4,894       8,009
  Middle Atlantic .........      434        172        238        468        44,961      17,348      22,493      46,857

South .....................      501        255        288        490        53,115      24,573      29,948      57,126

  South Atlantic ..........      244        116        140        216        25,490      10,333      13,620      22,965
  East South Central ......      153         42         76        173        17,176       4,651       8,995      20,528
  West South Central ......      104         97         72        101        10,449       9,589       7,333      13,633

Midwest ...................      688        389        588        774        68,404      39,650      61,277      90,975

  East North Central ......      574        306        414        601        58,674      29,986      42,598      72,600
  West North Central ......      114         83        174        173         9,730       9,664      18,679      18,375

West ......................      741        557        453        744        67,285      46,854      42,659      60,985

  Mountain ................       63         59         60         60         6,292       6,470       5,295       5,467
  Pacific .................      678        498        393        684        60,993      40,384      37,364      55,518


    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         
                           January    November    December     January       January    November    December     January
                             2004       2004       2004p        2005p          2004       2004        2004p       2005p

   Total(1) .............    2,428       1,399       1,614       2,564       239,454     130,423     161,271     263,952

Alabama .................      112           9          22          85        13,754         915       2,244      12,310
Alaska ..................        6           7       ( 2 )       ( 2 )           429         686       ( 2 )       ( 2 )
Arizona .................        7           3           5           7           645         255         358         642
Arkansas ................    ( 2 )          11           3           6         ( 2 )       1,477         218         622
California ..............      576         429         344         602        51,395      34,089      32,279      47,222
Colorado ................       11           7          13          10         1,043         533       1,347         871
Connecticut .............        7       ( 2 )           5           7           669       ( 2 )         510         629
Delaware ................    ( 2 )           -           -       ( 2 )         ( 2 )           -           -       ( 2 )
District of Columbia ....    ( 2 )           -       ( 2 )       ( 2 )         ( 2 )           -       ( 2 )       ( 2 )
Florida .................       60          43          44          62         4,044       3,107       3,567       4,800
Georgia .................       92          19          37          62        10,525       1,809       3,082       6,433
Hawaii ..................        4       ( 2 )           -           7           296       ( 2 )           -         643
Idaho ...................       16          16          10           9         1,125       1,888         736         719

Illinois ................       88          63          99          91         9,610       6,462      10,222       8,596
Indiana .................       58          40          68          72         5,499       5,129       9,331      11,308
Iowa ....................       29          14          36          48         2,267       1,159       3,442       7,250
Kansas ..................       14           6          16          34           954       1,090       1,864       3,061
Kentucky ................       10          19          38          52         1,030       2,160       5,474       5,222
Louisiana ...............       14          19          16          24           908       1,789       1,297       3,417
Maine ...................       14           4           7          10         1,463         328         570         776
Maryland ................       19           4           7          23         2,009         347         924       1,902
Massachusetts ...........       30          15          15          44         2,375       1,108       2,085       4,116
Michigan ................      171          63         115         182        16,615       5,032      10,841      20,127
Minnesota ...............       30          35          55          33         2,688       4,260       6,064       2,857
Mississippi .............        6           -       ( 2 )       ( 2 )           384           -       ( 2 )       ( 2 )
Missouri ................       26          23          41          44         2,422       2,773       5,231       3,711

Montana .................        4           7           6           6           270       1,023         474         511
Nebraska ................       11       ( 2 )          18          10           984       ( 2 )       1,375       1,212
Nevada ..................       14          19          17          25         2,225       2,219       1,630       2,481
New Hampshire ...........    ( 2 )           -           5           7         ( 2 )           -         423         741
New Jersey ..............       73          42          46          94         7,191       5,386       4,979       8,505
New Mexico ..............        6           4           5       ( 2 )           328         384         319       ( 2 )
New York ................      194          55          88         180        24,376       4,362       8,101      22,185
North Carolina ..........       18          24          16          21         1,829       2,294       1,187       1,897
North Dakota ............    ( 2 )           3           6       ( 2 )         ( 2 )         238         526       ( 2 )
Ohio ....................      141          49          67         140        15,169       4,219       5,310      18,132
Oklahoma ................       13           9          13          14         1,517         845       1,041       2,735
Oregon ..................       70          31          23          50         6,681       2,886       2,798       5,427
Pennsylvania ............      167          75         104         194        13,394       7,600       9,413      16,167

Rhode Island ............        5           4           7          14           332         372         628       1,357
South Carolina ..........       26          13          11          13         3,563       1,619       1,679       1,371
South Dakota ............    ( 2 )       ( 2 )       ( 2 )       ( 2 )         ( 2 )       ( 2 )       ( 2 )       ( 2 )
Tennessee ...............       25          14          15          33         2,008       1,576       1,219       2,771
Texas ...................       74          58          40          57         7,571       5,478       4,777       6,859
Utah ....................        5       ( 2 )           4           -           656       ( 2 )         431           -
Vermont .................        5       ( 2 )           8           6           573       ( 2 )         678         390
Virginia ................       24          10          21          30         3,061         976       2,836       4,620
Washington ..............       22          29          24          22         2,192       2,536       2,149       1,939
West Virginia ...........    ( 2 )           3           3       ( 2 )         ( 2 )         181         276       ( 2 )
Wisconsin ...............      116          91          65         116        11,781       9,144       6,894      14,437
Wyoming .................        -       ( 2 )           -           -             -       ( 2 )           -           -

Puerto Rico .............        5           6          10          25           511         562         706       3,080


    1 See footnote 1, table 3.
    2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. 
    p = preliminary.
    NOTE: Dash represents zero.