The US labor market showed signs of rising strain as employers posted 74 WARN Act notices in January 1999, affecting an estimated 7,209 workers — reflecting a significant uptick compared to December and up 385% versus January 1998. Filings came from 6 states and territories, with an average of 97 workers per notice.
| State | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | 19 | 2,281 |
| Texas | 20 | 1,700 |
| Ohio | 10 | 1,554 |
| Kansas | 11 | 595 |
| Alabama | 6 | 577 |
| Kentucky | 8 | 502 |
Florida led the nation with 2,281 workers affected across 19 notices , followed by Texas (1,700 workers) and Ohio (1,554 workers) .
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 10 | 1,284 |
| Healthcare | 2 | 480 |
| Real Estate | 2 | 457 |
| Information & Technology | 1 | 326 |
| Retail | 6 | 305 |
| Mining & Energy | 1 | 190 |
| Finance & Insurance | 3 | 188 |
| Transportation | 2 | 169 |
| Government | 3 | 55 |
The Manufacturing sector saw the heaviest impact with 1,284 workers across 10 notices. On a related front, Healthcare reported 480 workers.
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 10 | 757 |
| Layoff | 9 | 322 |
Closures accounted for 11% of all affected workers nationally, with the majority of events being layoffs rather than full closures.
| Company | Location | Workers | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida Department of Children & Families | Clearwater, Florida | 350 | |
| APAC TeleServices, Inc | Boynton Beach, Florida | 326 | |
| LTV Steel | Cleveland, Ohio | 325 | |
| DeGeorge Home Alliance, Inc | Boca Raton, Florida | 300 | |
| Sallie Mae | Lawrence, Kansas | 275 | |
| Russell | Marianna, Florida | 246 | |
| Tokheim Equipment Corporation | Bonham, Texas | 200 | |
| Washington Steel Corp | Massillon, Ohio | 200 | |
| Dresser Oil & Tools | Dallas, Texas | 190 | |
| Carlisle Container Manufacturing Corp | Green Cove Springs, Florida | 185 |
The largest notice was filed by Florida Department of Children & Families in Clearwater, Florida, reporting 350 affected workers. APAC TeleServices, Inc followed with 326 workers.
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
The trends suggest mounting pressure on the the nation labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Manufacturing sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This report covers all WARN Act filings with notice dates in January 1999. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act requires employers with 100+ employees to provide 60-day advance notice of mass layoffs and plant closings. Data is sourced from official state filings and updated daily by WARN Firehose. Download the full dataset or explore state-by-state data.
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