Maryland Layoffs — October 2000
Employers in Maryland submitted 5 WARN Act notices in October 2000, putting at risk an estimated 840 workers — up substantially from September. The average filing covered 168 workers, with 4 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Wholesale Trade | 2 | 559 |
| Retail | 1 | 126 |
| Manufacturing | 1 | 95 |
| Information & Technology | 1 | 60 |
The Wholesale Trade sector emerged as the hardest-hit sector with 559 workers across 2 notices. Separately, Retail reported 126 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Howard | 1 | 457 |
| Prince George's | 1 | 126 |
| Frederick | 1 | 102 |
| Baltimore | 1 | 95 |
| Allegany | 1 | 60 |
Howard bore the heaviest burden, accounting for 54% of all affected workers with 457 workers across 1 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Columbia | 1 | 457 |
| Landover | 1 | 126 |
| Frederick | 1 | 102 |
| Sparrows Pt | 1 | 95 |
| Cumberland | 1 | 60 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 4 | 780 |
| Layoff | 1 | 60 |
The high proportion of closures (93% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in Maryland's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chesapeake Dist. Services | Columbia | 457 | Closure | |
| JCPenney | Landover | 126 | Closure | |
| Tech Data | Frederick | 102 | Closure | |
| Thompson Steel | Sparrows Pt | 95 | Closure | |
| Biospherics | Cumberland | 60 | Layoff |
Topping the list was Chesapeake Dist. Services at its Columbia facility, reporting 457 affected workers. JCPenney followed with 126 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
These figures highlight mounting pressure on the Maryland labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Wholesale Trade sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Maryland. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires employers with 100+ employees to provide 60-day advance notice of mass layoffs and plant closings. Data is updated daily by WARN Firehose. View all Maryland WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.