Employers in Pennsylvania posted 43 WARN Act notices in August 2002, affecting an estimated 5,543 workers — reflecting a significant uptick compared to July and up 11% versus August 2001. The average filing covered 129 workers, with 42 closures among the notices.
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Healthcare | 4 | 2,456 |
| Retail | 29 | 1,573 |
| Transportation | 2 | 1,024 |
| Mining & Energy | 1 | 181 |
| Manufacturing | 2 | 39 |
The Healthcare sector saw the heaviest impact with 2,456 workers across 4 notices. On a related front, Retail reported 1,573 workers.
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Allegheny | 7 | 1,902 |
| Berks | 2 | 924 |
| Lawrence | 1 | 450 |
| Butler | 2 | 348 |
| Greene | 3 | 272 |
Allegheny felt the sharpest impact, accounting for 34% of all affected workers with 1,902 workers across 7 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh | 4 | 1,735 |
| Leesport | 1 | 869 |
| New Castle | 1 | 450 |
| Cranberry | 2 | 348 |
| Rices Landing | 1 | 181 |
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 42 | 5,388 |
| Layoff | 1 | 155 |
The high proportion of closures (97% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in Pennsylvania's labor market.
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Francis Medical Center | Pittsburgh | 1,600 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Ames Department Stores (Leesport Distribution Center) | Leesport | 869 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| St. Francis Hospital of New Castle | New Castle | 450 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| St. Francis Hospital/St. Francis Nursing Center | Cranberry | 300 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Consolidation Coal Company (Dilworth Mine) | Rices Landing | 181 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Elan Drug Delivery, Inc | King of Prussia | 155 | Layoff | 2002-08-01 |
| Mercy Health Care Center | Nanticoke | 106 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Allegheny Ludlum | Washington | 105 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Ames Department Stores | Bethel Park | 76 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Ames Department Stores | Scranton | 71 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Ames Department Stores | Pittsburgh | 69 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Ames Department Stores | Hamlin | 68 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Ames Department Stores | Pittsburgh | 66 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Ames Department Stores | Huntingdon | 65 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
| Michael's of Oregon Co | Coatesville | 65 | Closure | 2002-08-01 |
The largest notice was filed by St. Francis Medical Center at its Pittsburgh facility, reporting 1,600 affected workers. Ames Department Stores (Leesport Distribution Center) followed with 869 workers.
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The trends suggest mounting pressure on the Pennsylvania labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Healthcare sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Pennsylvania. 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 Pennsylvania WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.
Get weekly layoff reports in your inbox
Free weekly digest of WARN Act filings and analysis.
