The US labor market showed signs of rising strain as employers submitted 100 WARN Act notices in March 2005, putting at risk an estimated 23,182 workers — up substantially from February and up 30% versus March 2004. Filings came from 12 states and territories, with an average of 232 workers per notice.
| State | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Kansas | 10 | 8,320 |
| Michigan | 11 | 5,390 |
| Florida | 13 | 1,788 |
| New Jersey | 11 | 1,574 |
| Ohio | 9 | 1,401 |
| Texas | 12 | 1,138 |
| Maryland | 5 | 661 |
| Washington DC | 6 | 607 |
| Georgia | 6 | 599 |
| Pennsylvania | 7 | 574 |
| Washington | 7 | 574 |
| Alabama | 3 | 556 |
Kansas led the nation with 8,320 workers affected across 10 notices , followed by Michigan (5,390 workers) and Florida (1,788 workers) .
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 7 | 1,430 |
| Information & Technology | 8 | 955 |
| Other | 5 | 661 |
| Finance & Insurance | 3 | 547 |
| Accommodation & Food | 4 | 483 |
| Transportation | 3 | 479 |
| Retail | 4 | 271 |
| Mining & Energy | 1 | 251 |
| Healthcare | 3 | 172 |
| Construction | 1 | 160 |
The Manufacturing sector emerged as the hardest-hit sector with 1,430 workers across 7 notices. Separately, Information & Technology reported 955 workers.
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 23 | 6,612 |
| Layoff | 21 | 1,750 |
Closures accounted for 29% of all affected workers nationally, with the majority of events being layoffs rather than full closures.
| Company | Location | Workers | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Boeing Company | Wichita, Kansas | 8,116 | |
| General Motors Lansing Car Assem | Lansing, Michigan | 2,200 | Closure |
| General Motors (Lansing Car Ass'y) | Lansing, Michigan | 1,775 | Closure |
| Citicorp Credit Services Inc. - Houston | Houston, Texas | 712 | |
| Steelcase | Grand Rapids, Michigan | 600 | Closure |
| Coupon Services | Jersey City, New Jersey | 434 | |
| PNC Bank | Riverdale, Maryland | 403 | Layoff |
| Conagra Foods | Montgomery, Alabama | 365 | Closure |
| Citicorp Data Services | Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey | 363 | |
| Cordis Corporation | Miami Lakes, Florida | 300 |
Topping the list was The Boeing Company in Wichita, Kansas, reporting 8,116 affected workers. General Motors Lansing Car Assem followed with 2,200 workers.
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
These figures highlight 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 March 2005. 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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