US Layoffs — August 2005
The US labor market showed signs of rising strain as employers filed 157 WARN Act notices in August 2005, impacting roughly 13,717 workers — representing a notable rise over July and up 3% versus August 2004. Filings came from 13 states and territories, with an average of 87 workers per notice.
Top States by Workers Affected
| State | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Georgia | 70 | 4,429 |
| Florida | 12 | 1,811 |
| Pennsylvania | 17 | 1,454 |
| Illinois | 8 | 1,232 |
| New Jersey | 5 | 1,169 |
| Texas | 15 | 860 |
| Ohio | 5 | 817 |
| Maryland | 4 | 714 |
| Michigan | 6 | 398 |
| Washington | 6 | 346 |
| Alabama | 3 | 336 |
| Iowa | 1 | 151 |
| Kansas | 5 | 0 |
Georgia led the nation with 4,429 workers affected across 70 notices , followed by Florida (1,811 workers) and Pennsylvania (1,454 workers) .
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 48 | 5,653 |
| Retail | 69 | 3,623 |
| Finance & Insurance | 11 | 1,425 |
| Information & Technology | 11 | 1,055 |
| Arts & Entertainment | 1 | 415 |
| Transportation | 4 | 268 |
| Accommodation & Food | 1 | 264 |
| Government | 2 | 237 |
| Healthcare | 3 | 172 |
| Professional Services | 3 | 164 |
The Manufacturing sector led the way in workforce reductions with 5,653 workers across 48 notices. In a parallel development, Retail reported 3,623 workers.
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 25 | 2,792 |
| Layoff | 25 | 1,839 |
Closures accounted for 20% of all affected workers nationally, with the majority of events being layoffs rather than full closures.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | Location | Workers | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glass Group | Millville, New Jersey | 600 | |
| Mci | Alpharetta, Georgia | 587 | |
| Abn-Amro | Chicago, Illinois | 420 | Layoff |
| Titan Cruise Lines | St. Petersburg, Florida | 415 | |
| Atlantic Sugar Associ | Belle Glade, Florida | 344 | |
| Mci | Hunt Valley, Maryland | 306 | Closure |
| Carlisle Engineered Products | Lake City, Pennsylvania | 295 | Closure |
| US Agri-Chemicals | Fort Meade, Florida | 281 | |
| Bmk | Carrollton, Texas | 279 | |
| Pfaltzgraff | Thomasville, Pennsylvania | 270 | Layoff |
The single largest action involved Glass Group in Millville, New Jersey, reporting 600 affected workers. Mci followed with 587 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The data underscores 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 August 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, which also tracks SEC 8-K filings, bankruptcy proceedings, H-1B visa petitions, and unemployment claims across all six datasets. API access and data exports available.