The US labor market showed signs of rising strain as employers posted 106 WARN Act notices in September 2006, affecting an estimated 17,294 workers — reflecting a significant uptick compared to August and up 102% versus September 2005. Filings came from 15 states and territories, with an average of 163 workers per notice.
| State | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | 8 | 2,656 |
| New Jersey | 7 | 2,649 |
| Florida | 9 | 2,481 |
| Georgia | 8 | 1,423 |
| Alabama | 6 | 1,412 |
| Ohio | 9 | 1,315 |
| New York | 8 | 1,225 |
| Missouri | 6 | 1,179 |
| Michigan | 5 | 737 |
| Pennsylvania | 11 | 570 |
| Texas | 14 | 522 |
| Kansas | 6 | 513 |
| Maryland | 2 | 326 |
| Washington | 5 | 285 |
| Iowa | 2 | 1 |
Oklahoma led the nation with 2,656 workers affected across 8 notices , followed by New Jersey (2,649 workers) and Florida (2,481 workers) .
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Accommodation & Food | 1 | 2,167 |
| Manufacturing | 12 | 2,012 |
| Transportation | 1 | 1,750 |
| Other | 6 | 1,038 |
| Construction | 2 | 397 |
| Healthcare | 5 | 284 |
| Retail | 3 | 199 |
| Information & Technology | 2 | 168 |
| Agriculture | 1 | 140 |
| Real Estate | 1 | 134 |
The Accommodation & Food sector saw the heaviest impact with 2,167 workers across 1 notice. On a related front, Manufacturing reported 2,012 workers.
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 27 | 4,204 |
| Layoff | 20 | 1,531 |
Closures accounted for 24% of all affected workers nationally, with the majority of events being layoffs rather than full closures.
| Company | Location | Workers | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sands Hotel & Casino | Atlantic City, New Jersey | 2,167 | |
| Barton Protective Services | Fort Lauderdale, Florida | 1,750 | |
| Swift Galey Midland/sixth Avenue | Columbus/midland, Georgia | 800 | |
| Bridgestone/Firestone | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | 700 | |
| Bridgestone/Firestone | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | 700 | |
| GM Hamtramck Assembly Plant | Detroit, Michigan | 581 | Layoff |
| Rowe Furniture, Inc | Poplar Bluff, Missouri | 471 | Closure |
| Lear Siegler Services, Inc | Fort Rucker, Alabama | 421 | Closure |
| Briggs and Stratton Corporation | Rolla, Missouri | 395 | Closure |
| ConAgra Foods, Inc | Archbold, Ohio | 390 |
The largest notice was filed by Sands Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey, reporting 2,167 affected workers. Barton Protective Services followed with 1,750 workers.
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The trends suggest mounting pressure on the the nation labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Accommodation & Food sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This report covers all WARN Act filings with notice dates in September 2006. 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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