Washington Layoffs — September 2006
Employers in Washington posted 5 WARN Act notices in September 2006, affecting an estimated 285 workers — reflecting a cooling compared to August and up 33% versus September 2005. The average filing covered 57 workers, with 1 closure among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Information & Technology | 1 | 120 |
| Agriculture | 1 | 84 |
| Real Estate | 1 | 64 |
| Utilities | 1 | 15 |
| Manufacturing | 1 | 2 |
The Information & Technology sector saw the heaviest impact with 120 workers across 1 notice. On a related front, Agriculture reported 84 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| King | 3 | 186 |
| Okanogan | 1 | 84 |
| Kitsap | 1 | 15 |
King bore the heaviest burden, accounting for 65% of all affected workers with 186 workers across 3 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle | 1 | 120 |
| Pateros | 1 | 84 |
| Bellevue | 2 | 66 |
| Bremerton | 1 | 15 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 4 | 201 |
| Closure | 1 | 84 |
Closures accounted for 29% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DMX Music | Seattle | 120 | Layoff | |
| Chelan Fruit | Pateros | 84 | Closure | |
| Trammell Crow | Bellevue | 64 | Layoff | |
| Electric Boat | Bremerton | 15 | Layoff | |
| Sun Microsystems | Bellevue | 2 | Layoff |
The largest notice was filed by DMX Music at its Seattle facility, reporting 120 affected workers. Chelan Fruit followed with 84 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This is the third consecutive month of declining layoff activity.
The trends suggest a mixed picture for Washington's labor market, with activity diverging between monthly and annual comparisons. The Information & Technology sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Washington. 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 Washington WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.