Employers in Michigan posted 22 WARN Act notices in October 2008, affecting an estimated 6,014 workers — reflecting a significant uptick compared to September and up 158% versus October 2007. The average filing covered 273 workers, with 15 closures among the notices.
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 2 | 582 |
| Construction | 1 | 121 |
The Manufacturing sector saw the heaviest impact with 582 workers across 2 notices. On a related front, Construction reported 121 workers.
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Oakland | 3 | 1,771 |
| Kent | 2 | 1,672 |
| Wayne | 2 | 625 |
| Macomb | 7 | 609 |
| Hillsdale | 1 | 133 |
Oakland was the epicenter of layoff activity, accounting for 29% of all affected workers with 1,771 workers across 3 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Grand Rapids | 1 | 1,500 |
| Auburn Hills | 1 | 1,500 |
| Chesterfield Towns | 1 | 780 |
| Detroit | 1 | 500 |
| Fraser | 4 | 235 |
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 15 | 3,600 |
| Layoff | 7 | 2,414 |
The high proportion of closures (60% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in Michigan's labor market.
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GM Grand Rapids Metal Center | Grand Rapids | 1,500 | Closure | 2008-10-13 |
| Chrysler Corporation | Auburn Hills | 1,500 | Layoff | 2008-10-24 |
| Cadence Innovation | Chesterfield Towns | 780 | Closure | 2008-10-31 |
| GM Hamtramck Assembly Plant | Detroit | 500 | Layoff | 2008-10-16 |
| Cadence Innovation | Fraser | 195 | Closure | 2008-10-31 |
| Cadence Innovation | Clinton Township | 186 | Closure | 2008-10-31 |
| TrimQuest | Walker | 172 | Closure | 2008-10-03 |
| Cadence Innovation | Troy | 150 | Closure | 2008-10-31 |
| Cadence Innovation | Hillsdale | 133 | Closure | 2008-10-31 |
| Johnson Controls | Rockwood | 125 | Layoff | 2008-10-24 |
| B&V Construction | Wixom | 121 | Closure | 2008-10-13 |
| Johnson Controls, Inc | Croswell | 120 | Closure | 2008-10-09 |
| Visteon (ACH) | Saline | 120 | Layoff | 2008-10-22 |
| FlexNGate | Warren | 106 | Layoff | 2008-10-27 |
| International Paper Company | Warren | 82 | Closure | 2008-10-06 |
The largest notice was filed by GM Grand Rapids Metal Center at its Grand Rapids facility, reporting 1,500 affected workers. Chrysler Corporation followed with 1,500 workers.
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The trends suggest mounting pressure on the Michigan labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Manufacturing sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Michigan. 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 Michigan 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.
