The US labor market showed signs of rising strain as employers logged 547 WARN Act notices in January 2009, involving roughly 58,877 workers — climbing above December and up 187% versus January 2008. Filings came from 27 states and territories, with an average of 108 workers per notice.
| State | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| California | 191 | 12,264 |
| Texas | 62 | 5,511 |
| New York | 62 | 4,717 |
| Pennsylvania | 23 | 3,789 |
| Arizona | 17 | 3,137 |
| Kansas | 10 | 3,122 |
| Michigan | 15 | 3,112 |
| Georgia | 13 | 3,077 |
| Florida | 23 | 2,695 |
| Ohio | 17 | 2,559 |
| New Jersey | 17 | 2,216 |
| Washington | 10 | 2,040 |
| Indiana | 17 | 1,944 |
| Oklahoma | 8 | 1,414 |
| Missouri | 8 | 1,367 |
| Kentucky | 11 | 1,112 |
| Alabama | 5 | 937 |
| Maryland | 9 | 803 |
| Louisiana | 4 | 751 |
| Iowa | 6 | 616 |
| Delaware | 8 | 360 |
| Idaho | 2 | 342 |
| Vermont | 2 | 334 |
| South Dakota | 2 | 320 |
| Utah | 3 | 214 |
| Rhode Island | 1 | 121 |
| Washington DC | 1 | 3 |
California led the nation with 12,264 workers affected across 191 notices , followed by Texas (5,511 workers) and New York (4,717 workers) .
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 36 | 4,940 |
| Retail | 47 | 4,164 |
| Other | 35 | 3,398 |
| Finance & Insurance | 35 | 2,514 |
| Information & Technology | 22 | 1,939 |
| Healthcare | 11 | 1,642 |
| Transportation | 10 | 941 |
| Professional Services | 9 | 881 |
| Admin & Support Services | 2 | 863 |
| Wholesale Trade | 5 | 681 |
The Manufacturing sector dominated layoff filings with 4,940 workers across 36 notices. Meanwhile, Retail reported 4,164 workers.
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 112 | 11,782 |
| Layoff | 59 | 8,658 |
Closures accounted for 20% of all affected workers nationally, with the majority of events being layoffs rather than full closures.
| Company | Location | Workers | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cessna | Wichita, Kansas | 2,800 | |
| Freeport-McMoRan Morenci, Inc | Morenci, Arizona | 1,550 | |
| Cooper Tire & Rubber Company | Albany, Georgia | 1,268 | |
| GM Lansing Delta Township | Lansing, Michigan | 1,246 | Layoff |
| Microsoft | Redmond, Washington | 872 | Layoff |
| GM Lordstown | Lordstown, Ohio | 793 | |
| Elwood Staffing/Honda Plant | Lincoln, Alabama | 706 | Layoff |
| United | San Francisco, California | 598 | |
| Sony | Mt. Pleasant, Pennsylvania | 560 | Closure |
| Metro | St. Louis, Missouri | 551 | Layoff |
The biggest impact was at Cessna in Wichita, Kansas, reporting 2,800 affected workers. Freeport-McMoRan Morenci, Inc followed with 1,550 workers.
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
This data points to 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 January 2009. 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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