Wisconsin Layoffs — May 2016

Employers in Wisconsin submitted 27 WARN Act notices in May 2016, putting at risk an estimated 1,754 workers — up substantially from April. The average filing covered 65 workers, with 7 closures among the notices.

Industry Breakdown

Industry	Notices	Workers
Manufacturing	4	535
Other	6	388
Finance & Insurance	5	140
Accommodation & Food	1	78
Retail	2	36
Healthcare	1	5

The Manufacturing sector emerged as the hardest-hit sector with 535 workers across 4 notices. Separately, Other reported 388 workers.

Geographic Hotspots

County	Notices	Workers
Jefferson	2	496
Winnebago	2	460
Dane	8	336
Waukesha	2	156
Milwaukee	1	130

Jefferson bore the heaviest burden, accounting for 28% of all affected workers with 496 workers across 2 notices.

City	Notices	Workers
Jefferson	2	496
Menasha	2	460
Madison	6	276
Waukesha	2	156
Milwaukee	1	130

Layoff Type Analysis

Type	Notices	Workers
Closure	7	627
Layoff	1	45

Closures accounted for 36% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.

Largest Layoffs

Company	City	Workers	Type	Date
Tyson Foods, Inc	Jefferson	248	Closure	2016-05-09
Tyson Foods	Jefferson	248		2016-05-09
Graphic Packaging International, Inc	Menasha	230	Closure	2016-05-18
Graphic Packaging International, Inc	Menasha	230		2016-05-18
Joy Global, Inc	Milwaukee	130		2016-05-11
Sodexo	Waukesha	78	Closure	2016-05-18
Sodexo	Waukesha	78		2016-05-18
Anchor Bank FSB - Main Street	Madison	46		2016-05-19
Anchor Bank FSB - East Towne Blvd	Madison	46		2016-05-19
Anchor Bank FSB - City View Dr	Madison	46		2016-05-19
Anchor Bank FSB - City View Dr	Madison	46		2016-05-19
Anchor Bank FSB - East Towne Blvd	Madison	46		2016-05-19
Anchor Bank FSB - Main Street	Madison	46		2016-05-19
Sealed Air Corporation - Revision 1	Mount Pleasant	45	Layoff	2016-05-05
Sealed Air Corporation	Mount Pleasant	45		2016-05-05

Topping the list was Tyson Foods, Inc at its Jefferson facility, reporting 248 affected workers. Tyson Foods followed with 248 workers.

Trend & Outlook

This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.

These figures highlight mounting pressure on the Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin. 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 Wisconsin WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.