Employers in Virginia submitted 16 WARN Act notices in March 2017, putting at risk an estimated 1,036 workers — up substantially from February and up 93% versus March 2016. The average filing covered 65 workers, with 10 closures among the notices.
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Transportation | 3 | 728 |
| Retail | 11 | 189 |
The Transportation sector emerged as the hardest-hit sector with 728 workers across 3 notices. Separately, Retail reported 189 workers.
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Botetourt | 2 | 728 |
| Alexandria City | 2 | 125 |
| Fairfax | 2 | 72 |
| Norfolk City | 2 | 36 |
| Chesterfield | 2 | 20 |
Botetourt absorbed the greatest share of layoffs, accounting for 70% of all affected workers with 728 workers across 2 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Roanoke | 2 | 728 |
| Alexandria | 2 | 125 |
| Fairfax | 2 | 72 |
| Norfolk, Portsmouth, Hampton, Chesapeake | 1 | 44 |
| Norfolk | 2 | 36 |
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 1 | 364 |
| Closure | 10 | 308 |
Closures accounted for 30% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FreightCar America Inc | Roanoke | 364 | 2017-03-29 | |
| FreightCar America, Inc | Roanoke | 364 | Layoff | 2017-03-29 |
| Macy's | Alexandria | 119 | Closure | 2017-03-06 |
| Dollar Express | Norfolk, Portsmouth, Hampton, Chesapeake | 44 | Closure | 2017-03-30 |
| Bebe Stores Inc | Fairfax | 36 | Closure | 2017-03-25 |
| Bebe Stores, Inc | Fairfax | 36 | Closure | 2017-03-25 |
| Bebe Stores Inc | Norfolk | 18 | Closure | 2017-03-25 |
| Bebe Stores, Inc | Norfolk | 18 | Closure | 2017-03-25 |
| Dollar Express | Richmond & Lynchburg | 11 | Closure | 2017-03-30 |
| Bebe Stores Inc | Richmond | 10 | Closure | 2017-03-25 |
| Bebe Stores, Inc | Richmond | 10 | Closure | 2017-03-25 |
| Dollar Express | Alexandria | 6 | Closure | 2017-03-30 |
| Macy's | Purchase dataset for city details | N/A | 2017-03-06 | |
| Bebe Stores, Inc | Purchase dataset for city details | N/A | 2017-03-25 | |
| FreightCar America, Inc | Purchase dataset for city details | N/A | 2017-03-29 |
Topping the list was FreightCar America Inc at its Roanoke facility, reporting 364 affected workers. FreightCar America, Inc followed with 364 workers.
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
These figures highlight mounting pressure on the Virginia labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Transportation sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Virginia. 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 Virginia WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.
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