New York Layoffs — January 2020
Employers in New York submitted 70 WARN Act notices in January 2020, putting at risk an estimated 5,926 workers — up substantially from December and up 70% versus January 2019. The average filing covered 85 workers, with 42 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Information & Technology | 3 | 539 |
| Retail | 4 | 437 |
| Transportation | 1 | 378 |
| Healthcare | 3 | 103 |
| Accommodation & Food | 1 | 54 |
| Admin & Support Services | 1 | 35 |
| Education | 1 | 33 |
The Information & Technology sector emerged as the hardest-hit sector with 539 workers across 3 notices. Separately, Retail reported 437 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| New York | 26 | 3,048 |
| Bronx | 7 | 794 |
| Nassau | 8 | 738 |
| Kings | 4 | 284 |
| Suffolk | 2 | 236 |
New York absorbed the greatest share of layoffs, accounting for 51% of all affected workers with 3,048 workers across 26 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| New York | 26 | 3,048 |
| Bronx | 7 | 794 |
| Brooklyn | 4 | 284 |
| Westbury | 2 | 255 |
| Hicksville | 2 | 188 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 28 | 3,853 |
| Closure | 42 | 2,073 |
Closures accounted for 35% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
Largest Layoffs
Topping the list was ViacomCBS Inc. (and its subsidiaries) at its New York facility, reporting 708 affected workers. ViacomCBS Inc. (and its subsidiaries) followed with 669 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
These figures highlight mounting pressure on the New York labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Information & Technology sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by New York. 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 New York WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.