Washington Layoffs — January 2020
Employers in Washington posted 6 WARN Act notices in January 2020, affecting an estimated 726 workers — reflecting a significant uptick compared to December and up 1110% versus January 2019. The average filing covered 121 workers, with 4 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Healthcare | 1 | 463 |
| Retail | 1 | 114 |
| Manufacturing | 1 | 78 |
| Information & Technology | 1 | 52 |
| Professional Services | 1 | 11 |
| Real Estate | 1 | 8 |
The Healthcare sector saw the heaviest impact with 463 workers across 1 notice. On a related front, Retail reported 114 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Yakima | 1 | 463 |
| Skagit | 1 | 114 |
| King | 2 | 86 |
| Pierce | 1 | 52 |
| Island | 1 | 11 |
Yakima was the epicenter of layoff activity, accounting for 64% of all affected workers with 463 workers across 1 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Yakima | 1 | 463 |
| Burlington | 1 | 114 |
| Seattle | 1 | 78 |
| Puyallup | 1 | 52 |
| Pacific Beach and Whidbey Island | 1 | 11 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 4 | 707 |
| Layoff | 2 | 19 |
The high proportion of closures (97% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in Washington's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Astria Regional Medical Center | Yakima | 463 | Closure | |
| Macy's | Burlington | 114 | Closure | |
| Zume | Seattle | 78 | Closure | |
| Comcast | Puyallup | 52 | Closure | |
| Aecom | Pacific Beach and Whidbey Island | 11 | Layoff | |
| Oakwood Worldwide (US) | Tukwila | 8 | Layoff |
The largest notice was filed by Astria Regional Medical Center at its Yakima facility, reporting 463 affected workers. Macy's followed with 114 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The trends suggest mounting pressure on the Washington labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Healthcare sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Washington. 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 Washington WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.