Employers in Wisconsin recorded 137 WARN Act notices in April 2020, covering approximately 15,085 workers — marking a sharp increase from March and up 680% versus April 2019. The average filing covered 110 workers, with 15 closures among the notices.
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Other | 30 | 7,556 |
| Manufacturing | 14 | 4,004 |
| Retail | 16 | 1,770 |
| Accommodation & Food | 7 | 709 |
| Arts & Entertainment | 1 | 300 |
| Real Estate | 2 | 298 |
| Admin & Support Services | 1 | 153 |
| Mining & Energy | 3 | 122 |
The Other sector accounted for the largest share of job cuts with 7,556 workers across 30 notices. At the same time, Manufacturing reported 4,004 workers.
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Dane | 8 | 3,686 |
| Outagamie, Winnebago | 1 | 1,546 |
| Waukesha, Milwaukee | 2 | 1,360 |
| Brown, Oconto, Door | 1 | 829 |
| Sauk | 3 | 807 |
Dane saw the most concentrated activity, accounting for 24% of all affected workers with 3,686 workers across 8 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Madison | 6 | 3,601 |
| Appleton, Greenville, Kimberly, Neenah | 1 | 1,546 |
| Waukesha, Menomonee Falls, Greenfield, Wauwatosa, New Berlin, Mukwonago | 1 | 1,100 |
| Green Bay, Brussels, Suring | 1 | 829 |
| Appleton, Brookfield, Eau Claire, Franklin, Green Bay, Janesville, Kenosha, Madison, Manitowoc, Menomonee Falls, Monona, Onalaska, Oshkosh, Racine, Rhinelander, Rice Lake, Waukesha, Wausau, Wauwatosa, West Allis, West Bend | 1 | 639 |
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 15 | 3,741 |
| Layoff | 4 | 2,296 |
Closures accounted for 25% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YMCA of the Fox Cities | Appleton, Greenville, Kimberly, Neenah | 1,546 | 2020-04-20 | |
| Sub-Zero Group Inc. - Revision 3 | Madison | 1,113 | 2020-04-13 | |
| YMCA of Greater Waukesha County | Waukesha, Menomonee Falls, Greenfield, Wauwatosa, New Berlin, Mukwonago | 1,100 | Closure | 2020-04-06 |
| Sub-Zero Group Inc. - Revision 4 | Madison | 1,097 | Layoff | 2020-04-17 |
| Sub-Zero Group Inc. - Revision 2 | Madison | 1,053 | Layoff | 2020-04-07 |
| Greater Green Bay YMCA | Green Bay, Brussels, Suring | 829 | 2020-04-06 | |
| Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc | Appleton, Brookfield, Eau Claire, Franklin, Green Bay, Janesville, Kenosha, Madison, Manitowoc, Menomonee Falls, Monona, Onalaska, Oshkosh, Racine, Rhinelander, Rice Lake, Waukesha, Wausau, Wauwatosa, West Allis, West Bend | 639 | Closure | 2020-04-06 |
| La Crosse Area Family YMCA | La Crosse, Onalaska | 562 | 2020-04-03 | |
| YMCA of the Chippewa Valley | Chippewa Falls, Eau Claire, New Auburn | 557 | Closure | 2020-04-07 |
| Glacial Community YMCA | Oconomowoc, Watertown | 542 | 2020-04-09 | |
| LSC Communications | Baraboo | 393 | 2020-04-15 | |
| Pace Industries | Grafton | 381 | 2020-04-08 | |
| Woodson YMCA | Wausau | 300 | Closure | 2020-04-06 |
| Foot Locker | Appleton, Brookfield, Glendale, Green Bay, Greendale, La Crosse, Madison, Milwaukee, Racine, Wauwatosa | 261 | 2020-04-28 | |
| Enterprise Holdings | Waukesha, Oak Creek, Milwaukee | 260 | 2020-04-29 |
Leading the list was YMCA of the Fox Cities at its Appleton, Greenville, Kimberly, Neenah facility, reporting 1,546 affected workers. Sub-Zero Group Inc. - Revision 3 followed with 1,113 workers.
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The filings reflect mounting pressure on the Wisconsin labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Other 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.
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