Employers in Washington reported 20 WARN Act notices in March 2023, displacing an estimated 1,967 workers — signaling an acceleration from February and up 228% versus March 2022. The average filing covered 98 workers, with 3 closures among the notices.
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Retail | 2 | 198 |
| Professional Services | 1 | 86 |
The Retail sector topped the list of affected industries with 198 workers across 2 notices. Notably, Professional Services reported 86 workers.
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| King | 5 | 432 |
| Snohomish | 1 | 198 |
| Spokane | 1 | 86 |
King felt the sharpest impact, accounting for 22% of all affected workers with 432 workers across 5 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Redmond, Bellevue, Issaquah | 1 | 689 |
| Redmond, Bellevue | 1 | 559 |
| Seattle | 2 | 205 |
| Everett | 1 | 198 |
| Bothell | 1 | 90 |
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 7 | 1,581 |
| Closure | 3 | 386 |
Closures accounted for 20% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft | Redmond, Bellevue, Issaquah | 689 | Layoff | 2023-03-06 |
| Microsoft | Redmond, Bellevue | 559 | Layoff | 2023-03-27 |
| Walmart | Everett | 198 | Closure | 2023-03-23 |
| Blue Nile, Inc | Seattle | 119 | Closure | 2023-03-23 |
| Astound Broadband | Bothell | 90 | Layoff | 2023-03-17 |
| Novo Nordisk Research Center Seattle, Inc | Seattle | 86 | Layoff | 2023-03-01 |
| Ace Hardware Corporation | Spokane | 86 | Layoff | 2023-03-17 |
| Ingersoll Rand | Kent | 69 | Closure | 2023-03-07 |
| Compass Group USA, Inc | Redmond | 68 | Layoff | 2023-03-08 |
| Aspiration Partners, Inc | King and Snohomish Counties | 3 | Layoff | 2023-03-24 |
| Novo Nordisk | Purchase dataset for city details | N/A | 2023-03-01 | |
| Microsoft | Purchase dataset for city details | N/A | 2023-03-06 | |
| Ingersoll Rand | Purchase dataset for city details | N/A | 2023-03-07 | |
| Compass Group USA | Purchase dataset for city details | N/A | 2023-03-08 | |
| Astound Broadband | Purchase dataset for city details | N/A | 2023-03-17 |
The most significant filing came from Microsoft at its Redmond, Bellevue, Issaquah facility, reporting 689 affected workers. Microsoft followed with 559 workers.
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
The numbers illustrate mounting pressure on the Washington labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Retail 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.
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