US Layoffs — August 2023

The US labor market showed continued flux as employers filed 857 WARN Act notices in August 2023, impacting roughly 100,734 workers — representing a pullback from July and up 156% versus August 2022. Filings came from 43 states and territories, with an average of 118 workers per notice.

857
Total Notices
100,734
Workers Affected
43
States Reporting
118
Avg per Notice
245
Closures

Top States by Workers Affected

StateNoticesWorkers
Illinois5236,850
California24312,922
Maryland324,190
Nevada83,600
Indiana243,100
Washington193,034
Massachusetts262,940
Missouri42,851
North Carolina272,685
New Jersey372,573
Texas472,505
Arizona242,447
Rhode Island112,149
Florida241,784
Colorado381,765
Ohio221,728
Connecticut91,236
Wisconsin241,198
Virginia81,038
Kentucky51,027
Michigan151,022
Iowa29849
Georgia12837
Alabama6804
Pennsylvania10797
Oregon12752
Oklahoma6626
Mississippi4546
Minnesota23473
Tennessee7438
Hawaii11340
Nebraska3321
Montana4318
Idaho6257
Kansas11201
New Hampshire1164
West Virginia1145
South Carolina3141
Alaska254
North Dakota127
New Mexico10
Washington DC20
Maine30

Illinois led the nation with 36,850 workers affected across 52 notices , followed by California (12,922 workers) and Maryland (4,190 workers) .

Industry Breakdown

IndustryNoticesWorkers
Healthcare709,386
Transportation538,937
Manufacturing486,930
Other376,890
Mining & Energy31,777
Information & Technology301,642
Accommodation & Food161,448
Finance & Insurance181,164
Retail12697
Admin & Support Services3431

The Healthcare sector led the way in workforce reductions with 9,386 workers across 70 notices. In a parallel development, Transportation reported 8,937 workers.

Layoff Type Analysis

TypeNoticesWorkers
Closure24130,993
Layoff19310,771
Temporary Closure4243
Temporary Layoff119

Closures accounted for 31% of all affected workers nationally, with the majority of events being layoffs rather than full closures.

Largest Layoffs

CompanyLocationWorkersType
Yellow CorporationStatewide, Illinois2,900Closure
AGB Investigative Services, Inc7545 S. Western Ave, Illinois2,023
ASM Global (at McCormick Place)301 E. Cermak Road, Illinois2,023
Berry Global, Inc1008 Courtaulds Dr, Illinois2,023
CJ Logistics America, LLC24101 S. Bradley St, Illinois2,023
Clearwave Fiber610 Fourth Street, Illinois2,023
CVS Health2100 E. Lake Cook Road, Illinois2,023
Federal Express Corp507 N 5th Street, Illinois2,023
Menasha Packaging Company11601 S. Central Ave, Illinois2,023
Providence Life Services2681 Route 394, Illinois2,023

The single largest action involved Yellow Corporation in Statewide, Illinois, reporting 2,900 affected workers. AGB Investigative Services, Inc followed with 2,023 workers.

Trend & Outlook

The data underscores a mixed picture for the nation's labor market, with activity diverging between monthly and annual comparisons. The Healthcare sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.

This report covers all WARN Act filings with notice dates in August 2023. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act requires employers with 100+ employees to provide 60-day advance notice of mass layoffs and plant closings. Data is sourced from official state filings and updated daily by WARN Firehose. Download the full dataset or explore state-by-state data.

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