Wisconsin Layoffs — March 2026
Employers in Wisconsin reported 10 WARN Act notices in March 2026, displacing an estimated 1,413 workers — signaling an acceleration from February and up 1809% versus March 2025. The average filing covered 141 workers, with 5 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Wholesale Trade | 1 | 443 |
| Information & Technology | 1 | 313 |
| Manufacturing | 3 | 292 |
| Healthcare | 1 | 178 |
| Utilities | 1 | 54 |
| Professional Services | 1 | 46 |
The Wholesale Trade sector topped the list of affected industries with 443 workers across 1 notice. Notably, Information & Technology reported 313 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Racine | 2 | 615 |
| Calumet | 1 | 313 |
| Manitowoc | 1 | 178 |
| Fond du Lac | 1 | 100 |
| Jefferson | 1 | 55 |
Racine felt the sharpest impact, accounting for 44% of all affected workers with 615 workers across 2 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Sturtevant | 1 | 443 |
| Appleton | 1 | 313 |
| Manitowoc | 1 | 178 |
| Racine | 1 | 172 |
| Fond Du Lac | 1 | 100 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 5 | 1,088 |
| Layoff | 3 | 259 |
The high proportion of closures (77% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in Wisconsin's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Natural Foods | Sturtevant | 443 | Closure | |
| Charter Communications | Appleton | 313 | Closure | |
| Lakeshore Community Health Care | Manitowoc | 178 | Closure | |
| Cree Lighting | Racine | 172 | Layoff | |
| Wells Vehicle Electronics | Fond Du Lac | 100 | Closure | |
| Daybreak Foods, Inc.* The company provided a separate communication with the breakdown of the number affected at each site | Palmyra | 55 | Layoff | |
| Midwest Energy Resources | Superior | 54 | Closure | |
| Artisans Inc. - Revision 1 | Glen Flora | 46 | ||
| Daybreak Foods, Inc.* The company provided a separate communication with the breakdown of the number affected at each site | Whitewater | 32 | Layoff | |
| Ahlstrom Mosinee LLC - Revision 1 | Mosinee | 20 |
The most significant filing came from United Natural Foods at its Sturtevant facility, reporting 443 affected workers. Charter Communications followed with 313 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
The numbers illustrate mounting pressure on the Wisconsin labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Wholesale Trade 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.