The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) recently reported that employers initiated 1,851 mass layoffs in the second quarter (April-June) of 2010, causing 338,064 workers to lose their jobs for at least 31 days.
Each layoff measured involved at least 50 workers per employer. Related worker separations (job losses) were measured by initial claims for unemployment benefits.
Mass layoffs and worker job losses in the second quarter (Q2) of 2010 significantly decreased from Q2 2009, when both numbers hit record-level highs since the BLS started tracking them in 1995.
56 percent of employers reporting mass layoffs in Q2 2010 anticipated recalling at least some laid-off workers, up from 42 percent in Q1 2010 and only 37 percent in Q2 a year ago. Of those employers, 44 percent indicated that they would extend recall offers to all of the workers whom they laid off, while 79 percent indicated that they would do so to at least half. 74 percent expected to recall within six months.
Manufacturing, an industry that is often a gauge of labor-market health and one that has been among the hardest hit, reported the fewest mass layoffs and worker job losses in Q2 2010 than in any second quarter since the BLS started tracking the numbers. The industry reported the same in Q1 2010.
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Manufacturing accounted for 16 percent of the Q2 2010 mass layoffs and 15 percent of the worker job losses, the smallest proportions in any quarter since the BLS started tracking the numbers.
That’s good news, but manufacturing and the broader labor market still have a long way to go. The labor market must add more than 100,000 jobs per month just to keep pace with population growth, but it continues to lose more jobs than it gains.
Construction, another industry among the hardest hit, accounted for 15 percent of mass layoff and 10 percent of worker job losses in Q2, offsetting the industry’s March-April job gains. Most of the layoffs were in specialty trade contracting and heavy and civil engineering construction.
Among the four main geographic regions, the Midwest and the West reported the highest number of worker job losses from mass layoffs in Q2, as the two regions did in Q1. Among the states, California reported the highest Q2 job losses followed by Illinois, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio. The good news is that 42 states and the District of Columbia reported fewer laid-off workers than in Q2 a year ago, with California, Florida and Ohio leading the pack.
The national unemployment rate averaged 9.5 percent in Q2 2010 (not seasonally adjusted), down from 9.7 in Q1, but up from 9.1 in Q2 a year earlier. The unemployment rate soared to an average of 10.03 percent in Q4 2009, its highest level in 26 years.
If you’re a recent victim of a layoff or a reduction in work hours, then you might be eligible for unemployment benefits or extended unemployment benefits through the state unemployment office. You might also be eligible to continue your employer-provided group health insurance benefits through COBRA. To look for a new job, start at the Job Search page.
Did you know? President Obama retroactively restored previously-authorized extended unemployment benefits (Emergency Unemployment Compensation) on July 22, 2010.
For more details about Q2 2010 mass layoffs and related worker job losses, read the Extended Mass Layoffs news release from the BLS. The BLS intends to release monthly mass layoff numbers for July 2010 on August 20. To receive notification like this of the next monthly and quarterly mass-layoff news releases, subscribe to Employee Rights Blog for free.
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Quarterly mass layoff numbers do not amount to the total of monthly mass layoff numbers reported by the BLS for the same quarter. That’s because the BLS counts only layoffs of 31 days or more in its quarterly report, but it counts layoffs of any duration in its monthly report. All numbers associated with mass layoffs are subject to revision by the BLS.
The mass layoffs chart pictured above was provided by the BLS.
