For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Friday, October 22, 2010 USDL-10-1452
Technical information: (202) 691-6392 * mlsinfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/mls
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 * PressOffice@bls.gov
(NOTE: Monthly national Mass Layoffs data for April through September 2010
have been found to contain errors in each of the 6 seasonally adjusted series
appearing in the charts, the text, and tables 1 and 3. Not seasonally adjusted
data and regional office news releases are not affected. The corrected
seasonally adjusted estimates for April through September are located in the
Mass Layoffs database at www.bls.gov/mls/#data.)
MASS LAYOFFS -- SEPTEMBER 2010
Employers took 1,486 mass layoff actions in September that resulted in the
separation of 133,379 workers, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new fil-
ings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the U.S. Bureau
of Labor Statistics reported today. Each action involved at least 50 persons
from a single employer. The number of mass layoff events in September de-
creased by 60 from the prior month, the third consecutive over-the-month de-
crease. The number of associated initial claims decreased by 16,813 to its
lowest level since April 2008. In September, 345 mass layoff events were re-
ported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 34,168
initial claims. Both figures declined over the month. (See table 1.)
The national unemployment rate was 9.6 percent in September, seasonally ad-
justed, unchanged from the prior month and down from 9.8 percent a year ear-
lier. In September, total nonfarm payroll employment decreased by 95,000 over
the month but increased by 344,000 from a year earlier.
Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
The number of mass layoff events in September was 920 on a not seasonally ad-
justed basis; the number of associated initial claims was 77,654. (See table
2.) Over the year, the number of mass layoff events decreased by 451, and as-
sociated initial claims decreased by 45,523. Thirteen of the 19 major industry
sectors in the private economy reported over-the-year decreases in initial
claims, led by manufacturing. Agriculture reached a September program low in
terms of average weekly claims. (Average weekly analysis mitigates the effect
of differing lengths of months. See the Technical Note. Data began in
1995.)
The manufacturing sector accounted for 20 percent of all mass layoff events
and 25 percent of initial claims filed in September. A year earlier, manufac-
turing made up 33 percent of events and 42 percent of initial claims. Within
manufacturing, the number of claimants in September was greatest in transpor-
tation equipment and food. (See table 3.) Twenty of the 21 manufacturing sub-
sectors experienced over-the-year decreases in initial claims, led by machin-
ery.
Government registered an over-the-year increase in mass layoff initial claims.
(See table 3.) Year-to-date initial claim totals through September for govern-
ment are the highest on record (with data available back to 1996), reflecting
layoffs in educational services and the completion of work on the decennial
census.
The six-digit industry with the largest number of initial claims in September
was temporary help services. (See table A.) Of the 10 detailed industries in
table A, transportation program administration reached a program high number
of claims for the month of September. The table includes both publicly and pri-
vately owned entities.
Table A. Industries with the largest number of mass layoff initial claims in September
2010, not seasonally adjusted
September peak
Industry
Initial claims Year Initial claims
Temporary help services (1) ................ 4,710 2001 12,752
Professional employer organizations (1) .... 2,259 2008 4,520
Supermarkets and other grocery stores ...... 2,081 2005 4,873
Motion picture and video production ........ 1,583 1997 11,176
Warehouse clubs and supercenters ........... 1,429 2009 1,705
Transportation program administration ...... (2) 2010 (2)
Full-service restaurants ................... 1,353 2005 5,554
Elementary and secondary schools ........... 1,338 2005 15,815
Casino hotels .............................. 1,317 2001 9,453
Colleges and universities .................. 1,303 2005 3,441
1 See the Technical Note for more information on these industries.
2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.
Geographic Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
All four regions and 8 of the 9 divisions experienced over-the-year decreases
in initial claims due to mass layoffs in September. Among the census regions,
the Midwest registered the largest over-the-year declines in initial claims.
Of the geographic divisions, the East North Central and the Pacific had the lar-
gest over-the-year declines in initial claims. (See table 5.)
California recorded the highest number of initial claims in September, followed
by Florida, Pennsylvania, New York, and Illinois. Thirty-one states experienced
over-the-year decreases in initial claims, led by California, Illinois, and Mich-
igan. (See table 6.) The District of Columbia, North Dakota, South Dakota, West
Virginia, and Wyoming matched September program lows for average weekly initial
claims, while Idaho, Montana, and North Carolina reached program highs for the
month in terms of average weekly initial claims.
Note
The monthly data series in this release cover mass layoffs of 50 or more workers
beginning in a given month, regardless of the duration of the layoffs. For pri-
vate nonfarm establishments, information on the length of the layoff is obtained
later and issued in a quarterly release that reports on mass layoffs lasting more
than 30 days (referred to as "extended mass layoffs"). The quarterly release pro-
vides more information on the industry classification and location of the estab-
lishment and on the demographics of the laid-off workers. Because monthly figures
include short-term layoffs of 30 days or less, the sum of the figures for the 3
months in a quarter will be higher than the quarterly figure for mass layoffs of
more than 30 days. (See table 4.) See the Technical Note for more detailed defi-
nitions.
___________
The Extended Mass Layoffs news release for the Third Quarter 2010 is scheduled
to be released on Friday, November 12, 2010, at 10:00 a.m. (EST). The Mass
Layoffs news release for October is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, November
23, 2010, at 10:00 a.m. (EST).
Technical Note
The Mass Layoff Statistics (MLS) program is a federal-state program
that uses a standardized automated approach to identifying, describing,
and tracking the effects of major job cutbacks, using data from each
state's unemployment insurance database. Each month, states report on
employers which have at least 50 initial claims filed against them during
a consecutive 5-week period. These employers then are contacted by the
state agency to determine whether these separations lasted 31 days or
longer, and, if so, other information concerning the layoff is collected.
States report on layoffs lasting more than 1 month on a quarterly basis.
A given month contains an aggregation of the weekly unemployment
insurance claims filings for the Sunday through Saturday weeks in that
month. All weeks are included for the particular month, except if the
first day of the month falls on Saturday. In this case, the week is
included in the prior month's tabulations. This means that some months
will contain 4 weeks and others, 5 weeks. The number of weeks in a given
month may be different from year to year, and the number of weeks in a
year may vary. Therefore, analysis of over-the-month and over-the-year
change in not seasonally adjusted series should take this calendar effect
into consideration.
The MLS program resumed operations in April 1995 after it had been
terminated in November 1992 due to lack of funding. Prior to April 1995,
monthly layoff statistics were not available.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay
Service: (800) 877-8339.
Definitions
Employer. Employers in the MLS program include those covered by state
unemployment insurance laws. Information on employers is obtained from the
Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, which is adminis-
tered by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Industry. Employers are classified according to the 2007 version of the
North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). For temporary help
and professional employers organization industries, monthly MLS-related
statistics generally reflect layoffs related to underlying client companies
in other industries. An individual layoff action at a client company can
be small, but when initial claimants associated with many such layoffs are
assigned to a temporary help or professional employer organization firm, a
mass layoff event may trigger.
Initial claimant. A person who files any notice of unemployment to
initiate a request either for a determination of entitlement to and
eligibility for compensation, or for a subsequent period of unemployment
within a benefit year or period of eligibility.
Mass layoff event. Fifty or more initial claims for unemployment insur-
ance benefits filed against an employer during a 5-week period, regardless
of duration.
Seasonal adjustment
Effective with the release of data for January 2005, BLS began publish-
ing six seasonally adjusted monthly MLS series. The six series are the
numbers of mass layoff events and mass layoff initial claims for the total,
private nonfarm, and manufacturing sectors.
Seasonal adjustment is the process of estimating and removing the effect
on time series data of regularly recurring seasonal events such as changes
in the weather, holidays, and the beginning and ending of the school year.
The use of seasonal adjustment makes it easier to observe fundamental changes
in time series, particularly those associated with general economic expan-
sions and contractions.
The MLS data are seasonally adjusted using the X-12-ARIMA seasonal adjust-
ment method on a concurrent basis. Concurrent seasonal adjustment uses all
available monthly estimates, including those for the current month, in devel-
oping seasonal adjustment factors. Revisions to the most recent 5 years
of seasonally adjusted data will be made once a year with the issuance of
December data. Before the data are seasonally adjusted, prior adjustments
are made to the original data to adjust them for differences in the number
of weeks used to calculate the monthly data. Because weekly unemployment
insurance claims are aggregated to form monthly data, a particular month's
value could be calculated with 5 weeks of data in 1 year and 4 weeks in
another. The effects of these differences could seriously distort the sea-
sonal factors if they were ignored in the seasonal adjustment process. These
effects are modeled in the X-12-ARIMA program and are permanently removed from
the final seasonally adjusted series.
Table 1. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, October 2006 to
September 2010, seasonally adjusted
(NOTE: Monthly national Mass Layoffs data for April through September 2010 have been found
to contain errors in each of the 6 seasonally adjusted series appearing in the charts, the
text, and tables 1 and 3. Not seasonally adjusted data and regional office news releases are
not affected. The corrected seasonally adjusted estimates for April through September are
located in the Mass Layoffs database at www.bls.gov/mls/#data.)
Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing
Date
Initial Initial Initial
Events claimants Events claimants Events claimants
2006
October .................... 1,208 123,691 1,094 115,102 409 53,957
November ................... 1,244 135,465 1,128 125,976 413 58,509
December ................... 1,227 134,176 1,123 124,570 376 51,403
2007
January .................... 1,264 130,834 1,113 119,874 404 55,217
February ................... 1,191 121,289 1,075 112,607 374 54,581
March ...................... 1,225 126,391 1,113 117,760 386 48,298
April ...................... 1,268 129,098 1,135 118,175 362 43,205
May ........................ 1,172 118,648 1,070 111,103 345 44,391
June ....................... 1,241 131,394 1,125 122,123 338 37,931
July ....................... 1,274 130,331 1,169 122,381 403 55,973
August ..................... 1,247 126,108 1,158 118,575 323 34,902
September .................. 1,255 123,632 1,160 116,744 436 51,814
October .................... 1,370 137,108 1,248 128,387 449 58,360
November ................... 1,415 148,952 1,289 139,665 424 58,543
December ................... 1,569 155,095 1,448 145,666 483 60,368
2008
January .................... 1,481 151,269 1,348 140,570 436 57,147
February ................... 1,578 162,152 1,432 150,712 470 60,276
March ...................... 1,487 151,539 1,372 141,574 436 56,919
April ...................... 1,327 133,318 1,201 122,651 460 59,377
May ........................ 1,604 170,619 1,465 160,529 468 62,345
June ....................... 1,674 170,329 1,523 158,084 501 68,403
July ....................... 1,531 152,447 1,389 141,707 461 61,417
August ..................... 1,845 189,798 1,711 179,737 607 78,172
September .................. 2,222 235,755 2,049 220,832 634 81,989
October .................... 2,287 239,768 2,125 226,098 721 95,301
November ................... 2,489 240,181 2,334 227,368 929 107,072
December ................... 2,461 243,505 2,277 229,171 962 115,961
2009
January .................... 2,279 251,807 2,115 238,990 764 109,124
February ................... 2,737 289,162 2,592 274,040 1,186 141,264
March ...................... 2,913 295,970 2,715 279,671 1,202 146,381
April ...................... 2,663 263,162 2,461 247,329 1,033 125,093
May ........................ 2,794 306,788 2,589 289,012 1,183 145,166
June ....................... 2,598 260,596 2,371 241,864 1,072 135,844
July ....................... 2,039 196,578 1,818 176,542 565 66,918
August ..................... 2,480 238,911 2,244 218,425 798 87,201
September .................. 2,326 221,639 2,109 204,462 783 90,440
October .................... 2,055 205,502 1,856 187,880 594 65,801
November ................... 1,813 163,823 1,650 151,810 485 54,858
December ................... 1,726 153,127 1,542 138,747 433 44,072
2010
January .................... 1,761 182,261 1,585 168,466 486 62,556
February ................... 1,570 155,718 1,406 142,240 376 43,100
March ...................... 1,628 150,864 1,432 136,446 356 39,290
April ...................... 1,856 200,870 1,686 185,150 448 63,616
May ........................ 1,412 135,789 1,200 119,822 266 22,577
June ....................... 1,647 145,538 1,436 127,928 298 29,384
July ....................... 1,609 143,703 1,369 121,770 307 33,381
August ..................... 1,546 150,192 1,359 130,660 403 46,540
September .................. 1,486 133,379 1,289 115,598 345 34,168
Table 2. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, October 2006 to
September 2010, not seasonally adjusted
Total Private nonfarm Manufacturing
Date
Initial Initial Initial
Events claimants Events claimants Events claimants
2006
October .................... 964 98,804 820 88,133 311 46,737
November ................... 1,315 136,186 1,172 125,009 455 58,473
December ................... 2,249 254,503 2,126 244,783 735 105,462
2007
January .................... 1,407 134,984 1,263 124,475 456 53,615
February ................... 935 86,696 861 82,097 273 36,170
March ...................... 1,082 123,974 1,015 118,431 367 49,886
April ...................... 1,219 127,444 1,115 118,040 309 35,229
May ........................ 923 85,816 856 81,153 224 26,527
June ....................... 1,599 172,810 1,318 148,669 313 36,571
July ....................... 1,599 175,419 1,450 164,939 684 101,390
August ..................... 963 93,458 908 88,345 220 23,361
September .................. 717 67,385 667 64,026 246 29,381
October .................... 1,083 108,455 929 97,716 338 50,918
November ................... 1,799 198,220 1,593 181,184 514 75,413
December ................... 2,167 224,214 2,071 216,898 699 91,754
2008
January .................... 1,647 154,503 1,520 144,191 488 54,418
February ................... 1,269 119,508 1,178 113,587 361 42,527
March ...................... 1,089 114,541 1,039 110,147 333 43,740
April ...................... 1,272 130,810 1,172 121,625 394 48,188
May ........................ 1,552 159,471 1,438 150,462 388 51,698
June ....................... 1,622 166,742 1,315 140,916 309 42,097
July ....................... 1,891 200,382 1,687 186,018 760 108,733
August ..................... 1,427 139,999 1,343 133,146 414 51,912
September .................. 1,292 129,586 1,202 122,505 361 46,391
October .................... 2,125 221,784 1,917 205,553 689 100,457
November ................... 2,574 241,589 2,389 226,657 997 107,620
December ................... 3,377 351,305 3,232 340,220 1,378 172,529
2009
January .................... 3,806 388,813 3,633 375,293 1,461 172,757
February ................... 2,262 218,438 2,173 210,755 945 103,588
March ...................... 2,191 228,387 2,107 221,397 940 114,747
April ...................... 2,547 256,930 2,385 243,321 887 100,872
May ........................ 2,738 289,628 2,572 274,047 1,005 123,683
June ....................... 2,519 256,357 2,051 216,063 674 85,726
July ....................... 3,054 336,654 2,659 296,589 1,133 154,208
August ..................... 1,428 125,024 1,334 117,193 436 41,151
September .................. 1,371 123,177 1,258 115,141 448 51,126
October .................... 1,934 193,904 1,678 172,883 566 69,655
November ................... 1,870 164,496 1,679 150,751 517 55,053
December ................... 2,310 214,648 2,166 203,655 615 64,540
2010
January .................... 2,860 278,679 2,682 265,074 962 104,846
February ................... 1,183 102,818 1,091 96,022 282 30,728
March ...................... 1,197 111,727 1,111 105,514 273 29,745
April ...................... 1,840 199,690 1,697 184,654 424 55,178
May ........................ 1,354 123,333 1,170 109,203 216 19,334
June ....................... 1,861 171,190 1,355 125,872 212 21,083
July ....................... 2,124 206,254 1,732 172,248 532 64,200
August ..................... 976 92,435 897 83,021 230 23,088
September .................. 920 77,654 806 67,987 187 19,403
Table 3. Industry distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance
(NOTE: Monthly national Mass Layoffs data for April through September 2010 have been found
to contain errors in each of the 6 seasonally adjusted series appearing in the charts, the
text, and tables 1 and 3. Not seasonally adjusted data and regional office news releases are
not affected. The corrected seasonally adjusted estimates for April through September are
located in the Mass Layoffs database at www.bls.gov/mls/#data.)
Initial claimants for
Mass layoff events unemployment insurance
Industry
September July August September September July August September
2009 2010 2010 2010 2009 2010 2010 2010
Seasonally adjusted
Total ..................................... 2,326 1,609 1,546 1,486 221,639 143,703 150,192 133,379
Total, private nonfarm ........................ 2,109 1,369 1,359 1,289 204,462 121,770 130,660 115,598
Manufacturing ............................... 783 307 403 345 90,440 33,381 46,540 34,168
Not seasonally adjusted
Total (1) ................................. 1,371 2,124 976 920 123,177 206,254 92,435 77,654
Total, private .................................. 1,285 1,832 923 823 116,813 179,524 84,610 68,913
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting .. 27 100 26 17 1,672 7,276 1,589 926
Total, private nonfarm ........................ 1,258 1,732 897 806 115,141 172,248 83,021 67,987
Mining ...................................... 10 5 (2) 4 918 394 (2) 447
Utilities ................................... 6 6 - (2) 448 689 - (2)
Construction ................................ 167 135 105 89 10,637 9,570 6,910 6,137
Manufacturing ............................... 448 532 230 187 51,126 64,200 23,088 19,403
Food .................................... 50 75 54 31 5,044 9,535 4,312 3,216
Beverage and tobacco products ........... 5 4 (2) (2) 306 290 (2) (2)
Textile mills ........................... 12 8 4 3 1,197 959 888 277
Textile product mills ................... (2) 3 3 (2) (2) 347 272 (2)
Apparel ................................. 7 18 9 3 572 1,576 573 194
Leather and allied products ............. (2) 3 (2) - (2) 332 (2) -
Wood products ........................... 36 24 17 22 2,653 2,051 1,355 1,726
Paper ................................... 15 4 7 4 1,287 311 559 239
Printing and related support activities . 10 10 3 3 828 790 246 277
Petroleum and coal products ............. - 4 - 3 - 294 - 180
Chemicals ............................... 9 18 8 (2) 540 1,808 562 (2)
Plastics and rubber products ............ 13 31 10 (2) 1,195 3,027 691 (2)
Nonmetallic mineral products ............ 12 22 8 7 763 1,846 621 609
Primary metals .......................... 30 24 7 13 3,330 2,752 835 1,381
Fabricated metal products ............... 44 27 12 13 3,856 2,497 925 1,006
Machinery ............................... 63 26 18 11 12,389 4,463 2,077 1,787
Computer and electronic products ........ 28 18 15 8 1,986 1,492 999 562
Electrical equipment and appliances ..... 23 17 8 10 2,740 1,692 1,303 1,793
Transportation equipment ................ 53 171 32 30 7,331 25,863 4,869 4,166
Furniture and related products .......... 22 19 6 11 3,481 1,916 1,417 792
Miscellaneous manufacturing ............. 11 6 4 8 1,117 359 319 573
Wholesale trade ............................. 32 33 18 16 2,422 2,691 1,324 1,011
Retail trade ................................ 139 142 108 99 13,094 14,907 10,430 9,764
Transportation and warehousing .............. 47 148 45 31 4,807 17,270 4,356 2,268
Information ................................. 45 55 36 24 4,572 7,341 6,155 2,365
Finance and insurance ....................... 43 47 24 29 3,308 3,391 1,945 2,602
Real estate and rental and leasing .......... (2) 15 7 4 (2) 883 514 267
Professional and technical services ......... 31 59 43 23 1,998 4,366 4,657 1,504
Management of companies and enterprises ..... 5 5 6 (2) 495 419 490 (2)
Administrative and waste services ........... 142 292 158 133 11,525 25,234 14,605 10,059
Educational services ........................ 7 30 6 13 371 2,912 902 786
Health care and social assistance ........... 23 90 36 26 1,573 6,716 2,532 1,660
Arts, entertainment, and recreation ......... 29 31 17 39 2,209 2,559 1,286 2,799
Accommodation and food services ............. 73 89 50 72 4,981 7,184 3,424 5,735
Other services, except public administration 7 18 (2) 12 409 1,522 (2) 864
Unclassified ................................ (2) - - 1 (2) - - 78
Government ...................................... 86 292 53 97 6,364 26,730 7,825 8,741
Federal ..................................... 8 25 18 19 603 3,243 1,933 1,898
State ....................................... 28 29 12 22 2,082 2,589 894 1,575
Local ....................................... 50 238 23 56 3,679 20,898 4,998 5,268
1 Data were reported by all states and the District of Columbia.
2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.
NOTE: Dash represents zero.
Table 4. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, July 2008 to September 2010, not seasonally adjusted
Private nonfarm
Total mass layoffs Extended mass layoffs
Date Mass layoffs lasting more than 30 days Realization rates (1)
Initial Initial Initial Initial
Events claimants Events claimants Events claimants Events claimants
2008
July ....................... 1,891 200,382 1,687 186,018
August ..................... 1,427 139,999 1,343 133,146
September .................. 1,292 129,586 1,202 122,505
Third Quarter .............. 4,610 469,967 4,232 441,669 1,581 304,340 37.4 68.9
October .................... 2,125 221,784 1,917 205,553
November ................... 2,574 241,589 2,389 226,657
December ................... 3,377 351,305 3,232 340,220
Fourth Quarter ............. 8,076 814,678 7,538 772,430 3,582 766,780 47.5 99.3
2009
January .................... 3,806 388,813 3,633 375,293
February ................... 2,262 218,438 2,173 210,755
March ...................... 2,191 228,387 2,107 221,397
First Quarter .............. 8,259 835,638 7,913 807,445 3,979 835,551 50.3 103.5
April ...................... 2,547 256,930 2,385 243,321
May ........................ 2,738 289,628 2,572 274,047
June ....................... 2,519 256,357 2,051 216,063
Second Quarter ............. 7,804 802,915 7,008 733,431 3,395 731,049 48.4 99.7
July ....................... 3,054 336,654 2,659 296,589
August ..................... 1,428 125,024 1,334 117,193
September .................. 1,371 123,177 1,258 115,141
Third Quarter .............. 5,853 584,855 5,251 528,923 2,034 406,802 38.7 76.9
October .................... 1,934 193,904 1,678 172,883
November ................... 1,870 164,496 1,679 150,751
December ................... 2,310 214,648 2,166 203,655
Fourth Quarter ............. 6,114 573,048 5,523 527,289 2,416 468,368 43.7 88.8
2010
January .................... 2,860 278,679 2,682 265,074
February ................... 1,183 102,818 1,091 96,022
March ...................... 1,197 111,727 1,111 105,514
First Quarter .............. 5,240 493,224 4,884 466,610 1,870 360,208 38.3 77.2
April ...................... 1,840 199,690 1,697 184,654
May ........................ 1,354 123,333 1,170 109,203
June ....................... 1,861 171,190 1,355 125,872
Second Quarter ............. 5,055 494,213 4,222 419,729 (2)(p)1,851 (2)(p)273,860 (p)43.8 (p)65.2
July ....................... 2,124 206,254 1,732 172,248
August ..................... 976 92,435 897 83,021
September .................. 920 77,654 806 67,987
Third Quarter .............. 4,020 376,343 3,435 323,256
1 The event realization rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm mass layoff events lasting more than 30 days. The
initial claimant realization rate is the percentage of all private nonfarm mass layoff initial claimants associated with
layoffs lasting more than 30 days.
2 These quarterly numbers are provisional and will be revised as more data on these layoffs become available.
Experience suggests that the number of extended mass layoff events is generally revised upwards by less than 10 percent and
the number of initial claimants associated with such events increases by 25-40 percent.
p = preliminary.
Table 5. Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance by census region and division, not
seasonally adjusted
Initial claimants for
Mass layoff events unemployment insurance
Census region and division
September July August September September July August September
2009 2010 2010 2010 2009 2010 2010 2010
United States (1) ... 1,371 2,124 976 920 123,177 206,254 92,435 77,654
Northeast ................... 233 434 183 160 18,617 44,132 16,706 14,411
New England ............. 29 40 34 15 2,762 3,136 3,743 1,357
Middle Atlantic ......... 204 394 149 145 15,855 40,996 12,963 13,054
South ....................... 334 512 274 259 28,943 48,848 21,631 21,507
South Atlantic .......... 182 280 160 153 14,927 26,937 12,404 11,811
East South Central ...... 71 142 55 41 6,844 13,640 4,584 3,633
West South Central ...... 81 90 59 65 7,172 8,271 4,643 6,063
Midwest ..................... 309 490 157 155 38,137 56,377 17,140 14,964
East North Central ...... 240 397 124 115 30,304 46,473 13,603 11,280
West North Central ...... 69 93 33 40 7,833 9,904 3,537 3,684
West ........................ 495 688 362 346 37,480 56,897 36,958 26,772
Mountain ................ 53 71 31 47 3,924 6,593 2,197 4,461
Pacific ................. 442 617 331 299 33,556 50,304 34,761 22,311
1 See footnote 1, table 3.
NOTE: The States (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the census divisions are: New England:
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; Middle Atlantic: New Jersey, New
York, and Pennsylvania; South Atlantic: Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia; East South Central: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and
Tennessee; West South Central: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas; East North Central: Illinois, Indiana,
Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin; West North Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and
South Dakota; Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming; and Pacific:
Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington.
Table 6. State distribution: Mass layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance, not seasonally adjusted
Initial claimants for
Mass layoff events unemployment insurance
State
September July August September September July August September
2009 2010 2010 2010 2009 2010 2010 2010
Total (1) ............ 1,371 2,124 976 920 123,177 206,254 92,435 77,654
Alabama ................. 22 57 14 13 2,044 5,642 1,407 1,021
Alaska .................. 7 (2) 10 4 849 (2) 884 492
Arizona ................. 7 16 5 6 463 1,710 268 477
Arkansas ................ (2) 8 3 3 (2) 765 275 301
California .............. 395 558 287 264 28,797 44,343 31,007 19,288
Colorado ................ 14 16 5 10 1,036 1,552 355 827
Connecticut ............. 4 13 8 (2) 323 977 880 (2)
Delaware ................ (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2)
District of Columbia .... - (2) (2) - - (2) (2) -
Florida ................. 91 137 93 91 5,975 10,581 6,506 6,001
Georgia ................. 35 27 30 24 2,817 4,020 2,996 2,438
Hawaii .................. 6 5 5 3 465 471 381 182
Idaho ................... 4 5 7 7 306 480 504 1,011
Illinois ................ 71 92 32 35 10,743 10,969 3,707 5,053
Indiana ................. 21 38 14 10 2,895 5,905 1,554 846
Iowa .................... 18 25 9 3 2,384 3,463 1,743 362
Kansas .................. 15 5 4 8 2,880 416 366 1,245
Kentucky ................ 32 50 18 10 3,394 5,491 1,422 1,454
Louisiana ............... 10 23 16 11 887 2,174 1,010 688
Maine ................... 3 3 (2) (2) 268 249 (2) (2)
Maryland ................ 7 20 6 6 463 1,844 363 528
Massachusetts ........... 12 16 16 7 985 1,403 1,464 476
Michigan ................ 40 107 14 11 6,167 12,383 2,385 758
Minnesota ............... 15 14 4 5 1,122 1,462 307 412
Mississippi ............. 5 12 14 12 323 1,094 1,057 741
Missouri ................ 16 34 12 19 1,018 3,005 864 1,115
Montana ................. 3 4 (2) 4 227 322 (2) 332
Nebraska ................ 3 10 4 5 210 835 257 550
Nevada .................. 15 20 7 13 1,201 1,644 484 1,238
New Hampshire ........... (2) (2) 6 (2) (2) (2) 657 (2)
New Jersey .............. 31 113 31 22 2,844 10,486 2,449 1,665
New Mexico .............. 7 4 (2) 3 487 247 (2) 238
New York ................ 58 201 59 52 4,424 23,920 5,547 5,499
North Carolina .......... 8 19 9 13 918 1,264 698 1,372
North Dakota ............ (2) 4 - - (2) 666 - -
Ohio .................... 47 87 27 22 4,745 9,564 2,569 1,638
Oklahoma ................ 4 8 (2) (2) 401 665 (2) (2)
Oregon .................. 15 32 18 17 1,402 3,582 1,671 1,635
Pennsylvania ............ 115 80 59 71 8,587 6,590 4,967 5,890
Rhode Island ............ 3 6 (2) (2) 260 396 (2) (2)
South Carolina .......... 18 36 11 7 2,831 5,430 792 724
South Dakota ............ - (2) - - - (2) - -
Tennessee ............... 12 23 9 6 1,083 1,413 698 417
Texas ................... 65 51 38 49 5,715 4,667 3,058 4,814
Utah .................... 3 6 (2) 4 204 638 (2) 338
Vermont ................. 5 (2) (2) (2) 507 (2) (2) (2)
Virginia ................ 22 36 8 11 1,868 3,427 747 689
Washington .............. 19 21 11 11 2,043 1,848 818 714
West Virginia ........... - (2) - - - (2) - -
Wisconsin ............... 61 73 37 37 5,754 7,652 3,388 2,985
Wyoming ................. - - (2) - - - (2) -
Puerto Rico ............. 17 18 12 16 1,563 2,344 987 1,382
1 See footnote 1, table 3.
2 Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards.
NOTE: Dash represents zero.
United States Department of Labor
