In April 2010, employers took 1,856 mass layoff actions that resulted in the separation of 200,870 workers, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month. This is according to data released by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The number of mass layoff events in April increased by 228 from the previous month, and the number of associated initial claims increased by 50,006.
During the 29 months from December 2007—when the current recession began—to April 2010, the total number of mass layoff events (seasonally adjusted) was 58,793, and the associated number of initial claims was 5,932,553.
The number of mass layoff events reported in the manufacturing sector in April was 448, seasonally adjusted, which resulted in 63,616 initial claims.
This data is from the Mass Layoff Statistics program. To learn more, see "Mass Layoffs — April 2010" (HTML) (PDF), news release USDL 10–0688. Each mass layoff event involves at least 50 persons from a single employer.
