In the third quarter of 2010, 14 of 18 major industry sectors in the private non-farm economy registered over-the-year declines in the number of extended mass layoff events.
Overall, employers initiated 1,297 mass layoff events in the third quarter of 2010.
Manufacturing firms reported 249 extended mass layoff events. This sector accounted for 19 percent of private nonfarm extended layoff events in the third quarter of 2010, the lowest third quarter proportion in program history. A year earlier, with 584 events, manufacturing made up 29 percent of events.
The largest numbers of separations in manufacturing during the third quarter of 2010 were associated with food and transportation equipment manufacturing. Eighteen of 21 manufacturing subsectors experienced over-the-year decreases in the number of layoff events.
Construction firms recorded 202 events, primarily in specialty trade contracting and in heavy and civil engineering construction. Construction layoffs comprised 16 percent of events. Layoff events in this sector decreased over the year from 353 during the third quarter of 2009.
This data is from the Mass Layoff Statistics program. The most recent mass layoff data is preliminary and subject to revision. See "Extended Mass Layoffs — Third Quarter 2010", news release USDL 10-1548, for more information. The quarterly series on extended mass layoffs cover layoffs of at least 31 days duration that involve 50 or more individuals from a single employer filing initial claims for unemployment insurance during a consecutive five-week period.
