Global| Sep 21 2012U.S. Mass Layoffs Decline
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
The job market continues to show signs of improvement as mass layoffs in the U.S. during August continued lower. The Labor Department reported that layoffs of 50 or more persons from a single firm fell to 1,016, the lowest level in [...]
The job market continues to show signs of improvement as mass layoffs in the U.S. during August continued lower. The Labor Department reported that layoffs of 50 or more persons from a single firm fell to 1,016, the lowest level in six months. However, the level of layoffs rose 12.4% y/y from a low base one year ago. On a seasonally adjusted basis mass layoff events fell to 1,267, the lowest level of the economic recovery.
During August it was the factory sector where a sharp 308 decline (+10.1% y/y) reversed the July gain. Layoff events in health care also showed a sharp decline for the second straight month but remained up 3.3% from last year's level. Retail trade (45.6% y/y) and arts, entertainment & recreation (35.3% y/y) showed increases in layoff announcements.
There were 104,045 (4.9% y/y) initial claims for unemployment insurance accompanying these layoffs; 31,193 (15.9% y/y) in manufacturing and 11,071 (62.7% y/y) in retail trade.
A mass layoff involves at least 50 initial claimants from a single establishment filing during a consecutive 5-week period. The BLS data are available in Haver's USECON database. Underlying state and area detail are available in the REGIONAL database.
| Mass Layoffs (NSA) | Aug | Jul | Jun | Aug Y/Y | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private Nonfarm | 1,016 | 1,385 | 1,539 | 12.4% | 17,046 | 17,887 | 26,437 |
| Construction | 96 | 86 | 91 | 47.7 | 1,994 | 2,262 | 2,833 |
| Manufacturing | 251 | 559 | 255 | 10.1 | 4,397 | 4,523 | 9,627 |
| Retail Trade | 115 | 92 | 132 | 45.6 | 1,448 | 1,574 | 1,965 |
| Information | 33 | 32 | 48 | -43.1 | 522 | 548 | 752 |
| Finance & Insurance | 28 | 24 | 24 | 7.7 | 313 | 430 | 677 |
| Health Care & Social Assistance | 31 | 56 | 201 | 3.3 | 738 | 709 | 675 |
| Arts, Entertainment and Recreation | 23 | 14 | 40 | 35.3 | 338 | 363 | 389 |
| Government | 47 | 130 | 351 | -17.5 | 1,475 | 1,677 | 1,593 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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