Extended Mass Layoffs (Quarterly) News Release — 2009-05-12

Employers initiated 3,489 mass layoff events in the first quarter of 2009 that resulted in the separation of 558,909 workers from their jobs for at least 31 days, according to preliminary figures released by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. Both the number of extended mass layoff events and associated separations reached their highest first quarter levels in program history (with data available back to 1996), and both measures more than doubled from the first quarter of 2008. (See table A.) The number of separations reached first quarter program highs in 12 of 18 major industry sectors, all 4 geographic regions, and 32 states. Separations due to business demand reasons (especially slack work/in- sufficient demand) set a program high, while those associated with fi- nancial issues reached a high for the first quarter. Each category more than tripled over the year.