Extended Mass Layoffs (Quarterly) News Release — 2012-05-16

Employers in the private nonfarm sector initiated 1,077 mass layoff events in the first quarter of 2012 that resulted in the separation of 182,101 workers from their jobs for at least 31 days, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the year, total extended mass layoff events and associated worker separations were down from 1,490 and 225,456, respectively. (See table A.) Total events reached their lowest first quarter levels since 2006, while manufacturing sector events and separations declined to their lowest levels in program history (with data available back to 1995.) First quarter 2012 layoff data are preliminary and are subject to revision. (See the Technical Note.) Over the year ending in the first quarter of 2012, the number of private nonfarm extended mass layoff events declined in 16 of the 18 major industry sectors. The manufacturing and the construction sectors experienced the largest declines in the numbers of worker separations over the year.