Mass Layoffs In April 2007 — 2007-05-23

In April, employers took 1,243 mass layoff actions, seasonally ad- justed, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single establishment; the number of workers involved totaled 126,047, on a seasonally adjusted basis. The number of mass layoff events de- creased by 33 from the prior month, and the number of associated initial claims fell by 4,640. During April, 383 mass layoff events were reported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 43,753 ini- tial claims. Compared with March, mass layoff activity in manufacturing decreased by 37 events and by 10,688 initial claims. (See table 1.) The national unemployment rate was 4.5 percent in April, essentially un- changed from 4.4 percent the prior month and down from 4.7 percent a year earlier.