September 2000 — 2000-10-31

In September 2000, there were 936 mass layoff actions by employers as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, according to data from the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single establishment, and the number of workers involved totaled 106,842. (See table 1.) The number of layoff events and initial claimants for unemployment insurance were the highest for the month of September since this series began in April 1995, due, in part, to a calendar effect. (September 2000 contained 5 weeks that ended in the month compared with 4 weeks in each of the prior 4 Septembers. See Technical Note.) From January through September 2000, the total number of layoff events (10,490) was slightly lower than in January-September 1999, while the total number of initial claims (1,188,580) was somewhat higher.