Mass Layoffs In April 2005 — 2005-05-27

In April 2005, employers took 1,274 mass layoff actions, seasonally adjusted, 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, and the number of workers involved totaled 136,837, on a seasonally adjusted basis. (See table 1.) The number of layoff events rose by 80, and the number of associated initial claims increased by 5,989 from March. In the manufacturing sector, 395 mass layoff events were reported during April 2005, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 63,121 initial claims; both figures were higher than a month earlier. (See table 1.) From January through April 2005, the total number of events (seasonally adjusted), at 5,053, and initial claims (seasonally adjusted), at 536,359, were lower than in January-April 2004 (5,465 and 564,097, respectively).