Seasonally-adjusted mass layoff statistics

Monthly Labor Review, March, 2005

Beginning with the release of January 2005 data, the Bureau of Labor Statistics is now publishing seasonally-adjusted mass layoff data. Seasonal adjustment accounts for the effects of events that follow a more or less regular pattern each year, making it easier to observe the cyclical and other nonseasonal movements in a time series. Six monthly mass layoff series are being seasonally adjusted--the number of layoff events and the number of associated initial claims for unemployment insurance for the total, the private nonfarm sector, and the manufacturing sector. The extended mass layoff data continue to be available quarterly on a not-seasonally-adjusted basis.

In January 2005, employers took 1,457 mass layoff actions as measured, after seasonal adjustment, by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single establishment, and the number of workers involved totaled 150,990, on a seasonally-adjusted basis. The number of layoff events had risen by 246 from December and was the highest for any month since January 2004. The number of initial claims due to mass layoff actions grew by 31,341 over the month, and was the highest for any month since October 2003.