Alabama Layoffs — May 2001
Employers in Alabama filed 8 WARN Act notices in May 2001, impacting roughly 966 workers — representing a notable rise over April and up 23% versus May 2000. The average filing covered 121 workers, with 6 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 5 | 818 |
The Manufacturing sector led the way in workforce reductions with 818 workers across 5 notices.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile | 2 | 637 |
| Franklin | 1 | 76 |
| Cullman | 1 | 67 |
| Jefferson | 1 | 46 |
| Madison | 1 | 38 |
Mobile saw the most concentrated activity, accounting for 66% of all affected workers with 637 workers across 2 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile | 2 | 637 |
| Russellville | 1 | 76 |
| Cullman | 1 | 67 |
| Birmingham | 1 | 46 |
| Huntsville | 1 | 38 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 6 | 791 |
| Layoff | 2 | 175 |
The high proportion of closures (82% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in Alabama's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sappi | Mobile | 500 | Closure | |
| International Paper-Mobile Packaging Facility | Mobile | 137 | Layoff | |
| Heilig-Meyers Furniture | Russellville | 76 | Closure | |
| Greif Brothers | Cullman | 67 | Closure | |
| Louisiana Pacific | 67 | Closure | ||
| Sirco Systems | Birmingham | 46 | Closure | |
| Silicon Graphics, Inc.. (Sgi) | Huntsville | 38 | Layoff | |
| M. Fine & Son | Killen | 35 | Closure |
The single largest action involved Sappi at its Mobile facility, reporting 500 affected workers. International Paper-Mobile Packaging Facility followed with 137 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
The data underscores mounting pressure on the Alabama labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Manufacturing sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Alabama. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires employers with 100+ employees to provide 60-day advance notice of mass layoffs and plant closings. Data is updated daily by WARN Firehose. View all Alabama WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.