Alabama Layoffs — May 2003
Employers in Alabama posted 6 WARN Act notices in May 2003, affecting an estimated 792 workers — reflecting a significant uptick compared to April and up 16% versus May 2002. The average filing covered 132 workers, with 5 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 2 | 346 |
The Manufacturing sector saw the heaviest impact with 346 workers across 2 notices.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Tallapoosa | 1 | 174 |
| Hale | 1 | 172 |
| Geneva | 1 | 159 |
| Lee | 1 | 76 |
| Jefferson | 1 | 54 |
Tallapoosa absorbed the greatest share of layoffs, accounting for 22% of all affected workers with 174 workers across 1 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Alexander City | 1 | 174 |
| Moundville | 1 | 172 |
| Geneva | 1 | 159 |
| Opelika | 1 | 76 |
| Birmingham | 1 | 54 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 5 | 618 |
| Layoff | 1 | 174 |
The high proportion of closures (78% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in Alabama's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avondale Mills, Inc.., Beville Plant | Alexander City | 174 | Layoff | |
| International Paper | Moundville | 172 | Closure | |
| Fleming Companies | Geneva | 159 | Closure | |
| Cortez | 157 | Closure | ||
| Fiskars’ Home Leisure (American Designer Pottery) | Opelika | 76 | Closure | |
| Copperweld (Aka Ltv Copperweld) | Birmingham | 54 | Closure |
The largest notice was filed by Avondale Mills, Inc.., Beville Plant at its Alexander City facility, reporting 174 affected workers. International Paper followed with 172 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The trends suggest 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.