New York Layoffs — February 2009
Employers in New York reported 47 WARN Act notices in February 2009, displacing an estimated 6,914 workers — signaling an acceleration from January and up 538% versus February 2008. The average filing covered 147 workers, with 33 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Healthcare | 9 | 3,131 |
| Retail | 3 | 575 |
| Transportation | 2 | 348 |
| Information & Technology | 4 | 192 |
| Finance & Insurance | 1 | 161 |
| Manufacturing | 2 | 142 |
| Accommodation & Food | 1 | 39 |
| Professional Services | 1 | 21 |
The Healthcare sector topped the list of affected industries with 3,131 workers across 9 notices. Notably, Retail reported 575 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Queens | 8 | 2,890 |
| New York | 15 | 1,665 |
| Hempstead | 4 | 1,086 |
| Chautauqua | 3 | 389 |
| Monroe | 10 | 314 |
Queens saw the most concentrated activity, accounting for 42% of all affected workers with 2,890 workers across 8 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| New York | 12 | 1,654 |
| Elmhurst | 2 | 1,573 |
| Jamaica | 4 | 1,271 |
| Falconer | 3 | 389 |
| Uniondale | 1 | 378 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 31 | 5,887 |
| Layoff | 13 | 819 |
| Temporary Closure | 2 | 113 |
| Temporary Layoff | 1 | 95 |
The high proportion of closures (87% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in New York's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caritas Health Care, Inc. @ St John's Queens Hospital | Elmhurst | 1,542 | Closure | |
| Caritas Health Care, Inc. @ Mary Immaculate Hospital | Jamaica | 1,045 | Closure | |
| The Caring Neighbor | New York | 567 | Closure | |
| Fortunoff Holdings, LLC Corporate Headquarters | Uniondale | 378 | Closure | |
| Morgan Stanley (Various NYC sites) | New York | 369 | Layoff | |
| Fortunoff Holdings, LLC Retail Facility | Westbury | 360 | Closure | |
| Sysco Jamestown | Falconer | 276 | Closure | |
| MT Transportation Logistics Service (Bethpage Operation) | Bethpage | 228 | Closure | |
| New York-Presbyterian Community Health Plan | New York | 181 | Closure | |
| Fortunoff Holdings, LLC Retail Facility | White Plains | 181 | Closure | |
| Goldman, Sachs & | New York | 161 | Layoff | |
| Northeast Data Services | Elmira | 155 | Closure | |
| Caritas Health Care, Inc. @ Monsignor Fitzpatrick Skilled Nursing Pavilion | Jamaica | 130 | Closure | |
| Fortunoff Holdings, LLC Warehouse Facility | Garden City | 120 | Closure | |
| Eastman Kodak Company - Kodak Manitou | Rochester | 108 | Layoff |
The most significant filing came from Caritas Health Care, Inc. @ St John's Queens Hospital at its Elmhurst facility, reporting 1,542 affected workers. Caritas Health Care, Inc. @ Mary Immaculate Hospital followed with 1,045 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
The numbers illustrate mounting pressure on the New York labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Healthcare sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by New York. 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 New York WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.