Tennessee Layoffs — May 2012
Employers in Tennessee reported 15 WARN Act notices in May 2012, displacing an estimated 1,284 workers — signaling an acceleration from April. The average filing covered 86 workers, with 6 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 5 | 493 |
| Healthcare | 2 | 229 |
| Agriculture | 1 | 200 |
| Retail | 2 | 141 |
| Construction | 1 | 90 |
| Education | 1 | 70 |
| Government | 2 | 32 |
| Transportation | 1 | 29 |
The Manufacturing sector topped the list of affected industries with 493 workers across 5 notices. Notably, Healthcare reported 229 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Loudon | 1 | 222 |
| Scott | 1 | 220 |
| Obion | 1 | 200 |
| Rutherford | 4 | 170 |
| Shelby | 3 | 155 |
Loudon felt the sharpest impact, accounting for 17% of all affected workers with 222 workers across 1 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Lenoir City | 1 | 222 |
| Oneida | 1 | 220 |
| South Fulton | 1 | 200 |
| Memphis | 3 | 155 |
| Smyrna | 3 | 154 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 6 | 928 |
| Layoff | 8 | 334 |
The high proportion of closures (72% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in Tennessee's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yale Locks & Hardware | Lenoir City | 222 | Closure | |
| Scott County Hospital | Oneida | 220 | Closure | |
| Ferry-Morse Seed | South Fulton | 200 | Closure | |
| Dillard's Fulfillment Center | Nashville | 125 | Closure | |
| MI Windows and Doors | Smyrna | 103 | Layoff | |
| Briggs Plumbing Products | Knoxville | 90 | Closure | |
| Dalphis America | Memphis | 75 | Layoff | |
| Pilgrim's | Chattanooga | 71 | Closure | |
| Memphis City Schools | Memphis | 70 | Layoff | |
| Menlo Worldwide Logistics | Smyrna | 29 | Layoff | |
| Town of Smyrna | Smyrna | 22 | Layoff | |
| Cummins Filtration | Cookeville | 22 | ||
| Rose's Department Store | Murfreesboro | 16 | Layoff | |
| Metropolitan Inter-Faith Assn | Memphis | 10 | Layoff | |
| Annand Clinic | Hohenwald | 9 | Layoff |
The most significant filing came from Yale Locks & Hardware at its Lenoir City facility, reporting 222 affected workers. Scott County Hospital followed with 220 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The numbers illustrate mounting pressure on the Tennessee 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 Tennessee. 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 Tennessee WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.