Washington Layoffs — January 2015
Employers in Washington posted 6 WARN Act notices in January 2015, affecting an estimated 809 workers — reflecting a significant uptick compared to December and up 387% versus January 2014. The average filing covered 135 workers, with 3 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Transportation | 3 | 485 |
| Retail | 1 | 142 |
| Accommodation & Food | 1 | 93 |
| Manufacturing | 1 | 89 |
The Transportation sector saw the heaviest impact with 485 workers across 3 notices. On a related front, Retail reported 142 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| King | 3 | 398 |
| Franklin | 1 | 180 |
| Clark | 1 | 142 |
| Lewis | 1 | 89 |
King felt the sharpest impact, accounting for 49% of all affected workers with 398 workers across 3 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle | 2 | 305 |
| Pasco | 1 | 180 |
| Vancouver | 1 | 142 |
| Kent | 1 | 93 |
| Chehalis | 1 | 89 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 3 | 223 |
Closures accounted for 28% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | Seattle | 264 | ||
| Swiift Transportation | Pasco | 180 | ||
| Nordstrom | Vancouver | 142 | ||
| Great American Casino | Kent | 93 | Closure | |
| Bradken Foundry | Chehalis | 89 | Closure | |
| United Airlines | Seattle | 41 | Closure |
The largest notice was filed by United Airlines at its Seattle facility, reporting 264 affected workers. Swiift Transportation followed with 180 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
The trends suggest mounting pressure on the Washington labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Transportation sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Washington. 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 Washington WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.