New York Layoffs — May 2015
Employers in New York posted 33 WARN Act notices in May 2015, affecting an estimated 3,227 workers — reflecting a cooling compared to April and up 52% versus May 2014. The average filing covered 98 workers, with 25 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Education | 1 | 386 |
| Manufacturing | 1 | 214 |
| Agriculture | 1 | 72 |
| Finance & Insurance | 1 | 47 |
| Wholesale Trade | 1 | 32 |
| Professional Services | 1 | 1 |
The Education sector saw the heaviest impact with 386 workers across 1 notice. On a related front, Manufacturing reported 214 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Queens | 4 | 859 |
| Kings | 1 | 719 |
| Suffolk | 3 | 646 |
| Saratoga | 2 | 231 |
| Broome | 1 | 102 |
Queens was the epicenter of layoff activity, accounting for 27% of all affected workers with 859 workers across 4 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Jamaica | 3 | 811 |
| Brooklyn | 1 | 719 |
| Stony Brook | 1 | 386 |
| Amityville | 1 | 214 |
| Clifton Park | 1 | 165 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 25 | 3,031 |
| Layoff | 8 | 196 |
The high proportion of closures (94% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in New York's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catholic Charities Neighborhood Services - Residences and Day Habilitation | Brooklyn | 719 | Closure | |
| Envoy Air | Jamaica | 693 | Closure | |
| Lackmann Culinary Services c/o Stony Brook University | Stony Brook | 386 | Closure | |
| NBTY, Inc. and NBTY Manufacturing New York | Amityville | 214 | Closure | |
| Delaware and Hudson Railway | Clifton Park | 165 | Closure | |
| Delaware and Hudson Railway | Binghamton | 102 | Closure | |
| Volunteers of America-Greater New York, Inc. (Residential Services Program) | States Island | 91 | Closure | |
| Apex Tool Group | Cortland | 89 | Closure | |
| Derle Farms | Jamaica | 72 | Closure | |
| Delaware and Hudson Railway | Saratoga Springs | 66 | Closure | |
| Amertex Textile Services | Bronx | 58 | Closure | |
| Visiting Nurse Service of New York Home Care (VNSNY Home Care) Headstart Program | Rockaway Beach | 48 | Closure | |
| Oneida Savings Bank | Oneida | 47 | Layoff | |
| DAL Global Services | Jamaica | 46 | Layoff | |
| CBC America | Commack | 46 | Closure |
The largest notice was filed by Catholic Charities Neighborhood Services - Residences and Day Habilitation at its Brooklyn facility, reporting 719 affected workers. Envoy Air followed with 693 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This is the third consecutive month of declining layoff activity.
The trends suggest a mixed picture for New York's labor market, with activity diverging between monthly and annual comparisons. The Education 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.