California Layoffs — August 2015
Employers in California logged 57 WARN Act notices in August 2015, involving roughly 5,898 workers — falling below July and down 16% versus August 2014. The average filing covered 103 workers, with 22 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 17 | 2,107 |
| Mining & Energy | 3 | 974 |
| Retail | 14 | 970 |
| Accommodation & Food | 5 | 689 |
| Healthcare | 2 | 357 |
| Information & Technology | 9 | 326 |
| Real Estate | 1 | 94 |
| Agriculture | 2 | 94 |
The Manufacturing sector dominated layoff filings with 2,107 workers across 17 notices. Meanwhile, Mining & Energy reported 974 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Contra Costa | 4 | 1,224 |
| Los Angeles | 12 | 966 |
| San Diego | 6 | 731 |
| Santa Clara | 7 | 603 |
| Orange | 7 | 515 |
Contra Costa absorbed the greatest share of layoffs, accounting for 21% of all affected workers with 1,224 workers across 4 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Pittsburg | 1 | 661 |
| Mountain Pass | 1 | 474 |
| San Ramon | 1 | 430 |
| Los Angeles | 2 | 370 |
| Carlsbad | 1 | 279 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 34 | 3,769 |
| Closure | 21 | 1,948 |
| Temporary Layoff | 1 | 134 |
| Temporary Closure | 1 | 47 |
Closures accounted for 34% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| USS-POSCO Industries | Pittsburg | 661 | Layoff | |
| Molycorp Minerals | Mountain Pass | 474 | Layoff | |
| Chevron | San Ramon | 430 | Layoff | |
| Patina Group NewCo | Los Angeles | 317 | Layoff | |
| Zimmer Biomet Dental | Carlsbad | 279 | Closure | |
| Haggen | San Ysidro | 231 | Closure | |
| Motorola Mobility | Sunnyvale | 213 | Layoff | |
| Owens-Brockway Glass Container | Oakland | 202 | Closure | |
| Silgan Containers | Riverbank | 180 | Layoff | |
| Haggen | Tustin | 157 | Closure | |
| Mesa Beverage | Santa Rosa | 137 | Layoff | |
| Bae Systems | San Francisco | 134 | Temporary Layoff | |
| Sheraton Operating | Palm Desert | 124 | Layoff | |
| San Jose Airport Garden Hotel | San Jose | 123 | Closure | |
| Boeing | Long Beach | 113 | Layoff |
The biggest impact was at USS-POSCO Industries at its Pittsburg facility, reporting 661 affected workers. Molycorp Minerals followed with 474 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This data points to a easing in workforce disruptions across California, with filings falling below both recent and year-ago levels. The Manufacturing sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by California. 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 California WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.