West Virginia Layoffs — December 2015
Employers in West Virginia submitted 5 WARN Act notices in December 2015, putting at risk an estimated 418 workers — up substantially from November. The average filing covered 84 workers, with 0 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 3 | 288 |
| Utilities | 1 | 120 |
| Mining & Energy | 1 | 10 |
The Manufacturing sector emerged as the hardest-hit sector with 288 workers across 3 notices. Separately, Utilities reported 120 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Randolph | 1 | 173 |
| Fayette | 1 | 120 |
| Mason | 2 | 115 |
| Webster | 1 | 10 |
Randolph bore the heaviest burden, accounting for 41% of all affected workers with 173 workers across 1 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Blountville | 1 | 173 |
| Birmingham | 1 | 120 |
| Letart | 2 | 115 |
| Cowen | 1 | 10 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 5 | 418 |
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metinvest Carter Roag Coal | Blountville | 173 | Layoff | |
| Walter Energy Maple Mine Gauley Eagle Mine | Birmingham | 120 | Layoff | |
| Felman Production | Letart | 68 | Layoff | |
| Felman Production | Letart | 47 | Layoff | |
| Arch Coal Eastern Complex | Cowen | 10 | Layoff |
Topping the list was Metinvest Carter Roag Coal at its Blountville facility, reporting 173 affected workers. Walter Energy Maple Mine Gauley Eagle Mine followed with 120 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
These figures highlight mounting pressure on the West Virginia 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 West Virginia. 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 West Virginia WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.