US Layoffs — March 2017
The US labor market showed signs of rising strain as employers submitted 321 WARN Act notices in March 2017, putting at risk an estimated 26,174 workers — up substantially from February and up 4% versus March 2016. Filings came from 35 states and territories, with an average of 82 workers per notice.
Top States by Workers Affected
| State | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| California | 68 | 5,221 |
| Texas | 38 | 2,668 |
| Florida | 22 | 2,638 |
| New York | 35 | 2,576 |
| Michigan | 7 | 2,539 |
| New Jersey | 11 | 1,214 |
| Pennsylvania | 7 | 913 |
| Tennessee | 5 | 867 |
| Georgia | 10 | 825 |
| Mississippi | 6 | 653 |
| Indiana | 7 | 620 |
| Virginia | 8 | 608 |
| Kansas | 9 | 565 |
| Ohio | 5 | 498 |
| North Carolina | 3 | 442 |
| Utah | 4 | 410 |
| Wisconsin | 5 | 377 |
| Maryland | 10 | 363 |
| Washington | 3 | 302 |
| Iowa | 2 | 262 |
| Nebraska | 19 | 254 |
| Colorado | 3 | 171 |
| Missouri | 5 | 169 |
| South Carolina | 1 | 161 |
| Vermont | 5 | 154 |
| Nevada | 1 | 124 |
| West Virginia | 2 | 117 |
| Connecticut | 7 | 109 |
| Oklahoma | 3 | 107 |
| Montana | 1 | 80 |
| Arizona | 4 | 67 |
| Oregon | 1 | 62 |
| Maine | 2 | 22 |
| Illinois | 1 | 10 |
| Idaho | 1 | 6 |
California led the nation with 5,221 workers affected across 68 notices , followed by Texas (2,668 workers) and Florida (2,638 workers) .
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 46 | 5,598 |
| Retail | 111 | 3,456 |
| Healthcare | 23 | 3,348 |
| Information & Technology | 27 | 2,826 |
| Accommodation & Food | 10 | 1,639 |
| Professional Services | 11 | 1,613 |
| Transportation | 8 | 1,231 |
| Education | 8 | 1,044 |
| Finance & Insurance | 8 | 748 |
| Wholesale Trade | 4 | 355 |
The Manufacturing sector emerged as the hardest-hit sector with 5,598 workers across 46 notices. Separately, Retail reported 3,456 workers.
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 113 | 6,996 |
| Layoff | 61 | 6,355 |
Closures accounted for 27% of all affected workers nationally, with the majority of events being layoffs rather than full closures.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | Location | Workers | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| GM - Lansing Ass'y (Delta) | Lansing, Michigan | 1,146 | Layoff |
| General Motors | Lansing, Michigan | 1,146 | |
| Aramark | Tallahassee, Florida | 899 | |
| General Dynamics IT-Waco | Waco, Texas | 840 | |
| Paramedics Plus | San Leandro, California | 465 | Closure |
| North Coast Rehab | Fountain Valley, California | 465 | Closure |
| Northrop Grumman Technology | Fort Irwin, California | 462 | Layoff |
| FreightCar America | Roanoke, Virginia | 364 | Layoff |
| Sodexo, Inc. (Stony Brook University) | Stony Brook, New York | 357 | Closure |
| Hsbc | Brandon, Florida | 357 |
Topping the list was GM - Lansing Ass'y (Delta) in Lansing, Michigan, reporting 1,146 affected workers. General Motors followed with 1,146 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
These figures highlight mounting pressure on the the nation labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Manufacturing sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This report covers all WARN Act filings with notice dates in March 2017. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act requires employers with 100+ employees to provide 60-day advance notice of mass layoffs and plant closings. Data is sourced from official state filings and updated daily by WARN Firehose, which also tracks SEC 8-K filings, bankruptcy proceedings, H-1B visa petitions, and unemployment claims across all six datasets. API access and data exports available.