Wisconsin Layoffs — March 2019
Employers in Wisconsin filed 11 WARN Act notices in March 2019, impacting roughly 2,697 workers — representing a notable rise over February and up 49% versus March 2018. The average filing covered 245 workers, with 10 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Retail | 2 | 1,857 |
| Healthcare | 2 | 273 |
| Transportation | 2 | 225 |
| Manufacturing | 3 | 182 |
| Accommodation & Food | 1 | 111 |
| Wholesale Trade | 1 | 49 |
The Retail sector led the way in workforce reductions with 1,857 workers across 2 notices. In a parallel development, Healthcare reported 273 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Adams | 1 | 1,715 |
| Milwaukee | 3 | 289 |
| Brown | 2 | 225 |
| Eau Claire | 1 | 142 |
| Green Lake | 1 | 111 |
Adams bore the heaviest burden, accounting for 64% of all affected workers with 1,715 workers across 1 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Abbotsford | 1 | 1,715 |
| Milwaukee | 2 | 285 |
| De Pere | 2 | 225 |
| Eau Claire | 1 | 142 |
| Green Lake | 1 | 111 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 10 | 2,632 |
| Layoff | 1 | 65 |
The high proportion of closures (98% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in Wisconsin's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shopko | Abbotsford | 1,715 | Closure | |
| Spectrum America Supply Chain Solutions | De Pere | 216 | Closure | |
| Post Acute Medical Specialty Hospital of Milwaukee | Milwaukee | 172 | Closure | |
| Radial | Eau Claire | 142 | Closure | |
| Motor Castings | Milwaukee | 113 | Closure | |
| Heidel House Resort & Spa | Green Lake | 111 | Closure | |
| D.E.N. Services | Clintonville | 101 | Closure | |
| Kimberly-Clark Corp. - Revision 1 | Neenah | 65 | Layoff | |
| Dentsply Sirona | Racine | 49 | Closure | |
| Spectrum Transportation Services | De Pere | 9 | Closure | |
| CasTech | West Allis | 4 | Closure |
The single largest action involved Shopko at its Abbotsford facility, reporting 1,715 affected workers. Spectrum America Supply Chain Solutions followed with 216 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The data underscores mounting pressure on the Wisconsin labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Retail sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Wisconsin. 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 Wisconsin WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.