West Virginia Layoffs — April 2019
Employers in West Virginia logged 4 WARN Act notices in April 2019, involving roughly 896 workers and up 9856% versus April 2018. The average filing covered 224 workers, with 3 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 2 | 867 |
| Transportation | 1 | 21 |
| Mining & Energy | 1 | 8 |
The Manufacturing sector dominated layoff filings with 867 workers across 2 notices. Meanwhile, Transportation reported 21 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Randolph | 1 | 657 |
| Jefferson | 1 | 210 |
| Hancock | 1 | 21 |
| Webster | 1 | 8 |
Randolph was the epicenter of layoff activity, accounting for 73% of all affected workers with 657 workers across 1 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Beverly | 1 | 657 |
| Kearneysville | 1 | 210 |
| Weirton | 1 | 21 |
| Cowen | 1 | 8 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 3 | 888 |
| Layoff | 1 | 8 |
The high proportion of closures (99% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in West Virginia's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verso | Beverly | 657 | Closure | |
| Royal Vendors | Kearneysville | 210 | Closure | |
| Falcon Transport | Weirton | 21 | Closure | |
| Arch Coal Eastern Complex | Cowen | 8 | Layoff |
The biggest impact was at Verso at its Beverly facility, reporting 657 affected workers. Royal Vendors followed with 210 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
This data points to 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.