Washington Layoffs — July 2019
Employers in Washington posted 8 WARN Act notices in July 2019, affecting an estimated 421 workers — reflecting a cooling compared to June and up 151% versus July 2018. The average filing covered 53 workers, with 6 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Wholesale Trade | 1 | 116 |
| Manufacturing | 1 | 100 |
| Accommodation & Food | 2 | 70 |
| Government | 1 | 58 |
| Information & Technology | 1 | 41 |
| Healthcare | 1 | 26 |
| Professional Services | 1 | 10 |
The Wholesale Trade sector saw the heaviest impact with 116 workers across 1 notice. On a related front, Manufacturing reported 100 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| King | 6 | 311 |
| Grant | 1 | 100 |
| Island | 1 | 10 |
King was the epicenter of layoff activity, accounting for 74% of all affected workers with 311 workers across 6 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle | 3 | 133 |
| Auburn | 1 | 116 |
| Moses Lake | 1 | 100 |
| Bellevue | 1 | 41 |
| SeaTac | 1 | 21 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 6 | 311 |
| Layoff | 1 | 10 |
The high proportion of closures (74% of affected workers) suggests structural shifts rather than temporary cutbacks in Washington's labor market.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Natural Foods/SUPERVALU | Auburn | 116 | Closure | |
| REC Silicon | Moses Lake | 100 | ||
| Salvation Army | Seattle | 58 | Closure | |
| Sky Chefs | Seattle | 49 | Closure | |
| Futurewei | Bellevue | 41 | Closure | |
| Community Psychiatric Clinic | Seattle | 26 | Closure | |
| HMS Host | SeaTac | 21 | Closure | |
| Aecom | Pacific Beach and Whidbey Island | 10 | Layoff |
The largest notice was filed by United Natural Foods/SUPERVALU at its Auburn facility, reporting 116 affected workers. REC Silicon followed with 100 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This is the third consecutive month of declining layoff activity.
The trends suggest a mixed picture for Washington's labor market, with activity diverging between monthly and annual comparisons. The Wholesale Trade sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Washington. 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 Washington WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.