Iowa Layoffs — May 2020
Employers in Iowa filed 9 WARN Act notices in May 2020, impacting roughly 1,335 workers — representing a notable rise over April and up 76% versus May 2019. The average filing covered 148 workers, with 4 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Accommodation & Food | 3 | 590 |
| Information & Technology | 2 | 421 |
| Manufacturing | 3 | 280 |
| Retail | 1 | 44 |
The Accommodation & Food sector led the way in workforce reductions with 590 workers across 3 notices. In a parallel development, Information & Technology reported 421 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Polk | 2 | 402 |
| Dubuque | 2 | 384 |
| Delaware | 1 | 301 |
| Worth | 1 | 132 |
| Scott | 1 | 44 |
Polk absorbed the greatest share of layoffs, accounting for 30% of all affected workers with 402 workers across 2 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manchester | 1 | 301 |
| Altoona | 1 | 282 |
| Dubuque | 1 | 208 |
| Duquque | 1 | 176 |
| Northwood | 1 | 132 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 4 | 626 |
| Closure | 4 | 501 |
Closures accounted for 38% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exide Technologies | Manchester | 301 | Closure | |
| Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino | Altoona | 282 | Layoff | |
| Flexsteel Industries | Dubuque | 208 | ||
| Dubuque Diamond Jo Casino | Duquque | 176 | Layoff | |
| Diamond Jo Worth Casino | Northwood | 132 | Layoff | |
| Techniplas | Ankeny | 120 | Closure | |
| Copart | Eldridge | 44 | Closure | |
| Doerfer Corporation - TDS Automation | Waterloo | 36 | Layoff | |
| POET DSM - Project LIBERTY | Emmetsburg | 36 | Closure |
The single largest action involved Exide Technologies at its Manchester facility, reporting 301 affected workers. Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino followed with 282 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
The data underscores mounting pressure on the Iowa labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Accommodation & Food sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Iowa. 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 Iowa WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.