West Virginia Layoffs — May 2020
Employers in West Virginia reported 14 WARN Act notices in May 2020, displacing an estimated 3,697 workers — signaling an acceleration from April and up 364% versus May 2019. The average filing covered 264 workers, with 2 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Utilities | 7 | 2,503 |
| Manufacturing | 4 | 522 |
| Healthcare | 1 | 340 |
| Real Estate | 1 | 254 |
| Mining & Energy | 1 | 78 |
The Utilities sector topped the list of affected industries with 2,503 workers across 7 notices. Notably, Manufacturing reported 522 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Marshall | 2 | 1,301 |
| Marion | 2 | 931 |
| Mercer | 1 | 340 |
| Mingo | 1 | 254 |
| Jackson | 2 | 245 |
Marshall felt the sharpest impact, accounting for 35% of all affected workers with 1,301 workers across 2 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Cameron | 1 | 854 |
| Metz | 1 | 483 |
| Mannington | 1 | 448 |
| Dallas | 1 | 447 |
| Bluefield | 1 | 340 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 12 | 3,307 |
| Closure | 2 | 390 |
Closures accounted for 11% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murray Energy Holdings Company Marshall County Coal | Cameron | 854 | Layoff | |
| Murray Energy Holdings Company Marion County Coal | Metz | 483 | Layoff | |
| Murray Energy Holdings Company Harrison County Coal | Mannington | 448 | Layoff | |
| Murray Energy Holdings Company Ohio County Coal | Dallas | 447 | Layoff | |
| Bluefield Regional Medical Center | Bluefield | 340 | Closure | |
| Southeastern Land | Delbarton | 254 | Layoff | |
| Homer Laughlin China | Newell | 200 | Layoff | |
| Constellium Rolled Products Ravenswood | Ravenswood | 175 | Layoff | |
| Murray Energy Holdings Company Anchor Longwall & Rebuild | Wheeling | 139 | Layoff | |
| Murray Energy Holdings Company Kanawha Transportation Center | Wheeling | 82 | Layoff | |
| Panther Creek Mining | Ecksdale | 78 | Layoff | |
| American Woodmark | Moorefield | 77 | Layoff | |
| Constellium Rolled Products Ravenswood | Ravenswood | 70 | Layoff | |
| Extra Energy, Inc. Southern Surface Mine | Skygusty | 50 | Closure |
The most significant filing came from Murray Energy Holdings Company Marshall County Coal at its Cameron facility, reporting 854 affected workers. Murray Energy Holdings Company Marion County Coal followed with 483 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The numbers illustrate mounting pressure on the West Virginia labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Utilities 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.