California Layoffs — February 2022

Employers in California reported 51 WARN Act notices in February 2022, displacing an estimated 1,846 workers — signaling a deceleration from January and down 81% versus February 2021. The average filing covered 36 workers, with 15 closures among the notices.

Industry Breakdown

The Healthcare sector topped the list of affected industries with 527 workers across 18 notices. Notably, Accommodation & Food reported 271 workers.

Geographic Hotspots

Orange absorbed the greatest share of layoffs, accounting for 24% of all affected workers with 446 workers across 10 notices.

Layoff Type Analysis

Closures accounted for 39% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.

Largest Layoffs

The most significant filing came from Emerald Textiles at its Pittsburg facility, reporting 112 affected workers. Walmart followed with 105 workers.

Trend & Outlook

This is the third consecutive month of declining layoff activity.

The numbers illustrate a easing in workforce disruptions across California, with filings falling below both recent and year-ago levels. The Healthcare sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.

This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by California. 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 California WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.