California Layoffs — April 2022
Employers in California posted 52 WARN Act notices in April 2022, affecting an estimated 3,405 workers — reflecting a cooling compared to March and roughly flat versus April 2021. The average filing covered 65 workers, with 26 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 17 | 1,414 |
| Information & Technology | 8 | 533 |
| Healthcare | 10 | 404 |
| Transportation | 2 | 294 |
| Finance & Insurance | 6 | 224 |
| Professional Services | 2 | 190 |
| Education | 1 | 131 |
| Retail | 1 | 67 |
The Manufacturing sector saw the heaviest impact with 1,414 workers across 17 notices. On a related front, Information & Technology reported 533 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 22 | 1,295 |
| Orange | 5 | 459 |
| San Francisco | 2 | 377 |
| San Diego | 5 | 360 |
| Santa Clara | 4 | 285 |
Los Angeles bore the heaviest burden, accounting for 38% of all affected workers with 1,295 workers across 22 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| South San Francisco | 1 | 337 |
| Los Angeles | 9 | 325 |
| Oakland | 2 | 240 |
| Lancaster | 1 | 215 |
| Santa Ana | 2 | 204 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 26 | 1,826 |
| Closure | 26 | 1,579 |
Closures accounted for 46% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nektar Therapeutics | South San Francisco | 337 | Layoff | |
| Transdev Services | Lancaster | 215 | Layoff | |
| AB&I Foundry | Oakland | 193 | Closure | |
| Owning | Orange | 189 | Layoff | |
| Cast Parts, Inc. DBA CPP-Pomona | Valley Boulevard Pomona | 132 | Closure | |
| OptumRx | East San Diego | 132 | Closure | |
| Marymount California University | East Rancho Palos Verdes | 131 | Closure | |
| Hunter Douglas Fabrication | West Sacramento | 122 | Closure | |
| InterValley Health Plan | Pomona | 110 | Layoff | |
| Netflix | Santa Ana | 106 | Layoff | |
| Robinhood Markets | Menlo Park | 100 | Layoff | |
| Waste Management | Santa Clarita | 98 | Layoff | |
| Waste Management | Santa Ana | 98 | Layoff | |
| Pacifica Foods | Oceanside | 86 | Closure | |
| PayPal | San Jose | 83 | Layoff |
The largest notice was filed by Nektar Therapeutics at its South San Francisco facility, reporting 337 affected workers. Transdev Services followed with 215 workers.
Trend & Outlook
The trends suggest a mixed picture for California's labor market, with activity diverging between monthly and annual comparisons. The Manufacturing 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.