California Layoffs — May 2022
Employers in California posted 88 WARN Act notices in May 2022, affecting an estimated 3,584 workers — reflecting a significant uptick compared to April and up 9% versus May 2021. The average filing covered 41 workers, with 24 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Finance & Insurance | 25 | 717 |
| Information & Technology | 11 | 636 |
| Manufacturing | 8 | 573 |
| Transportation | 9 | 368 |
| Healthcare | 11 | 264 |
| Retail | 4 | 245 |
| Education | 11 | 229 |
| Professional Services | 2 | 174 |
The Finance & Insurance sector saw the heaviest impact with 717 workers across 25 notices. On a related front, Information & Technology reported 636 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 22 | 771 |
| Orange | 7 | 592 |
| San Diego | 9 | 423 |
| Ventura | 13 | 351 |
| San Bernardino | 3 | 259 |
Los Angeles saw the most concentrated activity, accounting for 22% of all affected workers with 771 workers across 22 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Irvine | 5 | 383 |
| Westlake Village | 12 | 239 |
| San Diego | 5 | 197 |
| St. Andrew Place Santa Ana | 3 | 155 |
| San Francisco | 3 | 146 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 63 | 2,176 |
| Closure | 24 | 1,350 |
| Temporary Layoff | 1 | 58 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sweda | City of Industry | 130 | Layoff | |
| NationstarMortgage, LLCdbaMr.Cooper | Irvine | 120 | Layoff | |
| Nationstar Mortgage, LLC DBA Mr. Cooper | Andrew Place Santa Ana | 120 | Layoff | |
| Whole Foods Market | Tarzana | 117 | Closure | |
| Valiant Integrated Services | Travis Afb | 114 | Closure | |
| Valiant Integrated Services | Fort Irwin | 114 | Closure | |
| Doma | Irvine | 113 | Layoff | |
| Artisan Bakers | Sonoma | 111 | Layoff | |
| Pretium Packaging | Irvine | 101 | Closure | |
| USF Reddaway | Compton | 98 | Closure | |
| Southland Transit | Perris | 97 | Closure | |
| Aisin Electronics | W. Circle Stockton | 91 | Closure | |
| Blend Labs | St. Andrew Place Santa Ana | 89 | Layoff | |
| Voxpro Group LLC | Sacramento | 87 | Layoff | |
| Telus International DBA Voxpro Group LLC | Folsom | 87 | Layoff |
The largest notice was filed by Sweda at its City of Industry facility, reporting 130 affected workers. NationstarMortgage, LLCdbaMr.Cooper followed with 120 workers.
Trend & Outlook
After a dip last month, layoff activity has ticked back up.
The trends suggest mounting pressure on the California labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Finance & Insurance 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.