US Layoffs — August 2022
The US labor market showed signs of rising strain as employers reported 227 WARN Act notices in August 2022, displacing an estimated 20,625 workers — signaling an acceleration from July and up 29% versus August 2021. Filings came from 35 states and territories, with an average of 91 workers per notice.
Top States by Workers Affected
| State | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| California | 73 | 5,498 |
| Texas | 15 | 1,549 |
| Hawaii | 9 | 1,227 |
| Illinois | 13 | 1,181 |
| Maryland | 9 | 988 |
| South Carolina | 3 | 945 |
| Mississippi | 11 | 859 |
| Massachusetts | 8 | 781 |
| Ohio | 9 | 684 |
| North Dakota | 1 | 670 |
| Pennsylvania | 5 | 616 |
| Michigan | 6 | 609 |
| Tennessee | 3 | 531 |
| Arizona | 5 | 444 |
| North Carolina | 5 | 371 |
| Florida | 5 | 352 |
| New Jersey | 2 | 338 |
| Oregon | 2 | 296 |
| New Mexico | 3 | 282 |
| Iowa | 9 | 282 |
| Georgia | 4 | 279 |
| Kentucky | 2 | 269 |
| Wisconsin | 2 | 263 |
| Nevada | 4 | 254 |
| Louisiana | 2 | 187 |
| Oklahoma | 3 | 184 |
| Minnesota | 5 | 183 |
| Utah | 2 | 115 |
| Virginia | 1 | 95 |
| Indiana | 1 | 71 |
| Missouri | 1 | 66 |
| Connecticut | 1 | 63 |
| South Dakota | 1 | 47 |
| Washington | 1 | 45 |
| Colorado | 1 | 1 |
California led the nation with 5,498 workers affected across 73 notices , followed by Texas (1,549 workers) and Hawaii (1,227 workers) .
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 59 | 5,611 |
| Finance & Insurance | 22 | 2,169 |
| Healthcare | 17 | 1,843 |
| Transportation | 17 | 1,798 |
| Information & Technology | 26 | 1,576 |
| Retail | 12 | 1,280 |
| Professional Services | 4 | 865 |
| Accommodation & Food | 11 | 737 |
| Government | 7 | 430 |
| Utilities | 3 | 408 |
The Manufacturing sector topped the list of affected industries with 5,611 workers across 59 notices. Notably, Finance & Insurance reported 2,169 workers.
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 69 | 7,530 |
| Layoff | 57 | 3,487 |
| Temporary Layoff | 2 | 108 |
Closures accounted for 37% of all affected workers nationally, with the majority of events being layoffs rather than full closures.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | Location | Workers | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Watsonville Community Hospital | North Dakota | 670 | |
| Cepheid | Caribbean Drive Sunnyvale, California | 632 | Closure |
| Mohawk ESV | Bennettsville, South Carolina | 600 | Closure |
| Autodesk | San Rafael, California | 578 | Closure |
| SAS Airport Services Hawaii | Honolulu, Hawaii | 550 | |
| Wayfair | Boston, Massachusetts | 540 | |
| Home Point Financial | Dallas, Texas | 526 | |
| HomePoint Financial | Dallas, Texas | 526 | |
| Ito Family Holding | Pearl City, Hawaii | 350 | Closure |
| Groupon | Chicago, Illinois | 293 |
The most significant filing came from Watsonville Community Hospital in North Dakota, reporting 670 affected workers. Cepheid followed with 632 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The numbers illustrate mounting pressure on the the nation labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Manufacturing sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This report covers all WARN Act filings with notice dates in August 2022. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act requires employers with 100+ employees to provide 60-day advance notice of mass layoffs and plant closings. Data is sourced from official state filings and updated daily by WARN Firehose, which also tracks SEC 8-K filings, bankruptcy proceedings, H-1B visa petitions, and unemployment claims across all six datasets. API access and data exports available.