California Layoffs — March 2023
Employers in California posted 124 WARN Act notices in March 2023, affecting an estimated 7,513 workers — reflecting a cooling compared to February and up 55% versus March 2022. The average filing covered 61 workers, with 18 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 36 | 1,735 |
| Information & Technology | 16 | 1,657 |
| Finance & Insurance | 5 | 738 |
| Healthcare | 15 | 492 |
| Retail | 4 | 329 |
| Transportation | 4 | 240 |
| Professional Services | 6 | 205 |
| Accommodation & Food | 1 | 85 |
The Manufacturing sector saw the heaviest impact with 1,735 workers across 36 notices. On a related front, Information & Technology reported 1,657 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 21 | 1,954 |
| Santa Clara | 29 | 1,627 |
| San Mateo | 21 | 755 |
| San Diego | 11 | 635 |
| San Francisco | 4 | 562 |
Los Angeles absorbed the greatest share of layoffs, accounting for 26% of all affected workers with 1,954 workers across 21 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Long Beach | 2 | 661 |
| San Francisco | 3 | 432 |
| Newbury Park | 1 | 425 |
| Cupertino | 1 | 416 |
| South San Francisco | 6 | 330 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Layoff | 106 | 6,746 |
| Closure | 18 | 767 |
Closures accounted for 10% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virgin Orbit | Long Beach | 603 | Layoff | |
| Amgen | Newbury Park | 425 | Layoff | |
| Security Industry Specialists | Cupertino | 416 | Layoff | |
| Genentech | South San Francisco | 271 | Layoff | |
| Atlassian US | San Francisco | 268 | Layoff | |
| Silvergate Bank | La Jolla | 260 | Layoff | |
| Auris Health | Redwood City | 223 | Layoff | |
| Aspiration Partners | Marina Del Rey | 180 | Layoff | |
| American General Life Insurance | Woodland Hills | 163 | Layoff | |
| The Michaels Companies | Tracy | 160 | Layoff | |
| Rivian Automotive | Irvine | 153 | Layoff | |
| Rivian Automotive | Costa Mesa | 150 | Layoff | |
| Glassdoor | Mill Valley | 130 | Layoff | |
| Custom Control Sensors | 127 | Closure | ||
| Thermo Fisher Scientific | Carlsbad | 123 | Layoff |
The largest notice was filed by Virgin Orbit at its Long Beach facility, reporting 603 affected workers. Amgen followed with 425 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This is the third consecutive month of declining layoff activity.
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.