Minnesota Layoffs — April 2023
Employers in Minnesota reported 22 WARN Act notices in April 2023, displacing an estimated 1,797 workers — signaling an acceleration from March and up 2846% versus April 2022. The average filing covered 82 workers, with 5 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Retail | 1 | 420 |
| Information & Technology | 1 | 71 |
| Healthcare | 5 | 46 |
| Accommodation & Food | 3 | 20 |
The Retail sector topped the list of affected industries with 420 workers across 1 notice. Notably, Information & Technology reported 71 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Cottonwood | 1 | 1,007 |
| Chisago | 1 | 71 |
| Anoka | 3 | 48 |
| Crow Wing | 1 | 10 |
| Washington | 1 | 7 |
Cottonwood bore the heaviest burden, accounting for 56% of all affected workers with 1,007 workers across 1 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Windom | 1 | 1,007 |
| Rush City | 1 | 71 |
| Minneapolis | 3 | 48 |
| Alexandria | 1 | 10 |
| St. Paul | 1 | 7 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 5 | 9 |
Closures accounted for 1% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
Largest Layoffs
The most significant filing came from HyLife Foods Windom at its Windom facility, reporting 1,007 affected workers. Walmart Brooklyn Center followed with 420 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The numbers illustrate mounting pressure on the Minnesota labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Retail sector warrants close attention heading into the next period.
This analysis is based on official WARN Act filings reported by Minnesota. 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 Minnesota WARN notices, browse layoffs by state, or download the full dataset.