Minnesota Layoffs — August 2024
Employers in Minnesota posted 17 WARN Act notices in August 2024, affecting an estimated 572 workers — reflecting a significant uptick compared to July and up 393% versus August 2023. The average filing covered 34 workers, with 3 closures among the notices.
Industry Breakdown
| Industry | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Information & Technology | 2 | 389 |
| Manufacturing | 1 | 48 |
| Education | 2 | 41 |
| Accommodation & Food | 2 | 36 |
| Real Estate | 1 | 20 |
| Retail | 2 | 14 |
| Arts & Entertainment | 1 | 1 |
| Government | 1 | 1 |
The Information & Technology sector saw the heaviest impact with 389 workers across 2 notices. On a related front, Manufacturing reported 48 workers.
Geographic Hotspots
| County | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Olmsted | 3 | 332 |
| Anoka | 5 | 129 |
| Faribault | 1 | 59 |
| Hennepin | 1 | 35 |
| Washington | 2 | 11 |
Olmsted absorbed the greatest share of layoffs, accounting for 58% of all affected workers with 332 workers across 3 notices.
| City | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Rochester | 3 | 332 |
| Minneapolis | 5 | 129 |
| Blue Earth | 1 | 59 |
| Maple Grove | 1 | 35 |
| St. Paul | 2 | 11 |
Layoff Type Analysis
| Type | Notices | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Closure | 3 | 15 |
Closures accounted for 3% of affected workers, while the majority of filings were layoffs rather than permanent shutdowns.
Largest Layoffs
| Company | City | Workers | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charter Communications | Rochester | 330 | ||
| Nortech Systems | Blue Earth | 59 | ||
| Smith Foundry | Minneapolis | 48 | ||
| Kim's | Minneapolis | 40 | ||
| Red Lobster | Maple Grove | 35 | ||
| Agate Housing and Services | Minneapolis | 20 | ||
| Game Informer Magazine | Minneapolis | 13 | Closure | |
| Dunham's Bar | St. Paul | 10 | ||
| Finnegans Taproom | Minneapolis | 8 | ||
| Marien's Deli | Lake City | 2 | ||
| JCPenney | Willmar | 1 | Closure | |
| Quebracho Empanadas | St. Paul | 1 | ||
| The Little Gnome Childcare | Spring Grove | 1 | Closure | |
| CineMagic Hollywood 12 | Rochester | 1 | ||
| Salvation Army | Owatonna | 1 |
The largest notice was filed by Charter Communications at its Rochester facility, reporting 330 affected workers. Nortech Systems followed with 59 workers.
Trend & Outlook
This marks the third consecutive month of rising layoff activity.
The trends suggest mounting pressure on the Minnesota labor market, with activity running above both recent and year-ago benchmarks. The Information & Technology 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.