Geographic Distribution
In the third quarter, the number of separations due to extended mass layoff events was highest in the Midwest (46,371), followed by the South (32,912), the West (26,910), and the Northeast (25,259). Extended mass layoffs in the Midwest were mainly in transportation equipment manufacturing, administrative and support services, and food and beverage stores.All four regions reported over-the-year decreases in separations, with the largest decrease occurring in the West (-67,336), followed by the South (-16,001), the Northeast (-12,512), and the Midwest (-9,032). Each of the nine geographic divisions reported over-the-year declines in laid-off workers, with the largest decline occurring in the Pacific division (-62,952).
Among the 50 states and the District of Columbia, the largest number of worker separations occurred in California (21,835), followed by Florida (16,098) and Illinois (16,086). About nine percent of the separations in Florida were weather-related, as the state was hit with a number of hurricanes during the quarter. California, Florida, and Illinois accounted for 33 percent of total layoff events and 41 percent of the separations during the third quarter of 2004. They were followed by New York (9,953), Michigan (8,000), Ohio (7,527), and Pennsylvania (7,515). After excluding the substantial impact of seasonal work, California still reported the most laid-off workers (18,677), largely due to layoffs in credit intermediation and related activities and in administrative and support services.
Over the year, California reported the greatest decrease in workers laid off during the third quarter (-56,310), followed by Illinois (-8,287), Washington (-5,976), Massachusetts (-5,901), and North Carolina (-5,672). The largest increases occurred in Ohio (+2,248) and Indiana (+1,987).
Fifty-six percent of events and 51 percent of separations occurred in metropolitan areas in the third quarter of 2004, compared to 54 percent of events and 47 percent of separations during the third quarter of 2003. Among the 331 metropolitan areas, Chicago, Ill., reported the highest number of separations, 8,457. Next were Riverside-San Bernardino, Calif., with 4,449 separations, New York, N.Y., with 4,194, and Los Angeles-Long Beach, Calif., with 3,273. Employers located in nonmetropolitan areas separated 16,049 workers in mass layoffs, down from 23,886 workers in the third quarter of 2003.
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