In May, employers took 1,626 mass layoff actions, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single employer; the number of workers involved totaled 171,387, on a seasonally adjusted basis.

Layoff events and associated initial claimants were the highest for the month of May since 2003. The number of mass layoff events in May 2008 increased sharply by 318 from the prior month, while the number of associated initial claims rose by 37,473. In May, 528 mass layoff events were reported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 72,058 initial claims. Over the month, mass layoff events in manufacturing increased by 45 and initial claims increased by 11,506.

From January through May 2008, the total number of events (seasonally adjusted), at 7,615, and initial claims (seasonally adjusted), at 783,942, were considerably higher than in January-May 2007 (6,325 and 650,605, respectively).

The national unemployment rate was 5.5 percent in May, seasonally adjusted, up from 5.0 percent in the prior month and up from 4.5 percent a year earlier. Total nonfarm payroll employment decreased by 49,000 in May from the previous month, but increased by 236,000 from a year earlier.

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)

The number of mass layoff events in May was 1,552 on a not seasonally adjusted basis; the number of associated initial claims was 159,471. Average weekly layoff events rose from 231 in May 2007 to 310 in May 2008, while average weekly initial claimants increased from 21,454 to 31,894. Both the average weekly number of events and claims reached the highest levels for the month of May since 2003.

The largest over-the-year increases in May 2008 average weekly initial claims associated with mass layoffs occurred in transportation equipment manufacturing (+1,766) and in transit and ground passenger transportation (+1,176). The largest decreases occurred in general merchandise stores (-256) and in textile mills (-126).

The manufacturing sector accounted for 25 percent of all mass layoff events and 32 percent of initial claims filed in May; a year earlier, manufacturing made up 24 percent of events and 31 percent of initial claims. In May 2008, the number of manufacturing claimants was highest in transportation equipment manufacturing (21,667), followed by food manufacturing (4,800). Administrative and waste services accounted for 12 percent of mass layoff events and 10 percent of associated initial claims in May, primarily from temporary help services.

The six-digit NAICS industry with the highest number of initial claims was temporary help services with 8,389, followed by food service contractors (7,376) and motion picture and video production (6,874). Among the 10 industries with the highest levels of initial claims, 7 of the 10 reached program highs in 2008 for the month of May (with data available back to 1995).

Of the 4 census regions, the highest number of initial claims in May due to mass layoffs was in the West (45,558). The Midwest had the second largest number of initial claims among the regions (45,462), followed by the South with 42,832 and the Northeast with 25,619.

All 4 regions experienced over-the-year increases in average weekly initial claims--the Midwest (+3,156), the South (+2,944), the West (+2,365), and the Northeast (+1,976). Eight of the 9 divisions had over-the-year increases in average weekly initial claims, led by the East North Central (+3,334).

California recorded the highest number of initial claims filed due to mass layoff events in May with 34,085, largely due to layoffs in motion picture and sound recording industries and in administrative and support services. The next highest states reporting mass layoff initial claims were New York (9,613), Pennsylvania (8,975), Florida (8,841), and Kentucky (8,666).

Forty states reported over-the-year increases in average weekly initial claims associated with mass layoffs, led by California (+1,422), New York (+1,333), Illinois (+843), and Florida (+752). States with the largest over-the-year decreases in average weekly claims were Missouri (-705) and Virginia (-162). In 2008, six states reported program highs in terms of average weekly initial claims for the month of May (with data available back to 1995)-Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Ohio.