There were four mass layoffs – defined as at least 50 employes from a single employer – in Colorado in September, down from seven mass layoffs in September 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said Tuesday.
As a result there were 307 initial claimants for unemployment in September, compared to 680 claimants in September 2011.
Linda Nickisch, an economist with the Bureau of Labor Statistics in Kansas City, said all four mass layoffs in Colorado in September were in private industry including some in retail trade.
But Nickisch said that because of strict confidentiality regulations, the government is not allowed to give out information that would identify employers.
Retail trade could include anything from furniture stores, electronic stores, grocery stores to the smaller clothing stores, she said.
Nickisch said that in January, there were five mass layoffs in Colorado; February, 6; March, 9; April, 12; May, 10; June, 12; July, 10; August, 3; and September, 4.
Nationally, employers took 1,316 mass layoff actions in September involving 122,462 workers.
Nationally, mass layoffs in September increased by 49 from August, while the number of associated initial claims decreased by 4,992.
In September, 366 mass layoffs were reported in the manufacturing sector resulting in 39,748 initial claims.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939, hpankratz@denverpost.com or twitter.com/howardpankratz
