Sunday, September 28, 2008

Hawaii reports 4 'mass layoffs' in August


There were four “mass layoffs” in Hawaii in August, which resulted in the loss of 408 jobs for at least 31 days, according to the U.S. Department of Labor on Tuesday.

In July, there were four mass layoff events that resulted in the loss of 271 jobs. In August 2007, there were five mass layoffs that resulted in the loss of 169 jobs.

A mass layoff is when there are 50 or more initial claims for unemployment insurance benefits from one employer during a five-week period, with at least 50 workers separated for more than 30 days.

Nationwide there were 1,772 mass layoffs in August that resulted in the separation of 173,955 workers from their jobs for at least 31 days, seasonally adjusted.

Seasonal adjustment is the process of estimating and removing the effect of regularly recurring seasonal events such as changes in the weather, holidays and the beginning and ending of the school year.

The temporary-help services industry had the largest number of initial claims, followed by school and employee bus transportation.

Labels: ,