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Above is a chart of seasonally adjusted mass lay-off events, which occur when an employer lays off at least 50 people. That that the number has been increasing since the beginning of 2007.
And consider this from the latest mass lay-off report:
The number of mass layoff events in March increased by 164 from the prior month, while the number of associated initial claims increased by 3,911. Over the year, the number of mass layoff events increased by 1,348, and the number of associated initial claims increased by 137,891.
The number of mass lay-offs is increasing, indicating continued stress in the labor market. That is leading to a high level of unemployment claims:
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While employment is a lagging indicator, the current situation does not bode well for a possible end to the recession.
