WASHINGTON - There were 34,768 layoff intentions announced in August, down 17% from the 41,676 layoffs in July and down sharply from the 76,454 job cuts announced in August 2009, job placement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas, Inc. said in a report released Wednesday. The data are not seasonally adjusted.
Total layoffs in August, which were led by the industrial and government sectors, was the lowest monthly total since June 2000.
John Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, noted that "job cuts never fell to these levels following the 2001 recession; not even when the economy was reaping the rewards of the housing boom."
The government and non-profit sector has shed 112,378 jobs so far in 2010, the largest of any sector by a large margin, but Challenger said that the pace of layoffs in the sector appears to be slowing.
Layoffs in other sectors have substantially improved from year ago, the data show.
"If there is a double-dip recession on the horizon, either companies do not see it or they have no slack in their existing workforces," Challenger said.
"The recovery may indeed be stalling, but any slowdown is unlikely to lead to a sudden resurgence in mass layoffs," he added. "Unfortunately, a slowing recovery could be met with further delays in much-needed hiring."
In other data released, hiring intentions rose to 14,075 in August from 8,151 in July and from 13,100 in August 2009. Aug hiring plans were led by the entertainment and leisure sector.
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