Job Loss Statistics

When a country faces a deepening recession, more workers find themselves included in the rising numbers of job loss statistics.

Read about surviving job loss

During an economic downturn or a recession, the number of people losing their jobs climbs causing the unemployment rate to steadily increase. The United States Department of Labor: Bureau of Labor Statistics issues a monthly report calendar disclosing the rise or decline of unemployment rates, along with other relevant employment statistics, relating to the current job market for the specified time of the report.

Throughout each month this agency issues specific reports pertaining to:

• The employment situation
• Employment and unemployment statistics pertaining to metropolitan areas
• Labor turnover survey
• Job openings
• Employment and unemployment statistics by regional and state areas
• Mass layoffs reports
• The overall employment situation

The United States Department of Labor: Bureau of Labor Statistics also issues various annual reports containing statistics pertaining to the job market and job loss.

When job loss occurs as the result of an economic downturn or recession, the effects are likely to be felt by millions of people. When recession conditions exist, companies have to find ways to cut costs to stay afloat. Often, this results in the elimination of jobs.

As past job loss statistics show, the effects of a tightening job market are felt throughout all industries and job sectors. This was the case during the recession that began in the United States in December of 2007. The overall job loss for American workers by the end of the following year reached a staggering 2.6 million. This job loss was the highest number since 1945, when World War II ended.

• 12 Month Job Loss examples: Examples illustrating how job loss is felt across all facets of industry are reflected in the following figures showing the number of jobs lost from December 2007 through the end of 2008.
  • Manufacturing sector - 1.2 million jobs
  • Construction sector - 1.1 million jobs
  • Retail sector - 608,000 jobs
  • Truck transportation industry - 138,000 jobs

• One month job loss examples: Examples of job loss by industry for a one month period, using statistics for January 2009:
  • Service industries - 279,000 jobs
  • Temporary help positions - 76,000
  • Manufacturing - 207,000 jobs
  • Retail trades - 45,000

It is known that when the number of unemployed workers increases, the number of personal bankruptcies also increases as shown by the following statistics.

• In January of 2009 the number of people filing for personal bankruptcy totaled 88,773, which was up slightly from the previous month when there were 84,926 bankruptcy fillings.
• The number of bankruptcy filings for January 2009 reflected a 34.4 percent increase from the number of filings for the same time the year before.

For some people that lose their jobs, having their mortgage lender foreclose on their homes is a real possibility. Statistics gathered during 2008 show that home foreclosures reached a record high as 2.3 million homeowners faced the loss of their homes due to job loss and other economic strains. This was an increase of 81 percent over the home foreclosure rate of the previous year.

A global recession occurs when the effects of a recession spread from one country into other countries throughout the world. The effect of that economic downturn further fuels a global recession as it causes economic problems to spread over the borders and across the oceans. When slow economic conditions occur in many countries at the same time, businesses around the world face massive layoffs, business restructures and company closings and unemployment rates clim on an international basis.

When there is a downturn in the economy, as shown by past job loss statistics, many workers find themselves in a position where they never foresaw themselves.

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