Business First of Louisville (01/25/12)

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that businesses took a seasonally adjusted 1,384 mass layoff actions in December that involved 145,648 workers, as measured by new filings for unemployment benefits during the month. Mass layoff events in December increased by 52 from November, and associated initial claims increased by 14,021. Each mass layoff involved at least 50 workers from a single company. California recorded the highest number of mass layoff initial claims in December, followed by Pennsylvania, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, and New York. There were 18,521 mass layoff events for all of 2011, the lowest such number since 2007.