Job Cuts Spike, Marking 4th-Worst November Since 2008–09 Financial Crisis

People wait in line to speak with prospective employers during a career fair in Los Angeles, Calif., on Nov. 2, 2023. Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Job cuts in the United States accelerated in November, with employers announcing 57,727 layoffs, a 3.8 percent increase from October and 26.8 percent higher than the same month last year, according to a report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a Chicago, Illinois-based global outplacement and career transitioning firm.

The November figure marks the fourth-highest for the month since the financial crisis of 2008–09, as economic pressures mount across key industries.

The report, released on Dec. 5, also shows that, year to date, U.S. employers have announced a total of 722,566 layoffs, a 5.2 percent increase compared with 2023. Excluding the record-breaking job cuts of 2020, this year’s total is the highest since 2009.

In terms of industries most affected by layoffs, the automotive sector led with 11,506 job cuts in November, the highest monthly total since April, as the industry faces challenges such as potential tariffs, competition from Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers, and shifting government subsidies.

Manufacturing also showed weakness, with the industrial manufacturing sector like heavy-machinery production shedding 21,974 jobs through November, a 158 percent increase from the 8,517 announced in the sector during the year-ago period. The overall manufacturing sector—which includes industrial manufacturing and consumer goods production—cut 26,000 jobs in November alone, according to separate data from payroll processor ADP, marking its second consecutive month of significant declines.

While still significant, layoffs in the technology sector have slowed somewhat compared to last year. Employers in the tech sector announced 10,231 job cuts in November, according to the Challenger report, for a year-to-date total of 130,701—a 20 percent drop from the 163,562 cuts through November last year.

“November saw downstream cuts to automotive suppliers and parts manufacturers, as well as ongoing cuts in consumer and industrial manufacturing. Technology also saw a high number of layoff announcements, as that sector continues to undergo significant changes,” Andrew Challenger, senior vice president of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, said in a statement.

The health care and health care products sector, excluding hospitals, has also been a notable contributor to job cuts this year. Employers in this sector announced 47,249 layoffs through November, an 18 percent decline compared with the 57,758 cuts announced during the same period in 2023.

“Health care is experiencing similar challenges to the automotive industry, in that regulatory and policy changes, as well as leadership changes, has led to increased volatility. Labor disputes and new technologies are also causing workforce realignments,” Challenger said.

The media industry—encompassing television, film, streaming, and news—announced 1,017 layoffs in November, the highest monthly total since February. Year to date, media layoffs reached 14,549, down 28 percent from the same period last year. News organizations, a subset of the media category, reported a sharp 48 percent increase in year-to-date layoffs compared to the same period in 2023, reflecting ongoing challenges in digital and traditional publishing.

Regionally, the Eastern United States saw the largest rise in layoffs, with job cuts increasing 20.4 percent compared to 2023, driven by significant cuts in the District of Columbia and Rhode Island, according to Challenger. The South, by contrast, experienced a 23.5 percent decline in job cuts, led by sharp reductions in Florida and Tennessee.

Broader labor market data paint a mixed picture. Initial unemployment claims rose slightly to 224,000 for the week ended Nov. 30, remaining low by historical standards, but indicating some cooling in the labor market, according to data released on Dec. 5 by the Department of Labor. Economists note that sluggish hiring is prolonging unemployment spells, keeping the jobless rate above 4 percent.

“Claims remain low by long-run standards, but still high enough to perpetuate the rising trend in the unemployment rate, given very modest hiring,” said Samuel Tombs, chief U.S. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.

Despite mounting layoffs in goods-producing industries, the services sector continues to outperform. ADP reported 140,000 service-sector jobs added in November, led by gains in education, health services, and transportation. Similarly, the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) reported growth in nonmanufacturing industries for the fifth consecutive month, highlighting resilience in the broader economy.

Attention is now focused on the Labor Department’s nonfarm payrolls report, due Dec. 6. It’s expected to show a rebound with 200,000 jobs added in November, following October’s weak gain of just 12,000—the lowest since December 2020.