Layoffs soar in U.S.; jobs still added

Global companies are beginning to announce large-scale layoff plans, which could imply an economic downturn is approaching, according to a new report.

U.s.-based companies announced 53,073 layoffs in November, an increase of more than 50 percent from the same month last year, global outplacement and executive coaching firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. said Thursday.

The larger job cuts come amid a weekslong selloff in global stocks driven by concerns the U.S. economy could be headed for a recession. Nonetheless, the U.S. economy continued to add more jobs last month than it lost.

The jump in layoffs was led by General Motors, which announced it would shed 14,800 jobs in the U.S. and Canada as it seeks to cut costs.

“Announcements like GM’S will not be the last, as companies adapt to shifting consumer behavior. We’ve already seen major plans in the

U.S. from Verizon, Wells Fargo, and Toys R Us for exactly those reasons,” Andrew Challenger, vice president of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, said in a statement.

Overseas companies also made big cuts. Japanese tech and energy firm Toshiba said it will eliminate roughly 7,000 positions, while German pharmaceutical producer Bayer said it would cut 12,000 jobs following its merger with Monsanto.

Cuts

Through the first 11 months of this year U.s.-based companies have announced nearly half a million job cuts, an increase of more than a quarter from the same period last year. The 11-month total is the highest since 2015, Challenger, Gray & Christmas said.

The retail sector has announced 96,504 job cuts, more than any other sector, according to the report. Retailers have been shedding jobs for years as consumers shift to online shopping and behemoths like Amazon undercut smaller competitors.

Telecommunications firms have shed the second-most jobs this year (59,518), followed by financial services (41,351). Consumers are banking more online, reducing the need for tellers and other bank staff.

Despite the increase in layoff announcements, the U.S. job market continues to grow as small and midsize companies hire more staff. The U.S. private sector added 179,000 jobs last month, according to a report Thursday by Automatic Data Processing Inc.

Contact Todd Prince at 702-3830386 or tprince@reviewjournal.com. Follow @toddprincetv on Twitter.