Texas now gets hit by a new wave of unexpected layoffs as more businesses file WARN notices advising of upcoming job cuts in the state.
This week, Texas is experiencing a wave of layoffs as multiple companies file notices under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act.
This legislation requires employers with more than 100 full-time employees to provide 60 days’ notice before laying off 50 or more workers at a single location.
Two companies recently submitted WARN notices to the Texas Workforce Commission.
Southwestern Health Resources announced the layoff of 129 employees in Farmers Branch, while MTC Medical LLC reported plans to cut a total of 218 positions by the end of September.
These layoffs are part of a troubling trend in the state.
MII Technologies has also informed the public that 57 employees in San Antonio will be laid off on October 31.
Additionally, Equus Workforce Solutions filed multiple WARN notices indicating staff reductions at various locations, affecting workers in Burnet, Johnson City, Lockhart, San Marcos, Bastrop, Giddings, Round Rock, and Llano.
In a significant move, Texas Children’s Hospital, the largest pediatric hospital in the country, announced on Tuesday that it will reduce its workforce by 5% due to ongoing financial challenges.
Meanwhile, Dell Technologies, the major tech firm based in Texas, unveiled another round of layoffs and restructuring aimed at integrating artificial intelligence into its operations.
In a memo to employees dated August 5, the company outlined its strategy to streamline operations and improve efficiency.
As these layoffs unfold, the Texas workforce continues to face uncertainty amid shifting economic conditions.
You can search for layoffs in your state here, or follow our layoff news for updates.
Also Read: Cisco Now Profits Billions And Makes Thousands of Unexpected Layoffs
Layoff and Unemployment Report
Applications for unemployment benefits now surge to new highs, a sign that the white-hot labor market is starting to cool off.
First-time applications for unemployment benefits rose last week to 231,000, the highest level since August, per CNN.
Thursday’s data also showed that the number of continuing claims, or applications from people who have filed for unemployment for at least one week, was 1.78 million.
That’s an increase of 17,000 from the prior week, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The latest numbers come less than a week after the monthly jobs report showed the US economy added just 175,000 positions in April, less than economists expected and a steep drop-off from prior months.
US employers have now added an average of 245,500 jobs per month, versus 2023’s 251,000-per-month average.
Still, hiring remains strong.
Although the unemployment rate ticked up to 3.9%, it as seen the 27th consecutive month that the jobless rate has held under 4%, matching a streak last seen in the late 1960s.
Weekly jobless claims data tends to be volatile but, while one week’s worth of data “does not a trend make,” said Chris Rupkey, chief economist at Fwdbonds.
“We can no longer be sure that calm seas lie ahead for the US economy if today’s weekly jobless claims are any indication.”
“Company layoffs are picking up, hinting at caution on the part of companies as they weigh the outlook for the second half of the year,” he wrote in a note Thursday.
The Federal Reserve has been battling inflation by raising its key lending rate in the hopes of slowing the economy.
While the labor market has so far resisted those efforts, remaining white hot for the past 18 months despite 11 rate hikes from the central bank, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said last week that demand has “cooled from its extremely high level of a couple of years ago.”
Ian Shepherdson at Pantheon Economics said in a note earlier this quarter: “We’d need to see at least a month of elevated readings to convince us that the trend really has turned.”
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