Job Cuts Spike in December – Up 18.9% from November

According to the latest released report by Challenger, Gray & Christmas (CG&C), Inc, a global outplacement and business and executive coaching firm, planned job cuts announced by U.S. based employers jumped to 77,030 in December. An increase of 18.9% from November’s announced cuts of 64,797. December’s total is 134.5% higher than the 32,843 cuts announced in December 2019. In 2020, 2,304,755 job cuts were announced, 289% higher than the 592,556 cuts announced in 2019. It is the highest annual total on record, and 17.8% higher than the previous record high of 1,956,876 cuts recorded in 2001. In comments prepared for the release of the report, Andrew Challenger, Senior Vice President of CG&C said, “In the final months of the year, companies that may have survived the initial impact of the pandemic in March and April determined staffing adjustments based on increasingly difficult market conditions. While some segments were up, such as warehousing, shipping, financial, and some manufacturing segments, many others were hurt considerably, chief among them Hospitality, Entertainment, and Leisure.”