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A Year of Workforce Reductions Accelerates

Layoff announcements in the United States have surged to 1.17 million so far in 2025, marking the highest 11-month total since the historic waves of job losses during the 2020 pandemic. According to new data from Challenger, Gray & Christmas, employers announced 71,321 job cuts in November, a decline from October’s extraordinary figures but still a reflection of a cooling labor market under stress.

November’s count pushed the year-to-date total 54% higher than the same period in 2024. The rise comes as companies across sectors brace for slower growth, shifting consumer demand, automation pressures and the financial effects of ongoing tariffs.

What’s Driving the Layoff Wave

The data shows a mix of familiar and emerging catalysts behind the cuts.

Restructuring Leads the Pack

Corporate restructuring remained the top reason employers cited for layoffs in November. Many companies are adjusting their business models after years of rapid digital expansion and shifting post-pandemic dynamics.

AI-Driven Workforce Shifts

Artificial intelligence continues to reshape staffing needs. The tech sector alone cut 12,377 jobs in November, with AI responsible for 54,694 layoffs this year. Companies are rebalancing teams as AI tools automate functions in software development, customer support and data operations.

Tariffs Add Pressure

Tariffs contributed to more than 2,000 cuts in November and nearly 8,000 for the year, exposing how geopolitical tensions and shifting trade policies continue to affect manufacturing, logistics and consumer goods companies.

The month’s biggest single layoff announcement came from Verizon, which revealed plans to eliminate over 13,000 positions, pushing telecommunications deeper into its multi-year effort to streamline operations.

Historical Context and Long-Term Patterns

Although November’s total was smaller than October’s shocking 153,000 layoffs—the highest for the month in 22 years—it still reflects an unsettling trend. Historically, layoffs exceeding 70,000 in November have happened only twice since 2008.

Andy Challenger, chief revenue officer at Challenger, Gray & Christmas, noted a shift in how companies approach job cuts. Before the financial crisis, firms often scheduled layoffs near fiscal year-end. But after the Great Recession, announcing cuts during the holiday season became widely discouraged, prompting many organizations to space them differently throughout the year.

Still, despite this cultural shift, 2025 is defying that norm as economic uncertainty pressures employers to take action regardless of timing.

Weak Hiring and Rising Labor Concerns

The slowdown in hiring compounds the challenges. Companies have announced 497,151 planned hires this year, a steep 35% decline from the same period in 2024. Industries that boomed during the early pandemic, including logistics, warehousing and retail, are now scaling back.

Private payroll data from ADP added another layer of concern, showing 32,000 jobs cut in November, the sharpest drop in more than two and a half years.

Yet official government data has painted a mixed picture. The Labor Department reported weekly jobless claims unexpectedly fell to 191,000, the lowest level in more than three years. The decline of 27,000 claims was driven largely by unusually large drops in California and Texas, likely influenced by seasonal distortions around the Thanksgiving holiday.

The Road Ahead

While the latest numbers reveal a workforce under pressure, they also highlight a labor market that remains somewhat resilient, at least on the surface. Many economists warn that announced cuts often take months to appear in government data, meaning the full impact may not be reflected yet.

With restructuring accelerating, automation expanding and tariff-related uncertainty lingering, 2025 is shaping up to be a defining year for U.S. employment trends. The coming months will signal whether the labor market can absorb these shocks or if deeper weakness lies ahead.