Jobs cuts about quadrupled during the first quarter, registering the highest first-quarter cuts since 2020, according to data from a recent report, with worries about the economy and market being the number-one reason for the layoffs.
In first quarter 2023, U.S.-based employers announced 270,416 job cuts, which is a 396 percent increase compared to the 55,696 cuts in first quarter 2022, stated an April 6th report (pdf) by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. This is also the highest first-quarter job cut number since 2020, as well as the highest quarterly job cuts since third quarter 2020. Employers announced 89,703 job cuts in March 2023, up 15 percent from February and up by 319 percent from March 2022.
