Nearly 100 companies in New Jersey reported over 13,300 layoffs in 2024, according to public records. The layoffs primarily affected white-collar sectors such as pharmaceuticals, banking, and finance.
The data was released through New Jersey’s Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) filings. These require employers to provide a 90-day notice when terminating employees within the state.
However, not all of the 13,332 individuals lost their jobs permanently. For instance, the Metropolitan YMCA in Wayne filed a layoff notice for 157 people but later rehired many of them. Similarly, Big Lots announced layoffs for 385 workers but secured a last-minute agreement to keep 400 stores open.
New Jersey currently holds the tenth-highest unemployment rate in the country at 4.6%, as per the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.
James Hughes, an economist at Rutgers University, commented on the situation: "Many of the layoffs were likely among hires that came on board in 2022 and 2023 during what’s been called the Great Resignation." He further noted that "The Great Resignation has yielded to the Great Stay," indicating that this might be more of a market correction than an ongoing trend.
NorthJersey.com published these findings on January 5, 2025.
