Employers announced plans to cut 33,346 jobs in September, according to a report issued by Challenger, Gray & Christmas. September’s announced cuts were 4.4% lower than August’s. The month’s figure was 27.0% lower than September 2016.
The retail sector continues to lead the way in job cuts, with 71,057 so far this year. This is 36.8% higher than the same period last year. However, the energy sector continued to hold strong, announcing 393 cuts in September, which brings the total to 12,997 in 2017. This is an 86.8% decrease from this point last year when the energy sector had shed 98,733 jobs.
“Job cuts have remained low since the second half of last year. As companies grapple with potential deregulation and changes to health care costs in a tight labor market, employers are holding on to their existing workforces while many positions requiring skilled labor go unfilled,” said John Challenger, Chief Executive Officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.
Telecommunications companies have reported 12,975 job cuts through September this year, 3.0% less than the 13,381 cuts through this point last year.
The service industry shed 3,916 jobs last month, totaling 24,977 through September this year. This is a 193.2% increase from September 2016.
Read the Challenger, Gray & Christmas release.
