US-based employers announced plans to slash 172,017 jobs in February, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas’s latest monthly job cuts report released Thursday.
That’s a 103% increase from a year ago and the highest February total since 2009.
It’s the 12th highest monthly total in the 32 years Challenger has been tracking job cuts. The 11 others (four came during the Covid-19 pandemic) all occurred when the US was in a recession, Challenger data shows.
The largest share of job cut announcements came in the government sector, where the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency has axed jobs, slashed federal spending and scrapped contracts.
By Challenger’s count, there were 62,242 announced cuts across 17 federal agencies. That’s a 41,311% increase from the 151 cuts announced through February 2024, Challenger noted.
The DOGE effect was not limited to the public sector: Downstream impacts, such as the loss of funding for private nonprofits, led to another 894 cuts, according to the report.
Outside of the government, the next largest cuts were in retail (38,956), technology (14,554) and consumer products (10,625).
Thursday’s report is “something to be concerned about,” said Gregory Daco, chief economist at EY Parthenon, noting that the government cuts accounted for one-third of the overall announced layoffs.
“That in itself is something that is concerning and does portend a shift in the way employers are approaching this labor market,” he said.
Andrew Challenger, senior vice president at Challenger, Gray & Christmas outplacement and executive coaching firm, said in a statement: “With the impact of the Department of Government Efficiency actions, as well as canceled government contracts, fear of trade wars, and bankruptcies, job cuts soared in February.”