Mass Layoffs Displaced 14,000 Ohio Workers in 2018

The number of Ohioans who lost their jobs in "mass layoffs" was higher in 2018 than the year before. 

Generally speaking, when a company with more than 100 employees decides to lay off 50 or more people, a federal law known as the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) considers that a "mass layoff." But before that can happen, an employer must provide employees with at least 60 days written notice.

According to an ideastream analysis of data from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, mass layoffs were responsible for displacing approximately 11,000 people in 2017. In 2018, that number rose to more than 14,000. 

Some of the biggest layoffs came from employers such as Northside Regional Medical Center in Youngstown, which affected 468 employees when the hospital closed in September. Then, there was Toys ‘R’ Us. Several months after filing for bankruptcy, the toy giant gave the state notice in April of 1,178 layoffs. 

By far the biggest single group of workers displaced by a mass layoff in 2018 was the workers at the General Motors plant in Lordstown.

About 1,500 employees were let go when the plant's second shift was eliminated this past summer. And in mid-December, after announcing that it would be laying off 15 percent of its workforce, which would include ending the remaining shift at Lordstown, GM filed notice of 1,607 layoffs scheduled to begin in March. 

The 20 Largest Mass Layoff Notices in Ohio (2018):

1. General Motors Lordstown Complex in Warren: 1,607employees (reported Dec)
2. General Motors Lordstown Complex in Warren: 1,500  (Apr)
3. Toys 'R' Us / Babies 'R' Us Stores Statewide: 1,178 (Jun) 
4. FCA US (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) plant in Toledo: 852(Feb)
5. Affinity Medical Center in Massillon: 692(Jan)
6. Mobis North America in Toledo: 572(Jan)
7. Northside Regional Medical Center in Youngstown: 468(Aug)
8. Express Scripts in Columbus: 456(Apr)
9. Elder-Beerman & Bon-Ton Fulfillment Center in Dayton and West Jefferson: 452(Apri)
10. AES Ohio Generation (Dayton Power & Light) in Aberdeen and Manchester: 370(Mar)
11. Mid-Town Health in Cincinnati and Fairfield: 349(Nov)            
12. KUKA Toledo Production Operations (builds Jeep Wrangler body shells): 346(Feb) 
13. Teradata Corporation (data analytics) in Miamisburg: 267(Jun)        
14. US Bank in Bedford: 260(May)
15. DHL Supply Chain in Groveport: 260(Jun)
16. Personal Touch Home Care of Ohio in Independence, Wooster, Fairfield, and Eaton: 257(Feb)     
17. DHL Supply Chain in Lima: 229(Jan)
18. EBTH, Inc. (online estate sales) in Blue Ash: 203(Apr)
19. Radial South L.P. (e-commerce logistics) in Groveport: 194(Dec)
20. Fremont Plastic Products in Fremont: 185(Jan)                  

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