December US Job Cuts Lowest in 17 Months

US-based employers announced 43,994 job cuts in October 2026, up 2% from 43,281 cuts in September, but down 71% from last year and the lowest for an October month since 2023. It is the eighth month this year in which cuts came in below the same month one year earlier. Food companies led all industries in the amount of cuts (9,677), followed by technology (5,576) and services (5,458). Through October, employers have announced 617,189 job cuts, down 44% year-on-year. It is the lowest year-to-date total through October since 2022, when 243,338 cuts were announced. The tech sector leads all industries with 171,501 cuts up 21% yoy. “This is a low-fire environment. Employers are holding on to the workers they have heading into the holidays, and the hiring they are announcing is largely short-term, seasonal work. Companies want the flexibility to meet holiday demand without adding permanent headcount,” said Andy Challenger, from Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

US-based employers announced 43,281 job cuts in September 2026, down from 52,881 in August and 54,064 last year. It is the lowest total for the month since 2022. The tech sector announced the most cuts (10,799), followed by food (7,326) and services (3,306). "Companies are in a wait-and-see period right now. Employers are facing high energy costs, an uncertain war in Iran, a rate hike that could make hiring more expensive, plus the likelihood of surging healthcare costs. We’ve seen layoff activity subside over this year, and September continues to illustrate this point,” said Andy Challenger from Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Meanwhile, Q3 layoff plans totaled 129,591, down 43% from the 226,242 layoff plans in Q2 2026. Through September, employers have announced 573,195 job cuts, down 39% from the 946,426 cuts announced in the first nine months of 2025. The tech sector lead with 165,925 cuts.

US-based employers announced 52,881 job cuts in August 2026 compared to 33,429 in July. However, the figure is down 38.5% compared with the same month last year and represents the lowest August month since 2022. Consumer Products led all sectors with 10,057 cuts, driven by announcements at Procter & Gamble and Estée Lauder. Food producers followed, with 7,982 cuts and Tyson accounting for nearly a third attributed to a historic cattle shortage. Technology (6,103), financial (4,286) and communication (4,113) followed. Restructuring led all reasons for job cuts in August with 16,173 announced while AI fell to the fourth-most cited reason with 3,462 cuts. Through August, employers have announced 529,914 job cuts, down 41% from the first eight months of 2025 and the lowest January-to-August total since 2022. Technology leads all industries with 155,126 cuts, followed by Transportation with 42,279, Health Care/Products with 35,637, Consumer Products with 28,574, and Services with 26,778.