There have been greater than 1.1 million layoff bulletins this 12 months, probably the most for the reason that 2020 pandemic, based on Challenger

A sign at a New York Department of Labor job fair at the Downtown Central Library in Buffalo, New York, USA, on Wednesday, August 27, 2025.

Lauren Petracca | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Announced job losses among U.S. employers continued to rise in November to more than 1 million for the year as corporate restructuring, artificial intelligence and tariffs helped reduce job cuts, consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported Thursday.

According to the company, layoff plans totaled 71,321 in November, down from the massive cuts announced in October but still enough to bring the total to 1.17 million in 2025. That total is 54% higher than the same 11-month period a year ago and the highest level since 2020, when the Covid pandemic rocked the global economy.

Verizon’s announcement in November that it would cut more than 13,000 jobs helped boost the total. Tech companies driven by artificial intelligence innovation saw 12,377 cuts, bringing the industry total up 17% in 2025 compared to the previous year. AI itself was cited for 54,694 layoffs this year.

Tariffs were cited as the cause of more than 2,000 cuts in November and nearly 8,000 cuts this year. The most commonly cited reason for the month was restructuring, followed by closures and market or economic conditions.

“Layoff plans declined last month, which is certainly a positive sign. However, job losses increased in November.”
“Since 2008, numbers have only risen above 70,000 twice: in 2022 and 2008,” said Andy Challenger, workplace expert and chief revenue officer at Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Challenger also noted that companies have refrained from announcing year-end layoffs since the 2008 financial crisis.

“It has been the trend to announce layoff plans towards the end of the year to meet the needs of most companies.
Fiscal year end. “It became unpopular, particularly after the Great Recession, and best practice layoff plans occurred at times other than the holidays,” Challenger said.

November brought some relief from the more than 153,000 cuts announced in October, which was the highest total for that month in 22 years.

The numbers come amid increasing concerns about the state of the U.S. labor market.

ADP reported Wednesday that private employers cut 32,000 jobs in November, the biggest decline in more than two and a half years.

According to the Challenger report, the hiring outlook was bleak again this year. Employers announced 497,151 planned new hires, down 35% from the same point in 2024.

Despite signs of weakness elsewhere, Labor Department data does not yet reflect an increase in layoffs.

The department reported Thursday that weekly jobless claims unexpectedly fell to 191,000, the lowest level in more than three years. Official data showed the drop of about 27,000 from the previous week was due to unusually large declines in California and Texas and was likely influenced by the Thanksgiving holiday.