The nation's hospitals reported 10 "mass layoffs" of 50 or more employees in September, and the pace of these job cuts in 2010 lags slightly behind the record 152 mass layoffs in 2009, Bureau of Labor Statistics data show.
In the first nine months of 2010, there have been 112 mass layoffs at hospitals, averaging more than 12 mass layoffs each month. At this pace, hospitals would record 149 mass layoffs in 2010.
Through September, hospital layoffs resulted in 8,867 initial claims for unemployment benefits. In 2009, there were 11,787 initial claims for unemployment linked to hospital layoffs, BLS data show.
In the first half of 2010, there were 33 extended mass layoffs of 31 days or longer involving 7,112 workers, which resulted in 5,339 initial unemployment claims. In 2009, there were 71 extended mass layoffs affecting 14,131 employees, with 12,405 initial unemployment claims, BLS data show.
Extended mass layoffs are a subset within mass layoffs for reporting purposes, BLS says.
Despite the layoffs, overall hospital employment growth continues in 2010, albeit at a slower pace than in the years preceding the recession. Hospitals created 2,900 payroll additions in September, and 28,200 payroll additions so far this year, a rate of job creation that is more than double that for the same period in 2009, BLS preliminary data show. Hospitals reported 86,200 payroll additions in the first nine months of 2008.
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John Commins is the news editor for HealthLeaders.