U.S Layoffs Reached This Level Last Month

Global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray, & Christmas have reported that the number of announced layoffs by U.S. based companies fell this month to the lowest level since May.

In August, U.S. employers announced that they planned to give 32,188 pink slips, which is a 29% decline from July. The number is also 22% lower than the number of job cuts in August of last year.

One of the biggest companies to account for the layoffs was computer company Cisco Systems with 6,103 payroll reductions. It also announced last month that it would be letting go of 5,550 employees.

“The surge in cuts does not necessarily signal weakness in the sector, but it certainly signals a shift. In most cases, we are seeing these firms move from making hardware to providing services,” John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, said in a statement.

The industrial good sector will be losing 3,073 jobs and the entertainment and leisure sector will be laying off 2,845 workers.

Last month’s job cut announcements have brought the 2016 total to 391,288, which is 10 percent below the same eight-month period last year.

Disclaimer: We have no position in Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) and have not been compensated for this article.