More Layoffs Hit NJ As Federal Job Numbers Fall

Employers announced more than 1,800 layoffs in New Jersey in February, as federal officials said there was a decrease of 92,000 jobs nationally for the month.

The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics announced the decrease in jobs on Friday, which it said was affected in part by strike activity in health care.

That included a nurses strike in California, the New York Times reported.

The federal unemployment rate rose slightly to 4.4 percent, from 4.3 percent in January, federal officials said. Job losses were highest in the information sector and in federal employment, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said.

So far in 2026, there have been 3,857 layoffs announced in New Jersey by 23 different employers, according to New Jersey's WARN notice archive.

Under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification law, a company with 100 employees or more must give workers 60 days' notice of a layoff affecting 50 people or more at a single site. In New Jersey, there are additional requirements, including mandatory severance pay.

Most of the layoffs announced in February begin in May, according to the notice archive.

One exception is Macy's. The retailer announced 79 layoffs statewide that take effect March 7. Those job cuts follow 89 layoffs announced in January at its stores in Paramus and Ramsey that take effect at the end of March and in Livingston at the end of April.

In New Jersey, 10,102 people filed initial claims for unemployment in the week ending Feb. 28, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The state unemployment rate was 5.4 percent in December, the most recent rate figures released by federal authorities.

The 3,857 layoffs announced in January and February in New Jersey are an 83 percent increase over the 2,281 layoffs announced in January and February 2025. Read more: Hundreds Of NJ Job Cuts Open 2026

A number of the layoffs announced in November and December 2025 begin taking effect in March, including Bristol Myers Squibb, Merck, Intercept Pharmaceuticals and Anheuser Busch, which is laying off 151 people beginning March 11. Hudson News Distributors is completing 236 layoffs on March 16.

Read more: Mass Layoffs Begin At These Major NJ Companies