Breaking Job News: January Layoffs Spike to 2009 Levels

Episode notes

January delivered a tough reality check for the job market. In today’s episode of Cornering the Job Market, host Pete Newsome breaks down a wave of new labor data showing layoffs at their highest January level since 2009, hiring plans at a record low, and early signs that the labor market may be stalling rather than rebounding. We start with the Challenger Job Cuts report, which shows more than 108,000 layoffs announced in January, driven largely by transportation and tech restructurings. At the same time, companies publicly announced just 5,300 hiring plans, the weakest January reading ever recorded, signaling broad employer caution coming out of 2025. Next, he digs into unemployment claims data, where initial claims jumped sharply week over week, even as continuing claims hit their lowest level since late 2024. Pete explains why that combination can look deceptively stable in the short term, but often precedes further weakness when hiring slows. Finally, he looks at the few bright spots. Job posting salaries climbed in January, led by manufacturing and healthcare, as employers compete for fewer, more specialized hires.

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