Layoffs of U.S. workers were nearly 50% higher in May than they were a year ago, with reductions attributed to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) remaining the leading reason for job cuts this year, according to a new report.
Global outplacement Challenger, Gray & Christmas released a report Thursday that said there were 93,816 job cuts announced by U.S. employers in May. That amounts to an increase of 47% from 63,816 announced last May, while last month’s figure was down 12% from 105,441 cuts in April.
That brings the total number of job cuts announced this year to 696,309 – an increase of 80% from the 385,859 jobs cut in the first five months of 2024. This year’s total is just 65,049 job cuts away from matching the 2024 annual total.
“Tariffs, funding cuts, consumer spending, and overall economic pessimism are putting intense pressure on companies’ workforces. Companies are spending less, slowing hiring, and sending layoff notices,” said Andrew Challenger, senior vice president of Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
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The impact of DOGE was the leading reason for job cut announcements in 2025, as it has been cited in 284,044 planned layoffs through the first five months of 2025.
Those figures include both direct reductions in the federal workforce and contractors who work with federal agencies. The downstream impact of DOGE, such as private non-profits losing access to federal funding due to DOGE, was attributed to an additional 10,459 cuts, the report noted.
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The second-most cited reason for workforce reductions were market and economic conditions, which were attributed to 131,257 cuts this year.
Closures of stores, units or plants led to an additional 94,439 layoffs; while restructuring accounted for 62,015 cuts and corporate bankruptcy was attributed as the cause of 35,501.
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The report also noted that technological updates, such as those related to the implementation of artificial intelligence (AI), have led to 20,000 job cuts this year to date.
Employers have announced 79,941 planned hires through May 2025, which represents an increase of 57% from the number of hires announced at this point in 2024.
The report noted that while “companies have announced more hiring plans this year than last, it remains historically low when compared to pre-pandemic and early-pandemic years.”
“The current 2025 hiring pace is more aligned with 2012 (50,194 YTD) and 2013 (180,012 YTD) than with the rebound years of 2021-2022, suggesting that, while companies are adding workers, they are doing so cautiously,” Challenger said.
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