1. Universe
MLS identifies all layoffs where there are 50 or more initial claims for regular State unemployment insurance (UI) filed against an employer in a 5-week period. These layoffs are reported by BLS monthly.
Employers in the private nonfarm sector having a mass layoff as described above are contacted by State MLS staff by telephone to verify whether there are at least 50 people who have been separated from their jobs for more than 30 days. All layoffs meeting these criteria are considered extended mass layoffs. BLS reports these mass layoff statistics quarterly.
Thus, all establishments with 50 or more workers are within the scope of the MLS program. Establishments employing 50 or more workers account for about 5 percent of all establishments covered by UI and 56 percent of all covered workers.
2. Information collection procedures
The data is collected from a complete universe of layoffs with 50 or more initial claims filed against an employer in a 5-week period and is not probability based. The refusal rate in the employer interviews is less than 5 percent of all private nonfarm employers (monthly).
MLS is a Federal/State cooperative program. The participating State agency in each State:
obtains and performs editing on source information used for identifying employers experiencing mass layoffs. The source information includes weekly initial claim filings for UI and employer information from the State's Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) files;
develops reports on the status of mass layoff activities via a computerized Windows-based MLS operating system known as WinMLS;
interviews private nonfarm employers experiencing mass layoffs to determine whether layoffs meet the extended mass layoff criteria, and, if so, collects additional information on the nature of the layoffs;
enters employer-provided information into the WinMLS system;
obtains and performs basic editing on continued claim and final payment information that is used to track the continuing impact of the layoff on separated workers; and
creates reports of mass layoff activity monthly and extended mass layoff activity quarterly using the WinMLS system and transmits these reports to BLS.
State MLS staff receive training so they are familiar with the processes and standards that are necessary to ensure comparability among States and to generate verifiable nationwide counts of mass layoff activity. Technical memoranda that contain additional information on the program are issued to States as necessary. State MLS staff receive periodic training on the WinMLS software system and are provided with the WinMLS User's Guide that details how to properly use the software. The WinMLS software is designed to edit and validate the information States input for quality assurance purposes. Additional training is provided at the MLS annual training conference.
3. Maximizing the response
The MLS program initially identifies employers experiencing mass layoffs based on data gathered from administrative sources. UI initial claim filings are processed weekly in the WinMLS system to determine whether there are 50 or more initial claims filed against an employer in a 5-week period. Attachment 1 lists the items captured from the weekly initial claims filed by employees. In situations that meet the criteria, the UI information is matched with detailed employer information from the QCEW. A list of items captured from the QCEW program is in Attachment 2.
For those layoffs identified from the administrative data, the private nonfarm employers are contacted by telephone by MLS State staff to determine whether layoffs meet the criteria for an extended mass layoff (i.e., 50 or more workers separated for more than 30 days). If an employer confirms an extended mass layoff occurred, MLS State staff would ask the employer additional questions for further information about the layoff. Attachment 3 contains a list of data items that are collected during the employer interview.
Employers who cite a reason for layoff other than the ending of seasonal work or vacation period are asked additional questions concerning the movement of work (e.g. outsourcing/offshoring). Responses to these questions provide insight into whether layoffs are associated with work moving to other U.S locations or to locations outside of the U.S., and whether they occurred either within the same company or to other companies.
For 2007, outright refusal to participate in the employer interview accounted for less than 5 percent of all private nonfarm events (monthly). In cases where the employer participates but either does not know or refuses to answer a specific data item, the item usually is coded as "not available." Exceptions to that rule include the primary reason for layoff, separation code, movement-of-work, and business function data items, for which do not know and refusal responses are broken out separately.
In the unlikely event that an employer refuses to participate in the employer interview, the WinMLS software contains a selection to indicate the employer has refused to provide any information. The MLS program defaults to include such refusals as extended mass layoffs. The number of separated workers that normally would have been obtained directly from the employer is set equal to the number of initial claims that have been associated with a layoff event.
4. Tests of procedures
Modifications and enhancements to the MLS program are ongoing. BLS often issues technical memorandum and updates computer systems to incorporate State and user recommendations for more efficient data collection as well as additional edits to improve data quality.
A recent example of an MLS program modification is the addition of the Business Function questions, which seek information on those activities companies perform that are affected by the layoff. Proposed wording of questions were vetted through relevant offices within BLS. A group of 11 States volunteered to test the new questions. Results were favorable. MLS State staffs were instructed via technical memoranda on how to ask the questions and on how to code responses. In addition, two training sessions were held in January 2007 with all States to discuss this additional data collection of the Business Function questions. WinMLS software was modified to permit entry of these responses and to edit them for quality assurance purposes. When initially implementing the collection of Business Function data, States were asked to provide feedback in the form of several progress reports.
5. Statistical contact person
Shail Butani (202-691-6347), branch chief of the Statistical Methods Group in the Office of Employment and Unemployment Statistics, is the contact person at BLS.
One agency in each of the States is designated as the data collection organization for the MLS program. A list of participating State agencies and agency contacts is available on request.
Attachment 1
Mass Layoff Statistics
Data Elements Captured from Initial Claims
Social security number
State and county FIPS code of residence
Initial claim type
Initial claim date
Gender
Race\ethnicity
White/not of Hispanic origin
Black/not of Hispanic origin
Hispanic origin
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian or Pacific Islander
Information not available
Birth date
Veteran status
Last employer UI account number
Last employer establishment name
Attachment 2
Mass Layoff Statistics
Data Elements Captured on Establishments
(From the QCEW)
UI account number
Reporting unit number
Employer identification number
North American Industry Classification System code
Standard Industrial Classification code (if available)
Ownership code
Trade name
Physical location street address
Establishment legal name
Physical location: city
Physical location: State
Physical location: zip code
Multi-establishment employer indicator code
Telephone number
Third month of quarter employment
3-digit establishment county FIPS code
Attachment 3
Mass Layoff Statistics
Employer Interview Data Elements Coded by States
Date of first separation
Stop date of layoff
Layoff status of establishment
Temporary Layoff
Permanent Layoff
Closure
No layoff event occurred
Primary reason for layoff
Contract cancellation
Contract completion
Domestic competition
Excess inventory/saturated market
Import competition
Slack work/insufficient demand/non-seasonal business slowdown
Business-ownership change
Reorganization or restructuring of company
Bankruptcy
Cost control/cost cutting/increase profitability
Financial difficulty
Automation/technological advances
Energy related
Governmental regulations/intervention
Labor dispute/contract negotiations/strike
Material or supply shortage
Model changeover
Plant or machine repair/maintenance
Product line discontinued
Hazardous work environment
Natural disaster (not weather related)
Non-natural disaster
Extreme weather-related event
Seasonal
Vacation period–school related or otherwise
Other
Data not provided: refusal
Data not provided: does not know
Required comment for the primary reason (if necessary)
Secondary reason for layoff (if necessary) - the options are the same as above plus:
Federal government cutbacks, unspecified
Federal government cutbacks, defense-related
Required comment for the secondary reason (if necessary)
Recall expectations
Size of recall expected
Timing of expected recall
Worksite status
Establishment and worksites remain open with no change to operating status
Establishment remains open, but entire worksites affected by layoffs are closed
or are planning to close (partial closure of multi-unit establishment)
Establishment and all worksites remain open, but either (a) divisions within
affected worksites have stopped or are planning to stop operations, or (b) shifts
at affected worksites have been or are going to be permanently cut (partial
closure of multi-unit establishment)
Partial closure of single-unit establishment
Full closure of either multi-unit or single-unit establishments
Long term work completed offsite
Information not available
Pre-layoff employment
Number of separations
Separation code (if necessary)
County location of the worksite
Movement-of-work information
Domestic relocations – A drop-down list including all states is available for selection
Out-of-country relocations – A text field, in which the name of the country can be filled in, is available.
NAICS industry code (if necessary)
Ownership code (if necessary)
Business function(s) and business process(es)
| File Type | application/msword |
| File Title | Part B |
| Author | siegel_lewis |
| Last Modified By | rowan_c |
| File Modified | 2009-02-18 |
| File Created | 2008-11-03 |