Layoffs Spiked 245% In February: See GA Impact

GEORGIA — Layoffs soared across the United States, but the pace was much slower in Georgia last month amid a mass of federal government job cuts and canceled contracts, along with staff reductions at retailers and other businesses.

Nationwide, job cuts jumped 245 percent last month, according to executive outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. There were 172,017 layoffs announced in February across all sectors, and Challenger said that 62,242 of these were at federal agencies impacted by the Department of Government Efficiency's efforts to slash spending.

That is the highest monthly total for layoffs since July 2020, when 262,649 cuts were announced, according to a Challenger Report published on Thursday.

“Private companies announced plans to shed thousands of jobs last month, particularly in retail and technology," said Andrew Challenger, senior vice president and workplace expert for the firm. "With the impact of the DOGE actions, as well as canceled government contracts, fear of trade wars and bankruptcies, job cuts soared in February."

Georgia saw the biggest decline in job losses of the southern states, from 13,371 at the end 2024 to 267 at the end of February 2025, Challenger said.

In February, more than 1,800 position cuts were posted on the state Department of Labor's website under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, which is intended to give employees notice of mass layoffs.

It remains to be seen how many of the remaining 15,000-plus layoffs in February are tied to cuts at the federal level, which can affect employees both directly and indirectly.

The exact number of laid-off federal workers in middle Georgia, where a large population were federally employed, is unknown, Georgia Public Broadcasting reported.

"Data from the Congressional Research Service shows nearly 32,000 federal employees live in Georgia’s 2nd and 8th districts, which are the U.S. House districts that include Macon, Warner Robins, Perry and Fort Valley. Those two districts are also home to three military bases — Robins Air Base in Warner Robins, Fort Moore in Columbus and Moody Air Force Base in Valdosta. Together, the two districts account for nearly 40% of Georgia’s 79,686 federal workers. Those figures do not include federal contractors or uniformed military personnel," GPB reported.

Georgia labor officials offer a reemployment program for laid-off workers.

Here's a select breakdown of announced job cuts by industry, according to the Challenger report.

Government

• Feb. '24: 27
• Jan. '25: 288
• Feb. '25: 62,242

Technology

• Feb. '24: 12,412
• Jan. '25: 7,488
• Feb. '25: 14,554

Electronics

• Feb. '24: 202
• Jan. '25: 107
• Feb. '25: 4,588

Financial

• Feb. '24: 3,618
• Jan. '25: 4,529
• Feb. '25: 6,894

Pharmaceutical

• Feb. '24: 1,838
• Jan. '25: 329
• Feb. '25: 256

Retail

• Feb. '24: 1,387
• Jan. '25: 6,419
• Feb. '25: 38,956