Massachusetts Coronavirus: 2,369 Workers Let Go In Newest Report

DANVERS, MA —A shoe store in Andover, the Museum of Fine Arts in Massachusetts and a Boston-based company that makes point-of-sales systems for restaurants were among the 17 companies that reported layoffs to the Massachusetts Department of Labor last week.

Of the 2,369 layoffs in the week ended April 10, 736 came at Toast Inc. The 50-percent workforce at the Boston startup came as sales to its restaurant-industry customers came to a standstill.

The number of layoffs in this week's report were lower than the previous week's 3,724 layoffs. But the report for April 3 included Boston University's layoffs of 1,636 student workers after announcing the university would not reopen this academic year.

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Also included in the most recent report: 328 furloughs at Atrius Health Inc. The company has shut down several locations and furloughed administrative and support staff. Doctors and nurses who work for Atrius, the largest multi-specialty group in Massachusetts, have been redeployed, but some of those doctors have had a portion of their salaries withheld until a later date, Atrius spokesman Jackson Murphy said.

Other notable layoffs in the most recent Massachusetts jobs report included:

• 314 furloughs of full- and part-time at the Museum of Fine Arts beginning on April 23. Museum spokesperson Michael Tom said that, in addition to the furloughs, museum director Matthew Teitelbaum is taking a 30 percent pay cut.
• 98 jobs cut at Panera locations in Dartmouth and Plainville.
• 283 layoffs at the Middle East Bakery in Lawrence. E.J. Powers, a spokesman for Middle East, said the company had not laid off any workers and did not have plans to do so. "While we did file paperwork, it’s simply a procedural step to inform the state should there be a need for workforce reduction in the future. No reductions have taken place nor do we anticipate that happening, it’s purely precautionary. It’s customary to businesses to take this step in this extenuating circumstances like this," Powers said.
• 108 workers furloughed at the Four Seasons Hotel in Boston.

On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Labor reported the number of Massachusetts residents applying for first-time unemployment benefits during the week that ended April 4 was 139,582. The Pioneer Institute released a report last Wednesday warning that unemployment in June could reach 25.4 percent, more than 10 times February's 2.5 percent rate.

More Coronavirus Coverage On Massachusetts Patch:

• Massachusetts Coronavirus Case Map: Updated
• Mapping Massachusetts Coronavirus: Where Are State's ICU Beds?
• How To Get Health Care If You're Uninsured During Coronavirus
• Bells Ring At Otherwise Silent Churches Amid Continued Shutdown
• Newly Found Commuter Cash Helping Needy During Crisis

Dave Copeland writes for Patch and can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).