Layoff Announcements Cross 1.1 Million Through November — DOGE Impact, AI Among Top Reasons For Job Cuts In 2025

• This is the sixth instance in which layoff announcements have crossed the 1.1 million level in the first 11 months of any year since 1993, Challenger said.
• In 2025 so far, companies in the Technology industry have cut 153,536 jobs, the highest of those listed in the Challenger report.
• The Retail sector was in second position, with 91,954 job cuts, followed by the Services sector at 69,089, and Telecommunications at 38,035 layoffs.

Layoffs announced by U.S. employers crossed 1.1 million for the year in November, according to the latest report by consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

The firm stated that layoff announcements through November stood at 1.17 million, up 54% from 761,358 announced during the first 11 months of 2024.

This is also the sixth instance in which layoff announcements have crossed the 1.1 million level in the first 11 months of any year since 1993, Challenger said.

Top Reasons For Layoffs

The firm also said that DOGE Impact, AI, restructuring, as well as market and economic conditions, were among the top reasons cited by companies announcing layoffs in the first 11 months of 2025.

“Though the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has not been the cause of job cut announcements in two months, 'DOGE Impact' remains the leading reason for job cut announcements in 2025, cited in 293,753 planned layoffs so far this year. This includes direct reductions to the Federal workforce and its contractors,” Challenger said in its report.

Overall, market and economic conditions were responsible for 245,086 job cuts, restructuring for 128,255, AI-related layoffs for 54,694, and tariffs for 7,908 cuts.

The report also notes that 20,976 cuts were attributed to “DOGE Downstream Impact.”

Which Industries Are Laying Off?

In 2025 so far, companies in the Technology industry have cut 153,536 jobs, the highest of those listed in the Challenger report.

The Retail sector was in second position, with 91,954 job cuts, followed by the Services sector at 69,089, and Telecommunications at 38,035 layoffs.

Meanwhile, the ADP jobs report released on Wednesday showed an unexpected decline in private payrolls in November, as small businesses pulled back sharply.

The report showed that small businesses reported a net decline of 120,000 employees, while mid-sized and large businesses added 90,000 employees on a net basis. Overall, U.S. companies cut 32,000 jobs during the month, while analysts expected an addition of 40,000 roles.

Meanwhile, U.S. equities were mixed in Thursday’s pre-market trade. At the time of writing, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), which tracks the S&P 500 index, was up by 0.1%, the Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (QQQ) edged lower by 0.01%, while the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) gained 0.09%. Retail sentiment around the S&P 500 ETF on Stocktwits was in the ‘bearish’ territory.

The iShares 7-10 Year Treasury Bond ETF (IEF) was down by 0.23% at the time of writing.

Also See: Nvidia’s Jensen Huang Reportedly Reminds Author Stephen Witt Of Edison: ‘He’s Got An Inventor’s Mindset’

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