U.S. employers ramped up layoffs in October to the highest level for the month in 22 years as companies looked to cut costs and adopt artificial intelligence (AI).
A report from the global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas found that employers cut 153,074 jobs in October, an increase of 175% from the 55,597 cuts announced in October 2024. It also marks a 183% increase from the 54,064 job cuts announced in September.
“October’s pace of job cutting was much higher than average for the month. Some industries are correcting after the hiring boom of the pandemic, but this comes as AI adoption, softening consumer and corporate spending, and rising costs drive belt-tightening and hiring freezes,” said Andy Challenger, workplace expert and chief revenue officer at Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
“Those laid off now are finding it harder to secure new roles, which could further loosen the labor market,” Challenger added.
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U.S. employers have announced 1,099,500 job cuts through October, an increase of 65% from the first 10 months of 2024 and 44% higher than the 761,358 cuts announced in all of 2024.
Year-to-date job cuts in 2025 are at the highest level since 2020, when 2,304,755 cuts were announced through October.
The number of job cuts announced last month was the highest monthly total for October since 2003, when 171,874 cuts were recorded. At that time, there were significant job cuts announced in retail due to acquisitions and in the telecommunications sector as cell phones were adopted more widely.
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“This is the highest total for October in over 20 years, and the highest level for a single month in the fourth quarter since 2008. Like in 2003, disruptive technology is changing the landscape,” Challenger said.
“Over the last decade, companies have shied away from announcing layoffs in the fourth quarter, so it’s surprising to see so many in October,” Challenger added. “With the onset of social media, the ability for workers to share their negative experiences with their employers, the trend of announcing layoffs before the holidays fell away, a practice that seemed particularly cruel.”
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The warehousing industry led all industries in October job cuts, with 47,878 cuts announced, up from 984 in September. The sector has cut 90,418 jobs year to date, which is a 378% increase from the same period last year.
The technology sector announced 33,281 cuts in October – a significant increase from 5,639 in September. Over the course of 2025, tech firms have announced 141,159 job cuts, an increase of 17% from the same period in 2024.
Retailers announced 2,431 job cuts in October, a decline from 2,577 in the prior month. However, the retail sector remains among the hardest hit industries this year, with retailers announcing 88,664 job cuts year to date, an increase of 145% from the cuts announced in the first 10 months of last year.
