Planned Layoffs in US for April – Up by 17% but still down for 2014

Job cut announcements by U.S.-based companies rose 17% in April from March, as employers in retail and financial services continued to shed workers, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. 

Employers reported plans to shed 40,298 workers last month, according to Challenger’s monthly report. That was up from 34,399 in March and 6% higher from 38,121 job cuts recorded in April 2013.

Since the start of 2014, Challenger has tracked 161,639 announced job cuts, 12% fewer than the 183,162 planned layoffs in the first four months of 2013, due to lower cuts announced in both February and March.

Source: Job Cuts Rise in April, But Still Down for 2014 — Challenger – WSJ.com.