Incomplete list of job loss announcements and shutdowns.
California: In Auburn, after 20 years The Chocolate Shoppe & Gift Emporium (and art gallery) shutting down by the end of May, the owners want to retire. In San Francisco, clothier San Franpsycho shutting down their brick-n-mortar store this weekend. Rent is too high in the Golden Gate city so the store owners are shifting to events and internet sales only.
Florida: In Ave Maria, Beckner Jewelry and Repair shutting down in May. The owners say they love their community so much that they are shifting to much needed “social work”.
Georgia: In Hephzibah, a Food Lion grocery store suddenly shutdown this past weekend, administrators say they couldn’t renew the lease. In Augusta, a Kroger grocery store shutting down soon. Kroger reps blame the shutdown on crashing sales, 110 Kroger employees will become jobless by June! Kim Hines of G.R.O.W. Harrisburg has an ominous warning: “A ‘food desert’ is a lack of access to fresh fruits, vegetables and healthy foods. So it’s a dependency on a community on convenience store foods and processed foods, or in some cases no food at all.”
Illinois: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign warning of mass layoffs due to the incompetent ‘elected’ state lawmakers. The mass layoffs would take place by the end of August. OfficeMax shutting down their store in Crestwood, by mid-May.
Iowa: Button maker Blumenthal Lansing shutting down their Lansing factory, 80 jobs gone by July. It’s the result of the company being taken over by Pennsylvania based greeting card and novelty maker CSS Industries.
Kentucky: Jefferson Community and Technical College eliminating 101 jobs (61 ’employees’ & 40 ‘instructors’) due to what I call Disappearing Students Syndrome (DSS)! Since 2010 student enrollment has crashed by 4-thousand 3-hundred! What automotive industry recovery? Powertrain maker Dana Corporation shutting down their Glasgow ops, 203 jobs lost by mid-2017!
Louisiana: Oil contractor Gulf Island eliminating 227 jobs by the end of June, due to lack of oil contracts! After 29 years fracking supplier Carbo Ceramics shutting down, 61 jobs gone by mid-June. 
Despite reporting a $23-million USD profit last year Evangeline Downs Racetrack and Casino began laying off 2-hundred people! That’s according to state politician Dustin Miller as the administrators of the race track (Boyd Gaming) refuse to give any info, in fact administrators downplayed the whole thing. Boyd Gaming says the mass layoffs are not due to the economy but is their attempt at “fine tuning the operations”, which is code for greatly increasing their profits. In Baton Rouge, after seven years Truly Free Bakery & Deli suddenly shutdown by greedy landlord who refuses to properly fix the sewage system: “We are in a battle with our landlord over a very serious and quite frankly, disgusting issue. We have had major sewer problems for over 3 years, and to our frustration, this problem was never fully fixed—only temporary ‘band aides’ were attempted. This issue has persisted and has been more problematic over the last year.”– Erick and Ainsley Coughlin, owners
Maryland: In College Park, after 42 years Pianoman Superstore shutting down due to crashing sales: “It’d be great if there was enough interest to keep it going, but there isn’t.”– Nick Margaritas, owner
Michigan: Pittsford Area Schools Board of Education approved the layoff of five employees. It’s blamed on what I call DSS, the school board even stated that families are moving away from the state of Michigan.
New York: Japan based Too Big to Jail Nomura Holdings issued mass layoff WARNs, 235 people jobless in July! It’s because Nomura was tricked into buying the already failed Lehman Brothers. 
More proof you brick-n-mortar store owners can’t directly blame the internet/high-tech for your demise; Amazon halting its clothing line, 94 MyHabit jobs lost in NYC and Brooklyn, in July. In Sidney, tax-sucking military contractor Amphenol Aerospace suddenly laid off 1-hundred people when the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) suddenly cancelled an order for electronics parts! A-Hole politician Charles Schumer blames it on Pentagon “red tape”, however, there are indications from the DoD that the parts are faulty. After four years the Fort Greene General Store shutting down by the end of the month, due to outrageous rent: “When I sat down and really looked hard at the numbers, I just couldn’t deny the effects of rising costs…. We have to be realistic and focus on other businesses with less overhead….”-Adriana Spence, owner
North Carolina: In Charlotte, after 19 years expensive Italian shoe store Via Veteto shutting down, the owners say they’re retiring.
Ohio: Iron foundry Columbus Castings about to go outta business, 799 jobs lost due to debts, and fines caused by violations of state and federal pollution regulations! After announcing the shutdown of their Youngstown ops (137 jobs killed), Parker Hannifin now says it will also shutdown its Akron pneumatic cylinder factory, 75 jobs lost.
Washington: In Tacoma, Cablecraft Motion Controls issued a WARN, 39 jobs lost starting mid-June.
WARN=Worker Adjustment & Retraining Notification
19 April 2016: “Sometimes we have to pull the Band-Aid off quickly.”
Former employees who receive severance are not counted as unemployed!
Employees of religious non-profits might not qualify for unemployment assistance: “If the non-profit organization is a church, you may or may not be entitled to unemployment. It all depends upon state regulations for church employers. In many cases, churches are allowed to set their own rules regarding unemployment benefits, meaning the church can choose whether to offer benefits to former employees.”
The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) no longer issues mass layoff reports: “On March 1, 2013, President Obama ordered into effect the across-the- board spending cuts (commonly referred to as sequestration) required by the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act, as amended. Under the order, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) must cut its current budget by more than $30 million, 5 percent of the current 2013 appropriation, by September 30, 2013. In order to help achieve these savings and protect core programs, the BLS will eliminate two programs, including Mass Layoff Statistics, and all ‘measuring green jobs’ products. This news release is the final publication of monthly mass layoff survey data.”