U.S. employers announced 35,553 job cuts in December 2025 (-50% MoM; -8% YoY), marking the lowest monthly total in 17 months and signaling a year-end slowdown in layoff activity.

• December job cuts fell from 71,321 in November to 35,553 (-50% MoM) and were below December 2024 levels (-8% YoY), making it the fourth month in 2025 with fewer cuts than the same month a year earlier.

• For full-year 2025, employers announced 1.21M job cuts (+58% YoY), the highest annual total since 2020 and the seventh-highest year on record since tracking began in 1989.

• Fourth-quarter job cuts totaled 259,948, up +29% QoQ and +71% YoY, making it the highest Q4 total since 2008 and highlighting elevated restructuring late in the year despite December’s moderation.

• Government led all sectors in 2025 with 308,167 announced cuts (+703% YoY), largely driven by federal layoffs concentrated in Q1, with activity tapering sharply over the remainder of the year.

• Technology led private-sector layoffs with 154,445 cuts in 2025 (+15% YoY), while Warehousing (95,317; +317% YoY), Retail (92,989; +123% YoY), and Services (74,796; +68% YoY) also saw sharp increases tied to restructuring, automation, and demand shifts.

• The top reasons for layoffs in 2025 were DOGE-related actions (293,753), market and economic conditions (253,206), store or unit closings (191,480), and restructuring (133,611), while AI-related cuts totaled 54,836 for the year.

• Hiring plans showed a modest year-end improvement, with 10,496 hires announced in December (+16% MoM; +31% YoY), but total planned hires for 2025 fell to 507,647 (-34% YoY), the lowest annual level since 2010, alongside the weakest seasonal hiring on record.