AI impact: US job cuts worst since 2009

Layoff plans reached their highest January level since 2009 while hiring intentions were lowest over the same period, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported Thursday, February 5.

US employers announced 108,435 layoffs for the month, up 118% from the same period a year ago and 205% month-on-month. The total marked the highest for any January since 2009.

At the same time, companies announced just 5,306 new hires, also the lowest January since 2009, according to Challenger survey.

Also Read: Recent job cuts at Amazon, UPS, Intel, Microsoft and more

The Challenger data suggests that the layoff part of the equation could be stepping up.

“Generally, we see a high number of job cuts in the first quarter, but this is a high total for January,” said Andy Challenger, workplace expert and chief revenue officer for the firm. “It means most of these plans were set at the end of 2025, signaling employers are less-than-optimistic about the outlook for 2026.”

Planned hiring dropped 13% from January 2025 and was off 49% from December, the data showed.

Also Read: Amazon to lay off thousands in second wave of job cuts within three months

Amazon, UPS and Dow Inc. recently announced sizeable job cuts, majorly from Amazon, which announced plans to lay off 16,000 corporate employees.

Transportation sector had the highest level from a sectoral view in January, due largely to plans from UPS to cut more than 30,000 workers.