California-centric layoff plans have hit 158,700 workers so far this year, the second-largest employment cuts nationwide.

The job reports we usually follow are on hold during the federal government’s shutdown. So, my spreadsheet switched to a long-running tally of layoff news from major corporations, compiled by workplace consultants at Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Their latest report covered layoffs announcements by big companies through October in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. This study tracks the layoff location based on either the corporate headquarters or the actual sites of the cuts, if mentioned in the layoff news release.

California-related layoff plans in the first 10 months of 2025 account for 14% of the 1.1 million layoffs announced across the U.S. Challenger expects this year to be the nation’s worst for this layoff yardstick since the Great Recession era, minus 2020’s pandemic-scarred economy.

Let’s put that 14% share in context. California is the nation’s largest economy. It has 18 million workers, more than any other state, and 11% of the nation’s 159 million jobs.

Additionally, Golden State businesses comprise 11% of the 500 companies that comprise the high-profile S&P 500 stock index. And 13% of the INC. 5000 ranking of America’s fastest-growing companies hail from California.

The national layoff hotspot was Washington, D.C., with 303,800. After California came New York, with 81,701, followed by Georgia with 78,049, and Washington state with 77,700.

As for California’s economic rivals, Texas ranked seventh with 46,400 planned cuts, and Florida ranked ninth with 22,800 planned cuts.

A handful of industries dominate the list of layoff plans.

Start with massive government job cuts, primarily in the District of Columbia, as the Trump administration aggressively shrinks the federal payroll.