There were 4,182 healthcare/product industry layoffs in January, up 421% from the 802 cuts announced in December, according to a Feb. 1 report by executive coaching firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
Overall, U.S.-based employers laid off 83,307 employees in January, 136% more than the previous month. Despite this, the number of jobs cut this month was down 20% from the 102,943 employees laid off in January 2023.
Although healthcare/product job cuts jumped in January, there were fewer layoffs in the industry this year than in January 2023, when 6,733 jobs were cut.
"Restructuring" was the most commonly cited reason for job cuts. Artificial intelligence was cited for 381, the report said.