So far this year, retailers have announced 36,115, an 843 per cent increase from the 3,830 retail cuts announced in the same period last year. Meanwhile, consumer products manufacturers announced the third-highest number of cuts last month with 9,146 for a total of 19,116. This is a 391 per cent increase from the 3,893 cuts announced through April 2022, according to a report released by Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

April’s total marks the fourth consecutive month this year job cuts were higher than the corresponding month one year earlier. So far this year, employers announced plans to cut 337,411 jobs, a 322 per cent increase from the 79,982 cuts announced in the first four months of 2022. This is the highest January-April total since 2020, when 1,017,812 cuts were announced through April. With the exclusion of 2020, this is the highest January-April total since 2009, when 711,100 cuts were announced in the first four months of the year.

Though job cuts fell in April from March, hiring plans have also fallen significantly from 2022. In April, companies announced plans to add 23,310 positions for a total of 93,948 so far this year. This is down 81 per cent from the 486,603 hiring plans announced in the same period last year. It is the lowest number of announced hiring plans through April since 2016, when the report tracked 38,455 hiring plans in the first four months of the year.

“Retailers and consumer goods manufacturers are preparing for a tightening in consumer spending, particularly with the Fed’s hike to interest rates in an attempt to control inflation,” said Andrew Challenger, labour and workplace expert and senior vice president of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)