October Layoffs Hit a Three-Year Low and Hiring Plans Soared, but Most of Those Jobs Have an End Date

The headline numbers look great for workers. Look closer and two companies explain most of the hiring, and much of it stops after the holidays.

Is the job market as strong as October's numbers suggest?

Partly. Employers announced 43,994 job cuts in October, the lowest for the month since 2023, and 444,692 hiring plans. But most of that hiring is temporary. Seasonal plans make up 72% of this year's total, so layoffs are low without many new permanent jobs appearing.

The figures come from Challenger, Gray & Christmas, the outplacement firm that tracks announced job cuts, in a report released Thursday, Nov. 5. October's cuts were up 2% from September's 43,281 but down 71% from the 153,074 announced in October 2025. They also came in below the 56,348 average for October from 2015 to 2025.

So far this year, employers have announced 617,189 cuts, down 44% from the first 10 months of 2025. That's the lowest total through October since 2022.

The same morning, Reuters reported that first-time unemployment claims fell 6,000 to 189,000 for the week ended Oct. 31, better than the 196,000 economists expected. That matches a mid-July reading that was the lowest since 1969.

Where are all those hiring plans coming from?

The 444,692 figure is the highest October total since at least 2009, up 57% from a year earlier. But it's concentrated. Amazon said it would hire 300,000 seasonal workers, 50,000 more than in each of the previous three years and the largest single seasonal announcement Challenger has tracked. UPS announced 100,000 after making no announcement last year. Those two alone add up to about 90% of October's plans.

Seasonal plans for the year stand at 470,400, up 26% from the 372,520 announced through October last year, the lowest total since Challenger began tracking seasonal hiring in 2012. It's still below the 660,150 announced in 2024. Only five companies have announced seasonal hiring so far, compared with 11 a year earlier.

"This is a low-fire environment," said Andy Challenger, the firm's workplace expert and chief revenue officer. "Employers are holding on to the workers they have heading into the holidays, and the hiring they are announcing is largely short-term, seasonal work."

Keep in mind that Challenger counts announcements, not actual hires, and Amazon's holiday jobs fall under its technology category. So the tech sector's 300,252 hiring plans in October don't mean a tech hiring boom.

Why are companies still cutting?

The reasons have shifted. Market and economic conditions led October at 16,407 cuts, or 37% of the total, followed by closings at 10,250 and falling demand at 6,118. Artificial intelligence was cited for 1,265 cuts, its lowest monthly total this year, though AI still accounts for 121,401 cuts in 2026, about 20% of the total.

"The reasons employers give have shifted from technology to the economy," Challenger said. "That is a more cautious signal, though the overall pace of cutting remains low."

Food companies led October with 9,677 cuts, the sector's highest monthly total this year. Technology followed with 5,576, then services with 5,458, fintech with 4,173 and retail with 3,692. California saw the most cuts at 10,032, followed by Washington at 7,233.

One big item isn't in the total. Microsoft made voluntary exit offers to 60,000 employees in October, and Challenger doesn't count those. "These offers tend to signal more layoffs to come," Challenger said.

The low layoff numbers also don't tell the whole story. Reuters noted that some economists see low claims partly as a sign of a smaller labor force amid an immigration crackdown. Continuing claims, which count people still receiving benefits, rose 23,000 to a still-low 1.718 million for the week ended Oct. 24.

What this means for your wallet

If you have a job, a low-fire market is a calm one, though it may not bring many new offers. Reuters reported 1.06 open jobs for every unemployed person in September, a thin cushion. Our look at September's job openings shows how that plays out for job hunters. Even in a good stretch, a layoff money checklist is useful to have before you need it.

If you're looking for work, seasonal roles are where much of the announced hiring is right now. "Seasonal roles give companies the capacity they need for the holidays with an end date built in," Challenger said. Before you accept one, it may help to ask how long it runs, how many hours are expected and whether any seasonal workers stay on. Challenger's report doesn't say how many will.

It's also worth running your own numbers, because a temporary job pays for a set stretch. As an illustration, not any employer's offer, a job paying $18 an hour for 30 hours a week over eight weeks comes to $4,320 before taxes. Knowing that total helps you decide whether it covers holiday costs, pays down a bill or bridges you to something steadier. And if the job ends, our guide to unemployment benefits explains how eligibility generally works, though rules vary by state.

The next big test was set for Friday, Nov. 6, with the government's October jobs report. Economists surveyed by Reuters expected 65,000 new jobs and a 4.2% unemployment rate, after a 29,000 gain in September. That report would show actual jobs, while Challenger's numbers show only what employers announced.