In California, job losses mount amid uncertainty and Al's rise

Job cuts so far this year have already surpassed the total for 2024, as government cost-cutting, economic uncertainty and AI have prompted employers to reduce staff.

- BY QUEENIE WONG

MARTA LAVANDIER Associated Press THROUGH August, firms say about 892,000 jobs had been cut. Above, a job seeker last month in Florida.

California and the tech industry have been particularly hard hit, according to a report Thursday from Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a company that helps people pivot to new careers and monitors job cut announcements by U.S. companies.

In the eight months through August, U.S. companies announced about 892,000 cuts. That's 66% more than a year earlier and above the total for all of 2024. The last time the cut tally was higher was in the middle of COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns in 2020.

The Trump administration’s initiative to cut government spending through what it calls the Department of Government Efficiency, also known as DOGE — was the biggest culprit for the slashing of government jobs, while economic concerns and technological change weighed on sectors including tech, finance and retail.