Employers in the U.S. announced more than 62,000 job cuts in July, marking a 29% increase from June and a 140% increase from the nearly 26,000 layoffs recorded in July 2024, according to a July 31 report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
Notably, employers have announced more than 800,000 job cuts so far in 2025, marking the highest year-to-date since 2020, when more than 1.8 million layoffs were announced.
“We are seeing the federal budget cuts implemented by DOGE impact non-profits and health care, in addition to the government,” Andrew Challenger, the firm’s senior vice president, said in a statement. “AI was cited for over 10,000 cuts last month, and tariff concerns have impacted nearly 6,000 jobs this year.”
By industry, government entities have announced nearly 300,000 job cuts so far in 2025, marking the highest of any sector, primarily due to federal-level reductions.
In the private sector, technology firms have led the way in job cuts, with more than 89,000 so far in 2025, a 36% increase from this time last year. Artificial intelligence shifts and work visa concerns have contributed to those reductions, the firm said.
Retail, automotive and non-profit employers have also announced job cuts due to tariffs, inflation and economic uncertainty — with additional reductions expected based on consumer sentiment, federal funding changes, supply chain disruptions and AI advancements.
For example, Recruit Holdings, parent company of Indeed and Glassdoor, announced layoffs in July, primarily affecting employees in its HR technology segment. These cuts were linked to “building a better job seeker and employer experience using AI,” the company told HR Dive.
Even so, job cuts driven by AI may be underreported and not explicitly attributed to AI, according to another report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Companies may categorize their layoffs more broadly, typically under terms such as “technological update,” the firm said.