(The Hill) - Layoffs surged nearly 40 percent last month, with employers eliminating 85,979 positions — the largest August hit since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, according to new research.

The analysis, released Thursday from the Challenger, Gray & Christmas consulting firm, noted that the cuts, which have hit the pharmaceutical, financial and retail industries especially hard this year, are likely linked to some of President Trump's policies since his return to office in January.

To date, employers have made 892,362 cuts in 2025 — the most since 2020 when 1,963,458 cuts were announced from January to August amid the pandemic, according to the firm's analysis.

The experts wrote that the White House's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and its sweeping cuts to the

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