Labor and Layoffs
There is no doubt that company layoffs have far reaching impacts. Within the past two years, there have been layoffs from larger companies like Amazon, Target, and Google for a multitude of reasons: technology replacements, company restructuring, and fiscal pressure. More recently, Tyson’s announcement to close their beef processing plant in Lexington, NE have sent shock waves through the local community, state, and beef industry. Analysis from the Kansas City Federal Reserve suggest that layoffs have disproportionate effects on smaller communities compared to larger cities.
John McCoy with the K.C. Federal Reserve explains Dawson County has around twenty-five thousand residents. Shown in the graph below, this layoff impacts around 23% of the county’s total labor force. The graph below compares layoffs in similar sized counties. Tyson’s layoff is second in total share after a 2017 layoff in South Carolina. This is huge in comparison to historic layoffs and shows the immediate impact of a layoff of this scale.
Source:Warn tracker.com; McCoy, John. 2026. “Mass Layoffs Can Disproportionately Disrupt Small Communities.” Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, Economic Bulletin, February 18.
Furthermore,where this workforce goes will contribute to the scale of these impacts. Very little of this workforce is likely to be retained by Dawson County and a good part will leave for out-of-state opportunities. In smaller communities, the labor demand is unlikely to provide for a meaningful percentage of those left unemployed after a layoff. While this will have imminent impact on net migration as shown in the second chart, the unemployment rate will in the next three years show an increase to a little under 30%.
Source:McCoy, John. 2026. “Mass Layoffs Can Disproportionately Disrupt Small Communities.” Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, Economic Bulletin,February 18.
Beyond the labor market, Tyson’s impact will continue to play out in Dawson County. Schools, local businesses, and local government will experience economic downturn and reduced consumer demand. Net migration out of the county is going to put immense pressure on policymakers and affected government agencies both locally and statewide. Pressure to support those impacted by the layoff and supporting families who are left without their household income will increase until migration out has stabilized. Overall, the impact of this closure will be long term and increasingly negative for those affected.