A local employment attorney is offering important advice for those who may have been affected by the many recent layoffs in our area.

Gary Phelan with Hurwitz, Sagarin & Slossberg in Milford says there were more layoffs last month than in any October since 2022.

The Quinnipiac law professor says its expected to continue to skyrocket.

Just this week, Walgreens announced that staff at more than 70 of its locations across the state are losing paid vacation time for six major holidays, including Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's Day and the Fourth of July.

The change comes a month after the pharmacy giant was acquired by Sycamore Partners and 80 corporate employees were laid off.

The Milford store right near Schick closed in April.

Schick announced recently it will close at the end of 2027.

The closure will result in a loss of more than jobs.

Phelan addresses why this increase in layoffs is happening.

"The number one reason is AI and just the influence it is having on certain industries, particularly in the tech industry. But also, it's a combination of things from the tariffs to lower consumer confidence," said Phelan.

Phelan says it's important to stay positive, as hard as that can be.

Make sure you file for unemployment benefits and try to get your resume back out there, even if in some cases you have to reinvent yourself.