More than 1,200 Hawai'i workers were given pink slips last month in so-called mass layoffs, in which companies let go at least 50 workers.

A report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the state continues to pile up job losses, with mass layoffs 1 1/2 times last year's February total of 786.

The number of mass layoff events also doubled to 15 in February from seven a year earlier.

Some Hawai'i companies are shedding employees because of the worst recession since statehood, while others are simply closing.

In February, Maui Land & Pineapple Co. announced it was laying off 98 workers, and several notable restaurants, including Nick's Fishmarket, Brew Moon and E&O Trading Co., announced their closings.

The number of workers affected by mass layoffs has generally been increasing over the past 12 months, with the total ballooning to more than 1,000 in four of those months. In April, 1,583 ex-workers filed unemployment claims stemming from such events, which included the shutdowns of Aloha and ATA airlines.

May had 1,118.

The tally hit 1,650 in December. During that month, Hilo Hattie and Acutron Co. announced 90 layoffs, and Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar furloughed 700 employees for a week.

The trend of layoffs could continue this year, though it is hoped the federal stimulus and other programs will help with employment. The University of Hawai'i Economic Research Organization's newest forecast says unemployment is likely to continue increasing this year and average 7 percent.

Nationally in February, Hawai'i was one of 48 states and the District of Columbia where there were year-over-year increases in average weekly initial unemployment claims. But the state's unemployment remains below national levels and mass layoffs didn't increase as quickly here in February as they did nationally.

The national unemployment rate hit a seasonally adjusted 8.1 percent in February.

Hawai'i's rate was likely below that level. The state is expected to report that last month's unemployment was at least 6 percent when it releases the February report late next week.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that California had the highest number of initial claims because of mass layoffs, with 45,557. California yesterday reported that its unemployment rate climbed to 10.5 percent in February, the second consecutive month of double-digit unemployment.