The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires that covered employers generally must provide at least 60 days notice to affected employees or their representatives before ordering a “plant closing” or “mass layoff.” See 29 U.S.C. § 2102(a).
What employers are subject to the WARN Act? The WARN Act applies to any business enterprise that employs either: (1) 100 or more employees, excluding part-time employees; or (2) 100 or more employees who in the aggregate work at least 4,000 hours per week (exclusive of overtime hours). See 29 U.S.C. § 2101(a)(1).
What is a “plant closing”? A “plant closing” is defined as “the permanent or temporary shutdown of a single site of employment, or one or more facilities or operating units within a single site of employment, if the shutdown results in an employment loss at the single site of employment during any 30-day period for 50 or more employees excluding any part-time employees.” See 29 U.S.C. § 2101(a)(2).
What is a “mass layoff”? A “mass layoff” is defined as a reduction in force that: (1) is not the result of a plant closing; and (2) results in an employment loss at the single site of employment during any 30-day period for either:
- At least 33% of the employees (excluding any part-time employees) and at least 50 employees (excluding any part-time employees); or
- At least 500 employees (excluding any part-time employees).