Covered Employers
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act generally covers employers with 100 or more employees, not counting those who have worked less than six months in the last 12 months and those who work an average of less than 20 hours a week. Private, for-profit employers and private, non-profit employers are covered, as are public and quasi-public entities which operate in a commercial context and are separately organized from the regular government. Regular federal, state, and local government entities that provide public services are not covered.
Covered Employees
Employees entitled to notice under WARN include managers and supervisors, as well as hourly and salaried workers. Business partners are not entitled to notice.
Employment Loss
The term "employment loss" means:
• an employment termination, other than a discharge for cause, voluntary departure, or retirement;
• a layoff exceeding 6 months; or
• a reduction in an employee's hours of work of more than 50% in each month of any 6-month period.
Covered Plant Closings
A covered plant closing occurs when an employment site (or one or more facilities or operating units within an employment site) will be shut down, and the shutdown will result in employment loss for 50 or more covered employees during any 30-day period.
Covered Mass Layoffs
A covered mass layoff occurs when a layoff of six months or longer affects either 500 or more workers or at least 33% of the employer's workforce when the layoff affects between 50 and 499 workers. The number of affected workers is the total number laid off during a 30-day (or in some cases 90-day) period.
Exceptions
WARN does not apply to closure of temporary facilities or the completion of an activity when the workers were hired only for the duration of that activity. WARN also provides for less than 60 days notice when the layoffs resulted from closure of a faltering company, unforeseeable business circumstances, or a natural disaster.