The WARN Act

For many people, gaining employment marks the completion of a critical life step.  Employment can lead to rewarding careers which hopefully eventually end under the employee’s own terms.  Sometimes a person’s career suddenly and involuntarily ends through a layoff or reduction in force (also known as a RIF) often through no fault of their own.

Unfortunately, with today’s economic uncertainty, many companies and businesses including those in the Pacific Northwest have implemented layoffs and RIFs recently.  For employees it can be difficult to know when a company will implement a layoff or RIF.  This uncertainty as expected can lead to anxiety.

However, did you know under certain conditions an employer is required to give an employee 60 days’ notice before they are impacted by a reduction in force?  That’s because there are laws in place that regulate the layoff or RIF process.  The Warning and Retaining Notification (WARN) act requires companies planning a mass layoff to notify workers 60 days in advance.  The WARN Act applies in three key scenarios:

Plant or Site Closures: Applies if an employer shuts down a facility or operating unit affecting 50 or more full-time employees at a single worksite, whether the closure is permanent or temporary.

Mass Layoffs: Applies when layoffs last more than 6 months, and during a 30-day period at a single site, the employer lays off:

• 500 or more full-time employees, or

• 50 or more full-time employees if that number is 33% or more of the active workforce.

Reduced Hours: Applies when 50 or more workers have their hours reduced by 50% or more for each month in a 6-month period.

A company or business can face penalties for failing to comply with the WARN act during a layoff or RIF including up to $500 for each day of the violation.  A company may also be forced to pay employees back pay and the cost of benefits they were entitled to for each day of the violation.

If you have been impacted by a reduction in force and don’t believe you received the required prior notice you may have a cause of action.