WARN Act and mass layoffs
Missing a WARN notice by a week can turn a routine reduction in force into 60 days of back pay per employee. Ask HR AI walks you through federal WARN and the mini-WARN statutes that lower the trigger.
What Ask HR AI covers
- Federal WARN thresholds (100+ employees, 50+ affected)
- 60-day notice content and recipients
- Rolling 90-day aggregation
- State mini-WARN (CA, NY, NJ, IL) — stricter triggers and payouts
"We're cutting 55 people across three states over 6 weeks — do we owe WARN notice?"
Ask this in Ask HR AIHow to plan a WARN-compliant reduction in force
- Step 1 — Count affected employees and sites. Aggregate all separations within a 90-day rolling window at each single site.
- Step 2 — Apply federal WARN and mini-WARN triggers. Use whichever is stricter for the state.
- Step 3 — Draft the notice. Include statutorily required content and deliver to employees, state dislocated worker unit, and chief elected local official.
- Step 4 — Give 60 (or 90) days' notice. Do not shorten unless a recognized exception applies.
- Step 5 — Coordinate severance where required. New Jersey requires statutory severance in addition to notice.
Frequently asked questions
When does federal WARN apply?
Employers with 100+ employees generally must give 60 days' notice for plant closings affecting 50+ employees or mass layoffs affecting 50+ employees (33%) or 500+ at a single site.
Does New Jersey's mini-WARN require severance?
Yes. NJ mini-WARN (as amended) requires one week of severance per year of service for covered layoffs, in addition to 90 days' notice.
Can we aggregate small layoffs to avoid WARN?
No — the statute specifically aggregates layoffs within a rolling 90-day window at a single site of employment.
Related Ask HR AI topics
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- I-9 and work authorization — Form I-9 completion, remote verification, re-verification, E-Verify, and how to respond to a Notice of Inspection without creating a discrimination claim.
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Ask HR AI is not legal advice. Confirm any final answers or suggested actions with your employment legal counsel before acting on them.