The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act
Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act
There
are many different topics of employment law that an employment
lawyer in NJ must be familiar with. Many of these topics are familiar,
well-known legal concepts while others are little known pieces of legislation.
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act or WARN is one of these
piece. WARN requires employers to give employees at least 60 days notice prior
to a mass layoff or plant closure. This notice must be made available to employees,
communities, and labor groups such as unions. The purpose of this law is to
provide employees facing layoffs time to search for another job and to begin
retraining when necessary.
Who is affected by WARN?
WARN was created to help transition employees from one job to another when work is no longer available from the previous employer. The law mainly affects employers who employ at least 100 employees, not including part-time workers. These minimum 100 employees must have worked at least 6 out of the previous 12 months in order for the employer to be affect by the legislation. Almost all employees are eligible for protection from WARN including supervisors, managers, hourly, and salaried employees.
Plant Closures
All employers who meet the minimum requirements are required to give notice if they plan on closing a plant. Further, the plant closure must mean that during a 3 day period at least 50 people will lose their jobs. The 50 people who would lose their jobs during the closure must meet the requirements of having worked 6 of the previous 12 months.
Mass Layoffs
Generally speaking, employers who are planning to layoff more than 500 employees during the course of a 30 day period are required to give notice under WARN. Employers who are making layoffs of 50 to 499 employees must also give notice under WARN if the number of employees they are laying off totals at least one third of their active workforce. Again, these numbers only take into consideration employees who have worked at least 6 of the previous 12 months.
Other Instances Where WARN is in Effect
There are a few other circumstances where WARN comes into play even when the planned number of affected employees does not meet the threshold that requires notice. When 2 or more classes of workers are affected a notice is required to be given even when the numbers are not sufficient enough to meet the traditional WARN requirements. Employers must give notice if planned layoffs will meet the number requirements during a 90-day period. Employers may be exempt from giving notices if they can prove that layoffs during the 90-day period were mutually exclusive and done for different reasons.
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act is very important to employees and also to the communities they live in. The act is extremely important to employees because it allows them to plan for time when they will not be working. It allows them time to start looking for a new job or to begin training or education that will allow them to find a new job. Without proper notice many employees might be left with no job, no money saved, and no plan when plants close and layoffs happen.
WARN is also very important to communities that layoffs and plant closures are happening in. These communities depend on the income that workers are generating to fuel secondary economies. When communities are aware that mass layoffs are coming they can prepare themselves and help to support the workers as they transition into new employment. Without the notifications required by WARN, these communities might be blindsided by layoffs and plant closures and be left without much hope. WARN helps to prevent this from happening.
Who is affected by WARN?
WARN was created to help transition employees from one job to another when work is no longer available from the previous employer. The law mainly affects employers who employ at least 100 employees, not including part-time workers. These minimum 100 employees must have worked at least 6 out of the previous 12 months in order for the employer to be affect by the legislation. Almost all employees are eligible for protection from WARN including supervisors, managers, hourly, and salaried employees.
Plant Closures
All employers who meet the minimum requirements are required to give notice if they plan on closing a plant. Further, the plant closure must mean that during a 3 day period at least 50 people will lose their jobs. The 50 people who would lose their jobs during the closure must meet the requirements of having worked 6 of the previous 12 months.
Mass Layoffs
Generally speaking, employers who are planning to layoff more than 500 employees during the course of a 30 day period are required to give notice under WARN. Employers who are making layoffs of 50 to 499 employees must also give notice under WARN if the number of employees they are laying off totals at least one third of their active workforce. Again, these numbers only take into consideration employees who have worked at least 6 of the previous 12 months.
Other Instances Where WARN is in Effect
There are a few other circumstances where WARN comes into play even when the planned number of affected employees does not meet the threshold that requires notice. When 2 or more classes of workers are affected a notice is required to be given even when the numbers are not sufficient enough to meet the traditional WARN requirements. Employers must give notice if planned layoffs will meet the number requirements during a 90-day period. Employers may be exempt from giving notices if they can prove that layoffs during the 90-day period were mutually exclusive and done for different reasons.
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act is very important to employees and also to the communities they live in. The act is extremely important to employees because it allows them to plan for time when they will not be working. It allows them time to start looking for a new job or to begin training or education that will allow them to find a new job. Without proper notice many employees might be left with no job, no money saved, and no plan when plants close and layoffs happen.
WARN is also very important to communities that layoffs and plant closures are happening in. These communities depend on the income that workers are generating to fuel secondary economies. When communities are aware that mass layoffs are coming they can prepare themselves and help to support the workers as they transition into new employment. Without the notifications required by WARN, these communities might be blindsided by layoffs and plant closures and be left without much hope. WARN helps to prevent this from happening.