Regulatory and legal notices

WARN Act layoff notices explained

Q: How much notice does the WARN Act require?

60 days before a plant closing or mass layoff.

Last checked 6 November 2026 · 6 sources

Short answer

The US Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act bars a covered employer from ordering a plant closing or mass layoff until 60 days after written notice ¹. It covers employers with 100 or more employees, not counting part-time staff ². Notice goes to workers or their union, the state dislocated worker unit and the chief elected local official ². Federal courts enforce the Act, and the Department of Labor has no legal standing in enforcement ^3,2.

Law: Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, 29 USC Chapter 23 ¹
Notice period: 60 days ¹
Employer size: 100 or more employees, excluding part-time employees ²
Plant closing: Shutdown causing job loss for 50 or more at one site in 30 days ²
Back pay: Up to 60 days for each day of violation ¹
Enforced by: Federal courts ³

Who must give notice

The federal regulations define an employer as a business with 100 or more employees, excluding part-time employees ². A business counts as well if it has 100 or more employees, including part-time staff, who together work at least 4,000 hours a week, excluding overtime ².

Two events trigger the duty. A plant closing is the permanent or temporary shutdown of a single site that causes job loss for 50 or more employees in any 30 day period ². A mass layoff is a cut that is not a plant closing and causes job loss in any 30 day period for at least 33 percent of active employees and at least 50 employees ². The 33 percent test does not apply when 500 or more employees are affected ².

Who receives the notice and what it says

The content depends on the recipient. A notice to an employee without a union must say whether the action is permanent or temporary, the expected dates, whether bumping rights exist and a company contact ². A notice to the state and local government must list job titles and the number of affected workers in each, plus the name and address of each union's chief elected officer ².

Each affected employee's representative, or each affected employee if there is no representative ².
The state dislocated worker unit ².
The chief elected official of the local government where the closing or layoff will happen ².

Exceptions and penalties

The Act allows shorter notice in set cases. One covers a faltering company that is actively seeking capital or business that would let it avoid or postpone the shutdown ¹. Another covers business circumstances that were not reasonably foreseeable ¹. Notice is not required if the closing or layoff is due to any form of natural disaster ¹.

An employer that breaks the rule is liable for back pay for each day of violation, up to a maximum of 60 days ¹. Failing to notify the local government can bring a civil penalty of not more than US$500 for each day of violation ¹.

The Department of Labor says the federal courts solely enforce the Act ³. The regulations say the Department has no legal standing in any enforcement action and will not issue advisory opinions on specific cases ². Affected employees, their representatives and local governments may bring civil actions ².

State laws: the California example

California has its own WARN law. It applies to a covered establishment with 75 or more full and part-time employees in the past 12 months ⁴. It requires 60 days notice before a mass layoff, termination, relocation or call centre relocation ⁴. Its layoff trigger is 50 or more employees in 30 days, regardless of the share of the workforce ⁴. From 2026, California notices must explain how the employer will support laid-off workers, according to the state Employment Development Department ⁴. The EDD publishes WARN reports, including annual reports from 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2026 ⁴.

Comparable rules in the UK and Canada

In the UK, an employer can be fined an unlimited amount for not notifying the Redundancy Payments Service ⁵.

Jurisdiction	Trigger	Notice
United States	Plant closing or mass layoff at a covered employer ²	60 days to workers, state and local government ^1,2
California	Covered establishment of 75 or more employees ⁴	60 days, including the Local Workforce Development Board ⁴
United Kingdom	20 to 99 proposed redundancies ⁵	Form HR1 to the Redundancy Payments Service 30 days before the first dismissal ⁵
United Kingdom	100 or more proposed redundancies ⁵	Form HR1 45 days before the first dismissal ⁵
Canada, federal sector	50 or more employees at one establishment within four weeks ⁶	Written notice at least 16 weeks before the first termination ⁶

Common questions

How much notice does the WARN Act require?

60 days before a plant closing or mass layoff ¹.

Which employers are covered by the WARN Act?

Businesses with 100 or more employees, excluding part-time employees, or 100 or more employees who together work at least 4,000 hours a week ².

Who enforces the WARN Act?

The federal courts. The Department of Labor has no legal standing in enforcement actions ^3,2.

What is the penalty for not giving WARN notice?

Back pay for each day of violation up to 60 days, and a civil penalty of up to US$500 a day for failing to notify local government ¹.

What is the UK equivalent of a WARN notice?

Form HR1 to the Redundancy Payments Service, due 30 or 45 days before the first dismissal depending on numbers ⁵.

Rules and charges change. Check the official source linked on this page before you pay or travel. Spotted an error? Email hello@noticeofrecord.com.

Sources

What a formal notice is
What makes a notice formal: who gives it, who receives it, the deadline and the form. Breach, recall, regulatory, layoff and court notices compared.
How to check whether a notice was given
Where to look up official notices: state breach lists, the HHS breach portal, SEC EDGAR, FDA warning letters, FCA notices, WARN reports and recall lists.
Service of legal notices compared
How court papers are served in US federal courts and in England and Wales, deemed service, time limits and the Hague Service Convention for service abroad.