Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988

Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act
Great Seal of the United States
Long titleAn Act To require advance notification of plant closings and mass layoffs, and for other purposes
Acronyms (colloquial)WARN Act
Enacted bythe 100th United States Congress
Citations
Public lawPub. L.Tooltip Public Law (United States) 100–379
Statutes at Large102 Stat. 890
Codification
Titles amended29 U.S.C.: Labor
U.S.C. sections created29 U.S.C. §§ 2101–2109
Legislative history
  • Introduced in the Senate as S. 2527 by Howard Metzenbaum (D-OH) on June 16, 1988
  • Passed the Senate on July 6, 1988 (72–23)
  • Passed the House on July 13, 1988 (286–136)
  • Left unsigned by President Ronald Reagan and became law on August 4, 1988

The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988 (the "WARN Act") is a U.S. labor law that protects employees, their families, and communities by requiring most employers with 100 or more employees to provide notification 60 calendar days in advance of planned closings and mass layoffs of employees.[1] In 2001, there were about 2,000 mass layoffs and plant closures that were subject to WARN advance notice requirements and that affected about 660,000 employees.[2]

Employees entitled to notice under the WARN Act include managers and supervisors, hourly wage, and salaried workers. The WARN Act requires that notice also be given to employees' representatives (e.g., a labor union), the local chief elected official (e.g. the mayor), and the state dislocated worker unit. The advance notice is intended to give workers and their families transition time to adjust to the prospective loss of employment, to seek and to obtain other employment, and if necessary, to enter skill training or retraining programs that would allow these workers to successfully compete in the job market.[3]

  1. ^ "Plant Closings and Layoffs | U.S. Department of Labor".
  2. ^ The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act: Revising the Act and Educational Materials Could Clarify Employer Responsibilities and Employee Rights: Report to Congressional Requesters, U.S. Government Accountability Office. GAO-03-1003. Washington, D.C.: 2003. 45 pages.
  3. ^ "Other Workplace Standards: Notices for Plant Closings and Mass Layoffs". elaws: Employment Law Guide. U.S. Department of Labor. September 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2011.