The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) requires employers with 100 or more employees to:

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Accepted Answer

Give 60 days' advance notice of plant closings or mass layoffs. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) of 1988 requires employers with 100 or more full-time employees to provide at least 60 calendar days' advance written notice before a plant closing or mass layoff. The notice must be given to affected workers or their union representatives, the state dislocated worker unit, and the chief elected official of the local government. This advance notice allows workers and communities to prepare for the economic impact.

Providing retraining for all displaced workers is not a WARN requirement; while the act's name includes "retraining," its primary mandate is advance notification, not the provision of retraining services. Paying severance equal to one year's salary is not mandated by WARN; the law requires notification, not specific severance payments, though employers who fail to provide adequate notice may be liable for back pay and benefits for the notification period. Offering health insurance for 18 months describes COBRA continuation coverage, which is a separate law from WARN.

WARN is an important employment law on the DSST Human Resource Management exam. Students should know the employer size threshold (100+ employees), the notice period (60 days), the definitions of plant closing and mass layoff that trigger the requirement, the limited exceptions to the notice requirement (faltering company, unforeseeable business circumstances, natural disaster), and the penalties for non-compliance.

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