Losing your job is hard enough. When dozens or hundreds of employees get laid off at once, the financial impact can be devastating for workers and their families. New Jersey law provides important protections for employees who face mass layoffs or plant closures. These protections give workers time to prepare and require employers to pay severance in many cases.
The Millville Dallas Airmotive Plant Job Loss Notification Act, commonly called the NJ WARN Act, requires employers to give advance notice before large-scale job losses. This state law works alongside the federal WARN Act to protect workers. If your employer violated these requirements, you may be entitled to compensation beyond your normal pay.
What Is the Federal WARN Act?
The federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act protects employees by requiring advance notice before major workforce reductions. Congress passed this law to help workers prepare for job loss and find new employment opportunities.
Under federal law, employers must provide 60 days of written notice before a mass layoff or plant closing. This notice period gives employees time to look for new jobs, update their resumes, and plan for the financial transition.
The federal WARN Act applies to businesses with 100 or more full-time employees. This includes private companies, non-profit organizations, and certain quasi-public entities. Covered employees include hourly workers, salaried employees, managers, and supervisors.
When Does the Federal WARN Act Apply?
The federal law requires notice in two main situations:
Mass Layoffs: When an employer terminates 50 or more full-time workers at a single employment site within a 30-day period.
Plant Closures: When a facility shuts down permanently or temporarily, resulting in job loss for at least 50 full-time employees at a single location.
The required 60-day notice must be in writing and include specific information. Employers should tell workers whether the layoff is permanent or temporary, the expected date of termination, information about bumping rights if applicable, and contact information for a company representative who can answer questions.
Does New Jersey Have Its Own WARN Act?
Yes. New Jersey has its own version of the WARN Act that provides stronger protections than federal law. The state law, found in N.J. Stat. sections 34:21-1 through 34:21-7, gives employees more advance notice and requires severance pay.
The NJ WARN Act applies to employers who have operated an establishment in New Jersey for more than three years. An establishment can be a single location or a group of locations, including any facilities located in the state.
How Is New Jersey’s Law Different?
New Jersey’s WARN Act improves on federal protections in several important ways:
Longer Notice Period: New Jersey requires 90 days of advance notice instead of the federal 60 days. This gives workers an extra month to prepare.
Severance Pay Requirement: State law requires employers to pay severance to affected workers. The federal WARN Act does not require severance pay at all.
Statewide Aggregation: The 50-employee threshold can include workers from different locations across New Jersey. Under federal law, the 50 workers must all be at the same employment site.
More Notification Parties: Employers must notify the chief elected official of the municipality where the establishment is located, each affected employee, any union representing the workers, and the New Jersey Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development.
What Types of Job Losses Are Covered?
The NJ WARN Act covers employees who lose their jobs because of three specific situations:
- The establishment where they work relocates to a different location
- The establishment stops operating completely
- The employer has a mass layoff affecting enough workers
For the law to apply, at least 50 employees must be terminated within a 30-day period. However, employers cannot avoid the law by spreading out terminations. If an employer has two or more terminations, transfers, or mass layoffs during any 90-day period, those events can be combined to reach the 50-employee threshold. The only exception is if the employer proves each set of terminations had completely separate and distinct causes.
Who Is Not Covered?
The NJ WARN Act does not apply to all employment situations. You are not covered if you:
- Left your job voluntarily
- Were fired for misconduct
- Are laid off for less than six months
- Were offered a comparable job with the same employer in New Jersey within 50 miles of your previous work location
How Much Notice Are Employees Entitled To?
Employees affected by a covered mass layoff or plant closure are entitled to 90 days of advance notice before their last day of work. This notice requirement applies only to employers with 100 or more employees.
If your employer failed to give you the full 90 days of notice, you are entitled to an additional four weeks of pay on top of any other compensation you are owed.
What Severance Pay Do Employees Receive?
One of the biggest differences between federal and state law is that New Jersey requires employers to pay severance. Every employee whose job is terminated due to a covered mass layoff or plant closure gets severance pay.
The amount of severance equals one week of pay for each full year you worked for the employer. For example, if you worked for the company for five years, you would receive five weeks of severance pay. If you worked there for 12 years, you would get 12 weeks of severance.
How Is Severance Calculated?
Your severance pay is based on your regular rate of compensation. The law calculates this using whichever amount is greater:
- Your average regular rate of compensation during your last three years of employment
- Your final regular rate of compensation
While the NJ WARN Act does not specifically define “regular rate of compensation,” similar terms in other employment laws have been interpreted broadly. This typically includes your base salary or hourly wage plus most bonuses, commissions, and incentive pay you received.
What Other Money Can Employees Recover?
Employees who successfully bring a claim under the NJ WARN Act can recover several types of compensation:
- Lost wages from the period when notice should have been given
- Lost benefits during the notification period
- All severance pay owed under the law
- Attorney’s fees and legal costs
There is also another way employees may be able to recover additional damages. The NJ WARN Act says severance pay is owed to employees for their past services and is earned in full when employment ends. This means severance likely qualifies as “wages” under New Jersey’s Wage Payment Law.
This distinction matters because the Wage Payment Law allows employees to collect liquidated damages if their wages are not paid on time. These liquidated damages can equal up to 200% of the unpaid or late wages. In other words, you could potentially receive up to three times the amount of your unpaid severance pay.
What Should You Do If Your Employer Violated the WARN Act?
Time matters when it comes to protecting your rights. If you believe your employer did not follow state or federal WARN Act requirements, you should act quickly.
First, gather any documents you have about your employment and termination. This includes your termination notice, employment contract, pay stubs, and any communications from your employer about the layoff or closure.
Second, calculate how much notice you actually received and how many years you worked for the company. This will help you figure out what you might be owed.
Third, talk to an employment lawyer who handles WARN Act cases. These cases involve specific legal requirements and deadlines. An attorney can review your situation, explain your rights, and help you pursue the compensation you deserve.
Get Help With Your NJ WARN Act Claim
Employers who violate the WARN Act leave workers in difficult financial situations. You worked hard for your employer, and you deserve the notice and severance pay the law requires.
The Law Offices of Usmaan Sleemi represents employees who were not given proper notice or severance pay when their jobs ended. We know how to handle these cases and fight for the full compensation workers are owed. If you lost your job in a mass layoff or plant closure and did not receive 90 days of notice or proper severance pay, we can help.
Call us at 973-866-9415 or contact us online to discuss your situation. We will review what happened, explain your rights under New Jersey and federal law, and help you take action to recover what you are owed.
