Reps. Sykes, Dingell, and Budzinski Reintroduce Fair Warning Act to Strengthen Worker Protections and Ensure Advance Notice of Layoffs

Reps. Sykes, Dingell, and Budzinski Reintroduce Fair Warning Act to Strengthen Worker Protections and Ensure Advance Notice of Layoffs

WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Representatives Emilia Sykes (OH-13), Debbie Dingell (MI-06), and Nikki Budzinksi (IL-13) reintroduced the Fair Warning Act. The bill would update the Worker Adjustment and Retraining (WARN) Act of 1988, hold employers accountable, and give workers and communities the notice they need to best prepare for and recover from employer decisions that cost them their jobs.

"Losing a job is tough enough, but it's made even worse when large corporations ignore the letter of the law and refuse to give hard-working Ohioans and our communities the advance notice they need to prepare for what comes next. People in Ohio's 13th Congressional District deserve transparency, which is why I'm reintroducing the Fair Warning Act," said Rep. Sykes. "The Fair Warning Act holds employers accountable and empowers working people by ensuring workers and their families get the notice they need to prepare and respond to layoffs. As a member of the Congressional Labor Caucus, I'll always stand with working people and families in our communities by working to prevent layoffs, create better-paying jobs and fight for better worker protections."

"No worker should ever be blindsided by an unexpected layoff," said Rep. Budzinski. "Despite existing laws like the WARN Act, which require companies to give advance notice of mass layoffs and plant closures, employers too often ignore or find loopholes in these rules. We must do more to protect workers, their families, and communities. I'm proud to introduce this legislation to strengthen the WARN Act and hold employers accountable to treat workers with the respect and dignity they deserve."

"Too often, hardworking Americans are left in the dark when decisions are made that impact their jobs and their communities," said Rep. Dingell. "The Fair Warning Act gives workers and their families the notice and respect they deserve when facing job loss. It also holds employers accountable for the consequences of abrupt and mass layoffs. As a co-chair of the Labor Caucus, I will always fight for better, more fair conditions for workers."

Background:

Too often, companies close down and barely give their workers or the broader community notice. Workers and their families deserve better than a last-minute email letting them know they're losing their job. While the WARN Act requires certain companies to provide full-time employees with WARN notices in some circumstances, in too many cases, existing law doesn't apply, or companies fail to follow the rules, and workers get left behind.

The Fair Warning Act modernizes existing law to ensure workers receive meaningful advance notice and that employers are held responsible when they fail to comply.

The Fair Warning Act would update current law by:

• Updating the statute so the requirements under the law apply to any business that employs 50 or more employees or has an annual payroll of $2 million;
• Updating definitions to ensure the legislation also covers an employer's affiliate if they violate the WARN Act;
• Closing loopholes in notification requirements by expanding the cases where notification is required and including both full-time and part-time employees in thresholds;
• Increasing the lead-time for mass layoff or site closure notifications from 60 days' notice to 90 days' notice to provide workers, their families, and the community with advance notice;
• Requiring the state to establish a Rapid Response committee and an individual to lead that committee within 20 days of a WARN notice being issued so that affected employees can quickly get the training and other support services they need to prepare for their job loss;
• Strengthening enforcement provisions under the law to enhance compliance;
• Protecting employees' rights to bring suit if their employer violates their WARN Act rights; and
• Requiring the Department of Labor to create and make public a searchable database of all WARN notices.

The bill has been endorsed by United Steelworkers, National Employment Law Project, and Sugar Law Center for Economic & Social Justice.

"The USW applauds Reps. Sykes, Dingell, and Budzinski's efforts to reform the WARN Act, close its loopholes, and institute more robust protections for workers facing the devastating consequences of a plant closure or mass layoff," said USW International President David McCall. "While our top priority should be preventing these events, the least Congress can do is enact common-sense updates, including expanding the amount of notice workers get and shoring up compliance. Nothing can wholly mitigate the impacts of this sort of upheaval, but these reforms will at least allow workers to better plan for the future as they attempt to find new jobs."

"The Fair Warning Act is critical legislation allowing workers a fair opportunity to transition to new employment and training opportunities to avoid the devastating effects of sudden and unexpected job loss," said Sugar Law Center for Economic & Social Justice Executive Director John Philo. "The Act updates and modernizes federal law to address the needs of today's workers and provides meaningful accountability when employers fail to meet their obligations to employees and the community."