Emergency Proposed Rule For New York WARN Act

As I told you here, the New York State Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act is effective as of February 1, 2009. Generally speaking, the new statute requires New York employers to provide 90 days’ notice prior to a plant closing, mass layoff or relocation, and applies to private employers with 50 or more workers (in some cases excluding part-time employees) who layoff at least 25 employees.

The New York State Department of Labor has filed an Emergency Proposed Rule (retroactive to the statute's effective date) to govern the interpretation and implementation of the statute; they concern the applicability, timing and scope of Notice requirements as well as the enforcement authority of the Commissioner of Labor. Apparently, the Emergency Rule is temporary and not the final word since there will be a period for public comment. Complete documents related to the Emergency Rule are expected to be published in the New York State Register on February 11, 2009. A summary of the proposed Rule can be found here.