Mini-WARN Acts and Mandatory Severance by State: Layoff Notice Rules (2026)

Federal law sets the floor at 60 days, and most mini-WARN states match it. New Jersey, New York and Nebraska stretch it to 90 days, while Iowa asks for only 30.

This is where state laws bite hardest. Iowa reaches employers with as few as 25 employees, and New York, Washington and Maryland start at 50, half the federal cutoff.

Watch the percentage test. California, Washington and New Jersey count a layoff of 50 at a site no matter how big the site is, while federal law also requires a cut under 500 to hit 33% of the workforce.

Daily fines look small next to payroll, but they stack on top of back pay. Delaware is the steepest at $1,000 per day or $100 per day per dislocated worker, whichever is greater.

States that require severance or a pay supplement in a covered layoff

Source: New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (LexisNexis statute text), N.J. Stat. §§ 34:21-1 and 34:21-2 (Millville Dallas Airmotive Plant Job Loss Notification Act), as amended by P.L. 2019, c. 423; Maine Legislature, Office of the Revisor of Statutes, 26 M.R.S. § 625-B, Severance pay due to closing, substantial shutdown or relocation of a covered establishment; Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, Workforce Development Council, The WARN Act and Dislocated Worker Laws (HRS ch. 394B). Download as image

Mini-WARN changes from 2025 to 2027

Source: Littler Mendelson P.C., Washington Enacts Mini-WARN Act Requiring Notice for Certain Layoffs and Closures; Frantz Ward LLP, Ohio Enacts New Mini-WARN Law; Maryland Department of Labor, Maryland Economic Stabilization Act (WARN) - employer page; California Employment Development Department, Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN); Ogletree Deakins, Washington Governor Ferguson Signs Mini-WARN Act Amendments Bill; Littler Mendelson P.C., Nebraska Enacts State Mini-WARN Act; Proskauer Rose LLP (Law and the Workplace), Connecticut Enacts New AI Law: What Employers Need To Know; Littler Mendelson P.C., California Amends its WARN Act (Again). Download as image

State layoff notice and severance rules by state

• 2State notice law plus mandatory severance or pay supplement
• 11Mandatory state notice law (mini-WARN)
• 1Extra disclosure in federal WARN filings only
• 2Voluntary notice or reporting only
• 31No state law; federal WARN applies

What is a mini-WARN act?

A mini-WARN act is a state law that copies the idea behind the federal WARN Act and then changes the numbers. The federal rule covers employers with 100 or more employees and requires 60 calendar days of notice. A mass layoff under federal law means 50 or more employees who make up at least 33% of the site, or 500 or more.

State versions tighten one or more of those dials. New York covers private employers with 50 or more full-time employees and requires 90 days of notice. Iowa covers employers with 25 or more employees, though it asks for only 30 days. Washington's STABLE Act, in effect since July 27, 2025, covers employers with 50 or more employees and drops the percentage test entirely.

When both laws apply, the employer has to satisfy both. In practice that means meeting whichever rule is stricter on each point, so a New York employer gives 90 days even though federal law would accept 60.

Which states require severance pay when you are laid off?

Most people assume severance is a gift. Usually it is. No federal law requires it, and in most states an employer can lay you off with nothing beyond your final paycheck. New Jersey and Maine are the exceptions.

In New Jersey, employers with 100 or more employees that cut 50 or more jobs at or reporting to a New Jersey site within 30 days owe each affected worker 1 week of pay for each full year of employment. If the employer gives less than the required 90 days of notice, workers get an additional 4 weeks of pay on top. Say you worked there 4 full years. That is 4 weeks of pay, and short notice adds another 4 weeks. The money is owed by statute, so it does not depend on what your offer letter said.

Maine applies the same 1 week's pay per year rule to eligible workers when a covered establishment with 100 or more persons closes or has a mass layoff, and adds partial pay for a partial year. Unpaid severance can cost the employer up to $1,000 per affected employee in fines.

How much notice does your employer have to give before a layoff?

It depends on where you work, not where the company is headquartered. Federal law and most mini-WARN states, including California, Illinois, Washington, Delaware, Maryland and Ohio, require 60 days. New Jersey, New York and Nebraska require 90 days, and Maine requires 90 days for closings and relocations. Vermont requires 45 days of notice to the state and 30 days to local officials and bargaining units.

Notice is not the same as pay, but the two connect. If an employer skips notice, the usual remedy is back pay and benefits for up to 60 days in most states. Some employers hand out pay in lieu of notice to cover that gap, which is legal in many cases but should be spelled out in writing.

Maine is the odd one on mass layoffs. Closings and relocations need 90 days, but a mass layoff only has to be reported to the state no later than 7 days after it happens. Workers there lean on the severance rule rather than on advance warning.

Does a small or mid-size business have to give layoff notice?

If you run a company with fewer than 100 employees, it is easy to assume WARN is someone else's problem. In several states it is not. Iowa's law reaches employers with 25 or more employees. New York, Washington and Maryland start at 50, and California and Illinois start at 75. California counts part-time staff toward that 75, so a busy retail or restaurant group can cross the line sooner than it expects.

The trigger matters as much as the headcount. Maryland looks at a layoff of at least 25% of the workforce or 15 employees, whichever is greater, over 3 months. New York counts a plant closing of 25 or more. Washington counts 50 or more job losses in any 30-day period, so trimming a little at a time inside that window will not keep you under the line.

The cost of getting it wrong adds up quickly. Back pay and benefits for up to 60 days per worker is the usual exposure, and civil penalties sit on top. Iowa and Nebraska cap the fine at $100 per day, while California, Illinois, Washington and Maine allow up to $500 per day. For a planned reduction, the cheapest path is almost always to send notice early and to the right people: employees, the state labor agency, and local officials where the law requires it.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

This area of law moved fast. Ohio's law took effect September 29, 2025, adding state and local recipients for notices. Maryland's revised regulations took effect October 13, 2025. Nebraska passed its own law, LB 921, which took effect in July 2026 and requires 90 days of notice from employers with 100 or more employees.

Notice content is changing too. California notices must now describe how laid-off workers will be supported. From October 1, 2026, Connecticut employers filing WARN notices must disclose whether the layoffs relate to AI or other technological change, and California's SB 951 adds similar content for AI and automation layoffs from January 1, 2027.

What should you do if a layoff is coming?

• Find out which state's law covers your worksite. If you work remotely, ask which office you report to, since several laws count employees at or reporting to an establishment.
• Count the cut. A layoff of 50 at a California, Washington or New Jersey site triggers notice regardless of percentage, while federal law also looks at the 33% test.
• Check the date on the notice against the required period. Short notice in New Jersey adds 4 weeks of pay.
• Read any severance agreement before signing. Statutory severance in New Jersey or Maine is owed by law, so be wary of a release that asks you to give up claims in exchange for money you were already entitled to.
• If you run a business near the thresholds, track headcount by site and plan layoffs at least 90 days out in the strictest states where you operate.

Sources and method

Every number on this page comes from the sources below, each opened and read on or before October 18, 2026. A second, independent review checked every figure against its source and corrected anything that did not match. 47 of 51 state entries were confirmed; any that could not be are marked "Not yet confirmed" and left out of every count and chart.

1. U.S. Department of Labor, via eCFR (Office of the Federal Register), 20 CFR Part 639 - Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (definitions, 639.3; notice timing, 639.5) (eCFR text as of October 1, 2026)
2. New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (LexisNexis statute text), N.J. Stat. §§ 34:21-1 and 34:21-2 (Millville Dallas Airmotive Plant Job Loss Notification Act), as amended by P.L. 2019, c. 423 (Current through L. 2023, c. 28; amendments effective April 10, 2023)
3. New York State Department of Labor, Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) (Undated web page, accessed October 2026)
4. New York State Department of Labor, via Cornell Legal Information Institute, 12 NYCRR 921-1.1 Definitions (New York WARN regulations) (Current regulation text, accessed October 2026)
5. California Employment Development Department, Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) (Web page with 'New for 2026' notice-content update, accessed October 2026)
6. Littler Mendelson P.C., California Amends its WARN Act (Again) (October 2, 2026)
7. Illinois Department of Labor, Conciliation and Mediation Division, Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) (Undated web page, accessed October 2026)
8. Iowa Legislature, Iowa Code Chapter 84C, Iowa Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (Iowa Code 2026)
9. Maine Legislature, Office of the Revisor of Statutes, 26 M.R.S. § 625-B, Severance pay due to closing, substantial shutdown or relocation of a covered establishment (Current text, amended through PL 2023, c. 52)
10. Maryland Department of Labor, Maryland Economic Stabilization Act (WARN) - employer page (Revised regulations effective Oct. 13, 2025)
11. Delaware General Assembly (Delaware Code Online), Delaware Code Title 19, Chapter 19, Delaware Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (Current text (81 Del. Laws c. 312, as amended))
12. Washington State Legislature, RCW Chapter 49.45, Mass Layoffs and Business Closings (STABLE Act) (Current through 2026 c 86)
13. Washington Employment Security Department, WARN requirements (Undated web page, accessed October 2026)
14. Littler Mendelson P.C., Washington Enacts Mini-WARN Act Requiring Notice for Certain Layoffs and Closures (May 13, 2025)
15. Ogletree Deakins, Washington Governor Ferguson Signs Mini-WARN Act Amendments Bill (March 18, 2026)
16. Vermont Department of Labor, WARN Act and Notice of Potential Layoffs Act (Undated web page, accessed October 2026)
17. Frantz Ward LLP, Ohio Enacts New Mini-WARN Law (August 5, 2025)
18. Duane Morris LLP, Ohio Employers Be WARNed: New Mini-WARN Law Expands Notice Obligations for Covered Mass Layoffs (August 7, 2025)
19. Littler Mendelson P.C., Nebraska Enacts State Mini-WARN Act (May 28, 2026)
20. Proskauer Rose LLP (Law and the Workplace), Connecticut Enacts New AI Law: What Employers Need To Know (June 4, 2026)
21. Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes, Minnesota Statutes § 116L.976, Notice of plant closings and substantial layoffs (Minnesota Statutes 2025)
22. South Carolina Legislature, South Carolina Code of Laws Title 41, Chapter 1 (editor's note: §§ 41-1-40, 41-1-50 repealed) (Current Code of Laws, accessed October 2026)
23. Barnes & Thornburg LLP (republished by The National Law Review), The State of Employment Law: 13 States Have Mini-WARN Acts (June 23, 2025)
24. J.J. Keller & Associates (Compliance Network), Plant closing - Tennessee (Undated web page, accessed October 2026)
25. Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, Workforce Development Council, The WARN Act and Dislocated Worker Laws (HRS ch. 394B) (Notice dated Jan. 2024; page could not be opened in full in October 2026)
26. Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, Overview of Wisconsin's Business Closing and Mass Layoff Law (Wis. Stat. § 109.07) (Undated web page; could not be opened in full in October 2026)
27. New Hampshire General Court, New Hampshire RSA Chapter 275-F, Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (Current RSA text, accessed October 2026)