What the federal statute is watching
A plant closing that produces 50 or more employment losses, or a mass layoff of 500-plus, or 50–499 if at least 33% at the site — confirm the current text. Part-time definitions and the 90-day aggregation rules matter. The eCFR WARN part is the regulatory door (Source: 20 C.F.R. Part 639).
A sale that looks like a continuation can still produce losses if the buyer does not hire, or hires and then cuts. Employee transfer is the deal sibling. Structure is not a holiday.
What this page will not invent
A state mini-WARN cell. Headcount thresholds that belong on mini-WARN only as “some states add more — see the owner.” Census CBP 2023’s 68.4% under-20 share is why many shops never meet the federal 100 (Source: Census CBP). That is not a license to skip counsel on a 120-person file.
BLS machinist median pay of $58,750 is a wage backdrop, not a notice trigger (Source: BLS).
| Federal element | Usual figure | Confirm |
|---|---|---|
| Employer size | 100 full-time | Definitions of FT |
| Notice | 60 days | Exceptions exist |
| Plant closing | 50+ losses | Site rules |
| Mass layoff | 500+, or 50–499 and 33% | Aggregation |
Who scripts the letter?
Employment counsel, with the buyer’s hiring plan in hand. Jason Taken is a business broker. Educational information only. Sell a manufacturing business is the process door, not the notice.
How a sale creates the fact pattern
A buyer who will not hire the second shift creates losses. A seller who winds down a product line between signing and close creates losses. A consolidation into another plant after close creates losses. Each of those can trip the statute even if the APA says “buyer intends to offer employment.” Intentions are not headcount. Offers that are not accepted still need a count.
Write the hiring plan in the letter. Write who pays if notice is required. Write whether the buyer’s plan is a continuation or a reduction. Employee transfer is the benefits sibling. This noun is the notice statute.
Do not use a 60-day exclusive as a substitute for 60-day notice. They are different clocks. A deal can close inside an exclusive and still have been illegal on the floor. Counsel sequences them.
Part-time and temporary labor can change the math. So can a 90-day aggregation of smaller cuts. Do not let the controller’s “we are at 92 full-time today” be the last word if last quarter’s overtime army was doing production work. The glossary will not apply the statute to your roster. It will keep federal WARN from being used as a nickname for every layoff rumor.
Isolation
The glossary keeps federal WARN off mini-WARN. The FAQ holds the question. When headcount and the calendar are the risk, book a confidential intro call.
Offers, temps, and the count that still moves
A buyer who offers every job at a lower rate may still create losses if people decline. A buyer who offers every job and then consolidates in day 40 may still aggregate. Counsel counts. Managers guess. Write the offer terms in the letter if WARN is in play. Write who sends the notice.
If last quarter’s temps were the second shift, counsel may still want them in the analysis. Do not let “they were not on our W-2” be the end of the memo. A CIM can say “federal 100 / 60 analysis by employment counsel if any reduction is planned” without inventing a headcount. Bring the site roster, the buyer’s hiring plan, and whether any reduction is already scheduled. WARN Act and workforce changes is the playbook. After the federal noun is straight, a confidential intro call is the conversion path.
What federal WARN is not
It is not mini-WARN. It is not a sale holiday. A change of ownership does not erase the statute. It is not a 60-day exclusive. Those are different clocks. A deal can close inside an exclusive and still have been illegal on the floor. Part-time and temporary labor can change the math. So can a 90-day aggregation of smaller cuts. Do not let the controller’s “we are at 92 full-time today” be the last word if last quarter’s overtime army was doing production work.
How it shows up: 100 full-time employees and 60 days on covered plant closings or mass layoffs (Source: 20 C.F.R. Part 639). A CIM can say employment counsel will apply that box if any reduction is planned. This definition will not apply the statute to your roster. It will keep federal WARN from being used as a nickname for every layoff rumor.