Sec. 2. Definitions; provision of notice of site closings and mass layoffs
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Sections 2 and 3 of the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act ( 29 U.S.C. 2101 ; 2102) are amended to read as follows: As used in this Act: The term affected employee means a full-time or part-time employee who may reasonably be expected to experience an employment loss as a consequence of a proposed site closing or mass layoff by the employee's employer. The term employer means any business enterprise that— employs 50 or more employees, including part-time employees and including employees of the nominal employer and any entity that is the nominal employer's direct or indirect parent or is integrated with the nominal employer; or has an annual payroll of at least $2,000,000.
For the purposes of this paragraph: The term integrated , when used with respect to a business enterprise, means an entity whose relationship with another business enterprise include— common ownership; common directors or officers; de facto exercise of control; unity of personnel policies emanating from a common source; or dependency of operations. The term parent means an entity, regardless of its financial interest in the nominal employer, that participates directly or indirectly in making decisions that affect the employees of the nominal employer or of multiple entities controlled by 1 person for a common business purpose.
In determining whether an entity is integrated with or a direct or indirect parent of a business enterprise that is the nominal employer, substantial weight shall be given to any decision-making responsibility the entity had for the practice that gave rise to the violation of this Act. Subject to subsection (b), the term employment loss means— an employment termination, other than a discharge for cause, voluntary departure, or retirement; a layoff exceeding 3 months; or a reduction in hours of work of more than 50 percent during each month of any 3-month period.
The term mass layoff means a reduction in force that results in an employment loss during any 90-day period— for 10 or more employees of an employer at a single site of employment, as calculated under subparagraph (B); or for 250 or more employees of an employer, irrespective of employment site. The number of employees at a single site who suffer an employment loss shall be calculated in a manner that includes— all such employees who work at the physical location of the site; and all such employees who work remotely and— are assigned to or otherwise associated with the site; receive assignments or training from the site; report to a manager associated with the site; or whose job loss was a foreseeable consequence of a reduction in force at the site.
The term representative means an exclusive representative of employees within the meaning of section 8(f) or 9(a) of the National Labor Relations Act ( 29 U.S.C. 158(f) ; 159(a)) or section 2 of the Railway Labor Act ( 45 U.S.C. 152 ). The term Secretary means the Secretary of Labor. The term site closing means the permanent or temporary shutdown of a single site of employment, or one or more facilities or operating units within a single site of employment, that results in an employment loss at the single site of employment during any 30-day period for 5 or more employees, calculated in the same manner as described in paragraph (4)(B).
The term unit of local government means any general purpose political subdivision of a State which has the power to levy taxes and spend funds, as well as general corporate and police powers. An employee shall not be considered to have experienced an employment loss due to a site closing or mass layoff if the site closing or mass layoff is the result of the relocation or consolidation of part or all of the employer’s business and, prior to the site closing or mass layoff— the employer offers to transfer the employee to a different site of employment within a reasonable commuting distance with no more than a 3-month break in employment; or the employer offers to transfer the employee to any other site of employment regardless of distance with no more than a 3-month break in employment, and the employee accepts within 30 days of the offer or of the site closing or mass layoff, whichever is later.
An employer shall not order a site closing or mass layoff until 90 calendar days after the date on which the employer has served written notice of such an order to— each representative of the affected employees as of the time of the notice; or each affected employee; the Secretary and the Governor of the State where the site closing or mass layoff is to occur; and the State or entity designated by the State to carry out rapid response activities under section 134(a)(2)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act ( 29 U.S.C. 3174(a)(2)(A) ).
A State or designated entity that receives a notice under subsection (a)(3) shall— make the information in the notice publicly available within the jurisdiction of the local government involved; transmit a copy of the notice to each affected local area (as defined in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act ( 29 U.S.C. 3102 )), so that the information in the notice can be distributed through activities under section 134(c)(2)(A)(iv)(I)(aa) of that Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)(2)(A)(iv)(I)(aa)); and ensure that— an appropriate labor-management committee described in section 3(51)(C) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act ( 29 U.S.C. 3102(51)(C) ) has been established or is established not later than 20 days after receipt of the notice; and an individual is designated, by not later than 20 days after receipt of such notice, to coordinate rapid response activities described in section 134(a)(2)(A)(i) of such Act, in consultation with the labor-management committee.
An employer may order the site closing of a single site of employment before the conclusion of the 90-day period described in subsection
(a)if— as of the date that notice would have been required the employer had been offered, on acceptable terms, new business or financing in an amount which, if obtained, would have enabled the employer to avoid the site closing; and the employer can demonstrate that, had notice been given, the notice would have precluded the new business or financing. No notice under this Act shall be required if the site closing or mass layoff is due to any form of natural disaster, such as a flood, earthquake, or a drought ravaging the farmlands of the United States. No notice under this Act shall be required if the site closing or mass layoff is due directly to a terrorist attack that affects the operation of the site. An employer relying on this subsection shall give as much notice as is practicable and at that time shall give a brief statement of the basis for reducing the notification period. A temporary layoff of more than 3 months that, at its outset, was announced to be a temporary layoff of 3 months or less, shall be treated as an employment loss under this Act unless— a written notice, as required under subsection (a), is provided at the commencement of the temporary layoff stating the date on which the employer expects to recall the employees to work, and such date is less than 3 months after the date of the layoff; and notice is given to all parties described in subsection
(a)at the time it becomes reasonable to contemplate that the temporary layoff will be extended beyond the 90-day period. For purposes of this section, in determining whether a site closing or mass layoff at a single site of employment has occurred or will occur, employment losses for 2 or more groups at the single site of employment, each of which is less than the minimum number of employees specified in paragraph
(4)or
(7)of section 2(a) but which in the aggregate exceed that minimum number, and which occur within any 90-day period, shall be considered to be a site closing or mass layoff unless the employer demonstrates that the employment losses are the result of separate and distinct actions and causes and are not an attempt by the employer to evade the requirements of this Act. In the case of a sale of part or all of an employer’s business, the seller shall be responsible for providing notice for any site closing or mass layoff in accordance with this section up to and including the effective date of the sale. After the effective date of the sale of part or all of an employer’s business, the purchaser shall be responsible for providing notice for any site closing or mass layoff in accordance with this section. In the case of a sale of part or all of an employer's business, and notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, any person who is an employee of the seller as of the effective date of the sale shall be considered an employee of the purchaser immediately after the effective date of the sale. An employer who is required to provide notice as required under subsection
(a)shall include— in each notice required under such subsection— a statement of the number of affected employees; the reason for the site closing or mass layoff; whether the layoff is permanent or temporary and, if temporary, the date on which the employer expects to recall the affected employees to work; the availability of employment at other establishments owned by the employer; a statement of each employee’s rights with respect to wages and severance and employee benefits; and a statement of the available employment and training services provided by the Department of Labor; and in each notice required under such subsection (except for paragraph (1)(B) of such subsection), the names, addresses, and occupations of the affected employees. Concurrent with or immediately after providing the notice required under subsection (a)(1), an employer shall provide affected employees with information regarding the benefits and services available to such employees, as described in the guide compiled by the Secretary under section 13. An employer who is required to provide notice under subsection
(a)shall permit, during work hours, reasonable on-site access to any Federal, State, or local rapid response team under section 134(a)(2)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act ( 29 U.S.C. 3174(a)(2)(A) ) responsible for providing reemployment, training services, and related services to affected employees. As soon as practicable and not later than 15 days after receiving notice under subsection (a)(2), the Secretary of Labor shall notify the appropriate Senators and Members of the House of Representatives who represent the area or areas where the site closing or mass layoff is to occur. . Section 134(c)(2)(A)(iv)(I)(aa) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)(2)(A)(iv)(I)(aa)) is amended by inserting before the semicolon the following: and of information in notices described in section 3(a), and of access to the database established under section 5(e), of the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act ( . 29 U.S.C. 2102(a) ; 2104(e))
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Sec. 2
Definitions; provision of notice of site closings and mass layoffs
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