If your workplace employs 75 or more people, or did in the past 12 months, California law requires the employer to give 60 days’ written notice before a mass layoff of 50 or more employees in a 30-day period, a relocation of 100 miles or more, or a shutdown of the workplace. The notice goes to you and to three public offices. If the employer skipped it, the law makes the employer liable to each affected employee for back pay and the value of lost benefits for up to 60 days. A layoff can also be unlawful for a different reason, and the notice law does not ask why you were chosen.
A layoff usually arrives with a last day, a box for your things and, often, a severance form. What may be missing is the 60 days’ notice that California requires of larger workplaces. Whether that notice was owed turns on a few facts you can check yourself: how big the workplace is, how many people were let go, and how long you had worked there. Each is covered here, along with what the notice has to say (the rules changed on January 1, 2026) and how a missed notice is valued.
If you were handed a severance agreement with the layoff, read what to check before you sign a severance agreement as well. A release can end a notice claim along with everything else. For the wider picture of your rights when a job is at risk, see Is your job at risk?
What is the California WARN Act, and how is it different from the federal law?
The California Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, called Cal/WARN, is Chapter 4 of Part 4 of Division 2 of the Labor Code (Lab. Code § 1400.5). It requires advance notice of a mass layoff, a relocation or a termination, which is a shutdown of operations. The federal WARN Act covers similar ground with higher thresholds. A layoff can be covered by one, both or neither.
| Question | California (Cal/WARN) | Federal WARN |
|---|---|---|
| Which employers are covered? | A “covered establishment” that employs, or in the past 12 months has employed, 75 or more persons. The EDD describes this as full-time and part-time employees. | Employers with 100 or more full-time employees. |
| What triggers notice? | A layoff of 50 or more employees at the establishment in any 30-day period, whatever share of the workforce that is. A relocation of 100 miles or more. A shutdown or near-shutdown. | A plant closing affecting 50 or more employees in 30 days. A layoff of 50 to 499 full-time employees that is at least one-third of the site’s full-time workforce. A layoff of 500 or more. |
| How much notice? | 60 days, in writing. | 60 days, in writing. |
| Who must be notified? | The affected employees, the EDD, the local workforce development board, and the chief elected official of each city and county where the event occurs. | The affected employees or their representative, the state dislocated worker unit, and the chief elected official of the local government. |
| What does a missed notice cost? | Back pay and benefits for up to 60 days, and a civil penalty of up to $500 a day for missing notice to the public offices. | Back pay and benefits for the period of the violation, up to 60 days. |
The comparison follows the Employment Development Department (EDD)’s side-by-side chart and the statutes it cites. The practical point is the difference in thresholds. A workplace with 80 employees that lays off 50 of them is inside Cal/WARN and outside federal WARN, so a worker who read only the federal rules would wrongly conclude no notice was owed.
Does Cal/WARN apply to your layoff?
Work through five questions. A “no” to any of them is worth confirming with a lawyer rather than accepting from the employer, because each turns on facts the employer controls.
1. Was the workplace a covered establishment?
The statute counts the facility, not the company. A “covered establishment” is an industrial or commercial facility, or part of one, that employs or in the preceding 12 months has employed 75 or more persons (Lab. Code § 1400.5(a)). The lookback matters: a workplace that shrank below 75 through earlier layoffs may still be covered. A large company with a small office in San Francisco is judged by that office, and how remote employees are assigned to a facility is a question for a lawyer, not a rule to assume.
2. Was the event a mass layoff, a relocation or a termination?
The statute defines each term (Lab. Code § 1400.5(c)–(f)):
- Layoff: a separation from a position for lack of funds or lack of work. A firing for performance or conduct is not a layoff.
- Mass layoff: a layoff of 50 or more employees at the covered establishment during any 30-day period.
- Relocation: moving all or substantially all of the operations at the establishment to a location 100 miles or more away.
- Termination: the cessation or substantial cessation of operations at the establishment.
Layoffs spread across several rounds can add up. The statute counts layoffs during any 30-day period, so ask how many people were let go in the weeks around your date, not only on your day.
3. Are you an “employee” under the law?
An employee is a person employed for at least 6 of the 12 months before the date notice was required (Lab. Code § 1400.5(h)). A worker hired two months before the layoff is not counted as entitled to notice.
4. Does an exclusion apply?
The chapter does not apply to a closing or layoff that results from the completion of a particular project when the employer is subject to Wage Order 11 (broadcasting), 12 (motion picture) or 16 (certain on-site occupations in construction, drilling, logging and mining) and the employees were hired knowing their work was limited to that project. It also does not apply to seasonal, temporary employees hired with that understanding (Lab. Code § 1400.5(g)).
5. Was notice excused?
Two provisions can excuse notice, and both are narrower than employers sometimes suggest. The answer to “My employer says it could not give notice because the business was failing. Is that allowed?” in the questions that follow explains both.
What does a Cal/WARN notice have to say, and who must receive it?
The employer must give written notice, 60 days before the order takes effect, to the affected employees and to the EDD, the local workforce development board, and the chief elected official of each city and county where the layoff, relocation or termination occurs (Lab. Code § 1401(a)). In San Francisco, the city’s WARN page lists the EDD’s statewide WARN coordinator, the city’s workforce development office within the Office of Economic and Workforce Development, and the Mayor as the recipients for San Francisco.
The notice must include the elements federal WARN requires (Lab. Code § 1401(b)). Senate Bill 617, effective January 1, 2026, added content the notice must now include:
- state whether the employer plans to coordinate services such as a rapid response orientation through the local workforce development board, through another entity, or not at all, and arrange those services within 30 days of the notice if it does (Lab. Code § 1401(c));
- give the board’s working email address and telephone number and the statutory description of the help local workforce boards and America’s Job Center of California locations offer to laid-off workers;
- describe CalFresh, the state food assistance program, with the helpline number and a link to its website (Lab. Code § 1401(d)); and
- give the employer’s own working email address and telephone number (Lab. Code § 1401(e)).
A notice that arrives late, arrives as a rumor, or leaves these items out is worth showing to a lawyer. The statute’s liability section is written around failing to give the required notice to employees, and whether a notice that is on time but incomplete supports a claim is a legal question that depends on what is missing.
What is a missed Cal/WARN notice worth?
An employer that orders a mass layoff, relocation or termination without the required notice to employees is liable to each employee entitled to notice who lost their job (Lab. Code § 1402(a)) for:
- Back pay at the higher of two rates: the average regular rate you earned over the last three years of your employment, or your final rate; and
- The value of the cost of benefits you would have had if you had kept the job, including medical expenses you paid that a plan would have covered.
The period is the period of the violation, capped at 60 days or at half the number of days you were employed, whichever is smaller (Lab. Code § 1402(b)). Because a covered employee has worked at least six months, the 60-day cap is the one that applies in most cases. The employer’s liability is reduced by wages it paid you during the violation period (payments for vacation you had already accrued do not count), by voluntary and unconditional payments that were not owed for another reason, and by payments it made to a third party for your benefits, such as health premiums (Lab. Code § 1402(c)).
Illustration, not a case the firm handled. A hotel with 90 employees tells 60 of them on a Friday that Monday is their last day, and gives no written notice to the EDD, the workforce board or the city. Every employee who had worked there at least six of the previous twelve months may have a claim for up to 60 days of back pay at the higher of the final rate or the three-year average, plus the cost of lost benefits, minus anything the hotel paid for that period. The hotel may also face a civil penalty of up to $500 for each day it failed to notify the public offices, which it avoids by paying its employees what it owes within three weeks of ordering the layoff (§ 1403).
Two further points follow from the statute. These payments are not treated as wages for unemployment insurance purposes, and unemployment benefits cannot be denied or reduced because you received them (§ 1407). And a court that finds the employer investigated in good faith and had reasonable grounds to think it was not violating the chapter may reduce a penalty (§ 1405).
How do you find out whether your employer gave notice?
- Look at your own paperwork. Find the date on any layoff letter or email and count the days to your last day. A notice dated less than 60 days before the layoff took effect is short.
- Ask in writing. Send a short email to HR asking the date on which notice was given to employees, the EDD, the local workforce development board, and the city and county. A direct question in writing gives you a record whether the answer is yes, no or silence.
- Check the state’s WARN report. The EDD publishes its WARN report of notices it has received, and annual reports going back several years, on EDD’s WARN page. A listing shows a notice reached the state. No listing is a reason to ask more questions, not proof by itself.
- Know who enforces. The Labor Commissioner may examine an employer’s books and records, enforce the notice requirements, order temporary relief during an investigation and issue citations (§ 1406). The EDD directs people who want to report a possible Cal/WARN violation to the Department of Industrial Relations.
What help exists in San Francisco after a layoff?
The Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) runs Rapid Response for San Francisco. Its orientations bring together an OEWD coordinator, EDD workforce staff, a representative of the San Francisco Job Centers, a Covered California agent and a federal Employee Benefits Security Administration benefits advisor, and cover job search help, training, unemployment insurance and health and retirement benefits. The city’s Rapid Response page lists RapidResponseSF@sfgov.org and 628-652-8400 for people affected by a layoff. This help is separate from any legal claim. Using it does not affect a Cal/WARN claim.
What should you do in the first days after a layoff?
- Save the notice and the date. Keep every email, letter and text about the layoff, with the dates and times.
- Write down the numbers. How many coworkers were let go that week, at which site, and in which departments. These facts decide whether the 50-employee trigger was met.
- Gather proof of pay. Pay stubs, an offer letter, W-2s and any bonus or raise letters for your last three years. The law uses the higher of your final rate and your three-year average.
- Record your benefits. The date your health coverage ends and any medical bills you pay afterward.
- File for unemployment now. Cal/WARN pay does not reduce unemployment benefits (§ 1407).
- Confirm your final pay. Wages earned and unpaid are due immediately when you are discharged (Lab. Code § 201), including vacation you earned. That is separate from Cal/WARN pay.
- Read before you sign. A severance form often includes a release of all claims. Ask what it says about notice-related pay and ask for time to review it.
How does a Cal/WARN claim fit with a severance offer?
A severance payment can matter to a Cal/WARN claim in two ways. First, the statute reduces the employer’s liability by voluntary and unconditional payments that were not owed for another reason (Lab. Code § 1402(c)(2)). Whether a payment that comes with a requirement to sign a release is “unconditional” is exactly the kind of question to put to a lawyer before signing. Second, a broad release may end the claim itself. The deadlines for reviewing and revoking an agreement, and what an employer cannot demand in exchange for your final pay, are covered in the severance agreement guide.
When is a layoff more than a notice problem?
Cal/WARN counts heads and days. It does not ask why you were chosen. If the people let go were disproportionately older workers, or included someone who had just announced a pregnancy, taken medical leave or complained about pay or safety, you may have separate claims under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act or other laws. Do you have a wrongful termination case? explains the signs, and age discrimination in California covers workers 40 and older. The deadlines for those claims are different from anything in Cal/WARN, and how to file a discrimination complaint with the CRD and EEOC lays them out.
Frequently Asked Questions About Cal/WARN Layoff Notice
Does Cal/WARN apply if my employer has fewer than 75 employees?
Not at that workplace. The law covers an establishment that employs, or in the past 12 months has employed, 75 or more persons (Lab. Code § 1400.5(a)). Federal WARN has a higher threshold, 100 or more full-time employees, so a smaller employer is outside both laws. A layoff that falls outside Cal/WARN can still be unlawful for another reason, such as retaliation or discrimination, and the final pay rules apply to every employer.
Can my employer pay me instead of giving 60 days of notice?
The statute does not use the phrase “pay in lieu of notice.” It does reduce what an employer owes by the wages the employer paid you during the period of the violation, and by voluntary and unconditional payments that were not owed for another reason (Lab. Code § 1402(c)). In practice that is why some employers keep people on the payroll for the notice period. If you were paid through the 60 days, little may be left to claim. If you were paid something smaller, the difference is worth a calculation.
My employer says it could not give notice because the business was failing. Is that allowed?
Cal/WARN’s own exceptions are narrow. Notice is excused when a mass layoff, relocation or termination is necessitated by a physical calamity or an act of war (Lab. Code § 1401(f)). A separate provision excuses notice for a closing or relocation when the employer was actively seeking capital or business that would have avoided it, but only if the state determines that every condition is met, and it does not apply to a mass layoff (§ 1402.5). Federal WARN has an exception for unforeseeable business circumstances, according to the EDD’s WARN page, and its test is different from California’s. An employer’s statement that it “could not” give notice is a claim to check, not a fact.
Will Cal/WARN pay reduce my unemployment benefits?
No. The statute says unemployment insurance benefits may not be denied or reduced because you received payments related to the employer’s violation, and those payments are not treated as wages for unemployment insurance purposes (§ 1407). File for unemployment as soon as you are laid off. You do not need to wait to learn whether notice was owed.
Can my coworkers and I bring a Cal/WARN claim together?
The statute allows a person to sue for themselves, for other persons similarly situated, or both, and it allows a local government or an employee representative to sue as well (§ 1404). A court may award reasonable attorney’s fees to a plaintiff who prevails. Because a mass layoff by definition involves 50 or more people, the claim is often a group claim in practice, and that is worth raising early with a lawyer.
Is there a deadline to sue for a missed Cal/WARN notice?
The sections that set the notice rule and the liability, Labor Code sections 1400 through 1408, do not state a deadline for filing a civil action. Which limitations period a court would apply is a question for an attorney who reads your facts. The safe assumption is that time matters, so ask early instead of assuming you have years.
Laid off without 60 days’ notice? Arlo Uriarte and the attorneys at Liberation Law Group represent employees, never employers. Tell the firm how many people were let go, how long you worked there and what you were told, and an attorney can tell you whether Cal/WARN, or a different claim, is worth pursuing.
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Official sources
- Cal/WARN: Cal. Lab. Code § 1400.5; § 1401; § 1402; § 1402.5; § 1403; § 1404; § 1405; § 1406; § 1407
- Employment Development Department, EDD’s WARN page (side-by-side comparison of federal and California WARN, WARN reports)
- City and County of San Francisco, city’s Rapid Response page (Office of Economic and Workforce Development)
- Federal WARN: 29 U.S.C. § 2101 et seq.
This page gives general information about California and federal law as of November 2026. It is not legal advice for your situation, and contacting the firm does not by itself create an attorney-client relationship. Laws and agency contact details change, so confirm the current rule before you rely on it.
