Layoff letter template
The letter below has a place for each of the four things the federal rule asks a notice to tell an employee, in plain words. Fill in the highlighted parts and take out what does not apply. It also works as a sample layoff letter: read it through before you write your own.
What this template is not
- It is not legal advice, and we are not your lawyer. Your employment lawyer should read your version before anyone receives it.
- It is written for one employee with no union representative. Where a union represents employees, the notice goes to the union and needs different content.
- It follows the federal rule only. Your state may ask for more. Ohio, for example, wants a detailed statement of the reason and how to reach unemployment benefits. The state WARN guide lists the rules we have read.
- Not every layoff falls under the WARN rule. The layoff checklist walks through the test. If yours does not, the letter still works as a plain notice.
The letter
[Company letterhead]
[Date]
[Employee's full name]
[Home address]
Re: Notice of layoff
Dear [First name],
I am writing with difficult news. [Company name] will [close the site at (address) / lay off employees at (address)], and your job is affected. [One plain sentence giving the reason.]
We expect this layoff to be [permanent / temporary, lasting about (length, if known)]. [If the whole site is closing: The entire (site name) will close.]
The [closing / layoff] is expected to begin on [date]. We expect your last day of work to be [expected date, or a period of up to 14 days, written as: between (date) and (date)].
[Choose one: Bumping rights apply to your job. Here is what that means and how to use them: (explain). / Bumping rights do not apply to this layoff.]
Your final pay will arrive on [date]. [Severance terms, if any.] Your health coverage will end on [date], and [plan administrator] will send you information about continuing it.
You can apply for unemployment benefits through [state agency and web address]. [Name of your state's Rapid Response or dislocated worker office and its contact details, and any other help you offer.]
If you have questions about this notice, please contact [name and title] at telephone number [number].
I am sorry to be sending you this letter, and I am grateful for the work you have done here.
Sincerely,
[Name]
[Title]
What the federal rule asks of this letter
Section 639.7 of the federal WARN regulation says a notice to an employee with no union representative must be written in language employees can understand and must contain:
- whether the action is expected to be permanent or temporary and, if the entire plant is closing, a statement saying so;
- the expected date the closing or layoff begins, and the expected date this employee will leave;
- whether or not bumping rights exist (these let an employee displace another employee in a layoff, under a union contract, an employer policy, or another binding agreement, and they often come from a seniority system); and
- the name and telephone number of a company official to contact.
The date can be a specific day or a period of up to 14 days. If you use a period, the 60 days of notice count back from its first day. The notice should rest on the best information you have when you send it.
The rule also lets you add useful information, such as help for dislocated workers. The pay, benefits, and unemployment paragraphs in the letter are additions of that kind, and your lawyer may want them worded differently.
Read from the eCFR and the U.S. Department of Labor on .
Who else needs a notice
Where the federal rule applies, your state's dislocated worker unit and the chief elected official of the local government each get their own notice. Each notice names the site, a company contact, the expected first separation date and schedule, and the job titles affected with the number of people in each title. Each also says whether the action is permanent or temporary, whether bumping rights exist, and which unions are involved, if any.
The rule allows a shorter version that gives the site, the contact, the first separation date, and the number of people affected, as long as you keep the rest on site and ready if asked. Some states add more recipients.
How to deliver it
The rule accepts any reasonable method designed to reach the person at least 60 days before they leave, such as first class mail, personal delivery with an optional signed receipt, or the pay envelope. A notice written for this layoff can go in the pay envelope. A standing preprinted notice that goes in every paycheck does not count, and the Department of Labor says a bulletin board post does not count as individual notice.
If you are giving less than 60 days because an exception applies, the rule asks for a brief statement of the reason in the notice. Ask your lawyer before relying on one.