New England Biz Law Update
New York may become the first state in the nation to require employers to disclose when artificial intelligence (AI) played a role in mass layoffs.
Governor Kathy Hochul announced that she will direct the New York Department of Labor to amend the New York Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act regulations to require employers report on AI-related mass layoffs. She says the move is necessary to gather information about AI’s impact on workforce displacement.
Under the proposed changes, employers would need to explicitly state in their WARN notices if artificial intelligence adoption contributed to layoff decisions. The initiative would also require employers to provide affected workers with access to workforce training programs and support services when AI is a factor in their termination.
Current New York WARN Act requirements trigger notice obligations for employers with 50 or more full-time employees laying off at least 25 employees (representing at least one-third of the workforce at a single site) or 250 employees across multiple sites.
Legal analysts indicate it’s likely that other states will follow New York’s example, adopting similar AI-related layoff disclosures.
Meanwhile, a bill pending in the New York State Senate (S2595) proposes to expand the WARN Act definition of “employer” to encompass affiliates, eliminate the exclusion of part-time employees from layoff calculations, and reduce the minimum number of employees needed to trigger WARN notice requirements from 25 to 20. Additionally, the bill would create certain severance pay obligations.
