Phased Layoff WARN Checklist: Trinity Health's IT Cut

The first termination date starts the count

Trinity Health, the health corporation in the example, filed a notice under the federal layoff-warning law called WARN, covering 557 workers. The notice placed the layoff window between Oct. 25 and Nov. 29. That sequence matters because a phased layoff does not get a softer count just because the last date is 60 days away. The WARN Act 60-day notice rule is easy to miss when exits are staggered.

Trinity Health said in June that it would move some in-house IT work to an outside partner. The notice identified Service Desk Support I as the largest affected category, with 49 positions eliminated. The company notified Michigan's workforce development agency on Sept. 4, 2026 of a planned mass layoff at the Livonia, Michigan site. A law firm said it was examining whether the company gave less than the required 60 days before the 557-employee layoff.

The federal law dates to 1988 and generally covers employers with 100 or more employees. It calls for 60 days of advance warning before a significant layoff or closing. For a phased layoff, the first termination date is the date that starts the count. If the first exit is Oct. 25, the notice must be out 60 days before that date. The final exit date is a scheduling detail, while the first date is the legal trigger.

The checklist is the control

Use the list before anyone is told a date. Each item should be answerable before the announcement. If an answer is uncertain, the date is not ready.

1. Confirm covered employer status. Federal WARN applies to employers with at least 100 employees.
2. Count affected positions by role, site, and exit wave, then total them.
3. Set the first termination date, not the last one, as the start date.
4. Count 60 days back from that first date and mark the latest filing date.
5. Check state WARN filing contents and deadlines before announcing dates.
6. Label voluntary offers as non-legal notice and keep them separate from the required notice.

The first item is a threshold question because the federal rule only reaches a certain size employer. The second item is where phased plans fail. A 49-position category can look small until it is added to the rest of the affected jobs. The third item is the legal point. The last date is a scheduling detail, while the first date is the notice trigger. The fourth item turns the law into a calendar. The fifth item keeps the state filing from becoming an afterthought. The sixth item prevents a severance conversation from being mistaken for legal notice.

State filings and voluntary exits are separate problems

A federal notice does not finish the job. State rules can require their own filing, their own contents, and their own timing. That state step is part of keeping the announcement aligned with the paperwork. If the state filing is drafted after the employee meeting, the company is already behind.

Keep the conversations separate. The legal notice is the document that satisfies the statute. The state filing is the regulator step. The employee offer is a business decision. Mixing them creates risk. If a manager calls a voluntary exit a WARN notice, the company may lose the distinction between a required warning and a severance package. Keep the labels distinct in the memo, the email, and the meeting script.

The law requires the notice and the filing. Good practice is to keep the employee conversation separate. That separation is not a statutory command, but it makes the file easier to defend. If the first termination date moves, restart the count. If the outsourcing decision is the layoff decision, treat it as the start of the planning count. A phased layoff can be treated as separate small exits. The law may treat it as a single event.

Before the announcement, put the answers in a single place. Name the first termination date. Name the last one. Name the total affected positions. Name the state filing date. Name the person who will answer questions about the difference between a required notice and a voluntary offer. If any of those answers is missing, the announcement is not ready.