In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. “Employee” means an individual who works for an employer for an hourly or salaried wage or in a managerial and supervisory capacity. “Employee” does not include individuals who work less than an average of 20 hours per week or have worked for an employer for less than 6 months in the immediately preceding 12 months. “Employer” means any person, corporation, or other entity that employs at least 50 employees and operates an industrial, commercial, or business enterprise in the State. “Employer” does not include the State or its political subdivisions or any employer who has been doing business in the State less than 1 year. “Permanent” means that an employer has not agreed in a written contract to restore operations within 3 months after the time that the reduction in operations occurs. “Reduction in operations” includes: the relocation of a part of an employer’s operation from an initial workplace to another existing or proposed site that may reduce the total number of employees at the initial workplace by at least 25% or 15 employees, whichever is greater; or the shutting down of a workplace or a portion of the operations of a workplace that reduces the total number of employees by at least 25% or 15 employees, whichever is greater, over any 3–month period. “Workplace” includes a factory, plant, office or other facility where employees produce goods or provide services. “Workplace” does not include a construction site or other temporary workplace.

This subtitle does not apply to reductions in operations if the reduction: results solely from labor disputes; occurs in a commercial, industrial, or agricultural enterprise operated by this State or its political subdivisions; occurs at construction sites or other temporary workplaces; results from seasonal factors that are determined by the Department to be customary in the industry; or results when an employer files for bankruptcy under federal bankruptcy laws. For the purposes of this subtitle, an employee may not be counted in the determination of a reduction in operations if the employee accepts an offer to transfer to any other site of employment within 30 days after being offered the transfer.

There shall be a quick response program to provide both employers and employees with services to assist in mitigating the impact on employees that occurs with a reduction in operations.

The State’s quick response program is under the direction of the Secretary. The Secretary in cooperation with the Workforce Development Board shall develop mandatory guidelines for employers faced with a reduction in operations. The guidelines developed under paragraph (1) of this subsection shall include: subject to § 11–305 of this subtitle, a written notice that an employer expects to terminate employees due to a reduction in operations; the continuation of benefits, such as health, severance, and pension, that an employer should provide to employees who will be terminated due to a reduction in operations; or the specific mechanisms that employers can use to ask for the assistance of the State’s quick response program. The Department shall maintain the capacity to provide employment and training services through the quick response program. This capacity shall include: on–site unemployment insurance bulk claims registration: for incidents where 25 or more workers are laid off at 1 time, taking initial unemployment insurance claims at the employee’s place of business; registration for federal Trade Readjustment Act services: if the business closing is due to foreign competition, assisting workers in seeking federal training benefits and additional unemployment insurance compensation benefits; provision of labor market and retraining information: in conjunction with local workforce development boards, providing both local labor market information and retraining information that can assist the workers to obtain reemployment or retraining; job placement services: through the regular office services or through special on–site services, providing a range of job placement services utilizing the “job bank”; job seeking and finding information: providing 1–day workshops to assist job seekers in learning how to seek and secure jobs; or referral to retraining opportunities: through local workforce development boards, liaisons with the private industry councils or service delivery areas, and the community college network, providing referrals for dislocated workers for retraining opportunities. To the extent funding is available, the Department shall provide funding to the local workforce development board in the affected county or region for direct deployment to serve workers affected by a reduction in operations. The Department shall distribute the reduction in operations guidelines to all employers in the State every 2 years. The distribution shall begin no later than July 1, 1986. The Department shall monitor layoff and employment patterns and payments of unemployment compensation contributions to identify employers that are likely to experience large losses in employment or a reduction in operations. If the Department identifies an employer that is likely to experience large losses in employment or a reduction in operations, the Department shall confidentially contact the employer and offer the assistance of the Department in providing alternative employment and retraining opportunities, including coordinating the delivery of available State and federal resources and services. The Secretary shall adopt regulations to implement the provisions of this subtitle.

Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, an employer shall provide written notice at least 60 days before initiating a reduction in operations to: all employees at the workplace that are subject to the reduction in operations; each exclusive representative or bargaining agency that represents the employees at the workplace that are subject to the reduction in operations; individuals who work less than 20 hours on average each week or have worked for the employer for less than 6 months in the immediately preceding 12 months at the workplace that is subject to the reduction in operations; the Division’s dislocated worker unit; and the chief elected official of the political subdivision where the workplace that is subject to the reduction in operations is located; or if the workplace is located in more than one political subdivision, the chief elected official of the political subdivision to which the employer paid the most taxes for the fiscal year immediately preceding the year in which the reduction in operations occurs. If the Division’s dislocated worker unit receives notice under paragraph (1)(iv) of this subsection, the unit shall forward the notice to the local workforce development board in the political subdivision where the workplace that is subject to the reduction is located. The notice required under subsection (a) of this section shall include: the name and address of the workplace where the reduction of operations is expected to occur; the name, telephone number, and e–mail address of a company official to contact for further information; a statement that explains whether the reduction in operations is expected to be permanent or temporary and if the workplace is expected to shut down; and the expected date when the reduction in operations will begin. Subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, an employer is not required to provide written notice if: the employer: was actively seeking capital or business that would have enabled the employer to avoid or postpone the reduction in operations; and believed that providing the written notice required would have precluded the employer from obtaining the necessary capital or business; or the reduction in operations occurs due to any form of natural disaster such as a flood, an earthquake, or a drought. An employer that relies on this subsection shall provide notice as soon as practicable with a brief statement of the basis for not providing written notice at least 60 days before initiating a reduction in operations. Subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, for a reduction in operations that will result from a sale of part or all of an employer’s business, the notice required under subsection (a) of this section shall be provided both by: the seller on or before the effective date of sale; and the purchaser after the effective date of sale. An individual who is an employee of the seller as of the effective date of sale shall be considered an employee of the purchaser immediately after the effective date of sale.

If the Secretary, or the Secretary’s designee, determines that an employer has violated § 11–305 of this subtitle, the Secretary, or the Secretary’s designee: shall issue an order compelling compliance; and may, in the Secretary’s, or the Secretary’s designee’s, discretion, assess a civil penalty of up to $10,000 per day for each day that an employer violated § 11–305 of this subtitle. In determining the amount of the penalty, if assessed, the Secretary, or the Secretary’s designee, shall consider: the gravity of the violation; the size of the employer’s business; the employer’s good faith; and the employer’s history of violations under this subtitle. The assessment of a penalty under subsection (a)(2) of this section shall be subject to the notice and hearing requirements of Title 10, Subtitle 2 of the State Government Article.