WASHINGTON - Congressman Paul E. Kanjorski (PA-11) provided the following statement expressing his strong disappointment with the U.S. Department of Education for not preventing job losses at Sallie Mae's facility in Hanover Township. 

"Over the past few months, I have worked closely with the U.S. Department of Education and Sallie Mae to keep the Sallie Mae employees in Northeastern Pennsylvania in their jobs," said Congressman Kanjorski.  "Unfortunately, the program that the agency is creating to help prevent layoffs is not in place at this time.  I am continuing to work closely with Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan to utilize this program to keep former Sallie Mae employees working in Northeastern Pennsylvania.  Particularly in these difficult financial times, we must work to maintain solid jobs for the sake of these workers and their families."

"As late as this morning, I spoke personally with Secretary Duncan, who assured me that he is continuing to work to preserve jobs in Northeastern Pennsylvania," added Congressman Kanjorski.

Congressman Kanjorski concluded, "Since I first joined Congress, one of my top priorities has been to save and create jobs in Northeastern Pennsylvania.  I greatly appreciate Sallie Mae's efforts to work with its employees as it transitions out of the Federal Family Education Loan Program.  It is my understanding that the employees who will lose their jobs will receive severance packages, and some have been offered opportunities in other divisions of the company.  President Obama and Vice President Biden are very aware of my extreme dissatisfaction with these job losses.  I will continue to work with them to find a means to keep these Sallie Mae workers employed in some capacity that utilizes the skills they developed at Sallie Mae."

Click here to view Congressman Kanjorski's statement for the Congressional Record on the health care reform legislation.  In it, he states that he was, "greatly disturbed when the student loan legislation was hastily attached to the health care reform bill at the last minute because of the impact it would have on the 1,100 Sallie Mae workers in my district...Education Secretary Arne Duncan assured me that he will use all of the tools at his disposal to help ensure that these workers will remain employed." 

Congressman Kanjorski voted against H.R. 3221, the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009, which passed the House in September 2009.  Click here to view his statement on H.R. 3221. 

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Editor's Note: Click here to view a letter from U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan to Congressman Kanjorski from March 20, 2010 stating that the U.S. Department of Education will work to help preserve the jobs at Sallie Mae's facility in Northeastern Pennsylvania.