For Immediate Release

January 27, 2006

LABOR DEPT. APPROVES ASSISTANCE
TO ABERDEEN SAWMILL WORKERS

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States Department of Labor has approved Washington State’s application for worker adjustment benefits to employees facing layoffs at the Weyerhaeuser large log lumber mill In Aberdeen, Congressman Norm Dicks has learned.

            The congressman said he was informed today by the agency that it had approved the petition for Trade Adjustment Assistance that was filed by the state on behalf of the estimated 97 salaried and hourly workers affected by the closure of the Weyerhaeuser Company mill in Aberdeen.  In issuing its determination, the department found that the import of foreign lumber adversely affected the sale of material produced at the Aberdeen mill.

            The determination qualifies the workers for the substantial package of re-employment benefits – beyond those that are typically available to laid-off workers, according to the congressman.  “It allows for an assessment of each individual worker’s skills and interests, and for the development of a re-employment strategy that recognizes each worker’s personal circumstances.” Rep. Dicks said.

            The federal Trade Adjustment Assistance program offers an extension of the regular unemployment benefits, in addition to specialized training or educational programs, as well as funds for other expenses related to securing new employment.

            When certified, workers from the affected facility are eligible for a range of adjustment services, including:

• Re-employment services such as career counseling, job placement assistance services, supportive services, skills assessment, job development and job search assistance and referrals.
• Training for employment in another job or career.  Workers may receive up to 104 weeks of approved training in occupational skills, basic or remedial education, or training in literacy or English as a second language.
• Income Support, known as trade readjustment allowances, are weekly cash payments available for 52 weeks after a worker’s unemployment compensation benefits are exhausted and during the period in which a worker is participating in an approved full-time training program.  Income support is a combination of unemployment compensation and trade readjustment benefits for a maximum of 82 weeks in Washington State.
• Job Search and Relocation Allowances which provide reimbursement for approved expenses while hunting for and/or relocating to a new job.
  

            All of these re-employment services will be coordinated by the Washington State Employment Security Department.

            Though the Weyerhaeuser Company also announced last fall that it was closing the specialty pulp mill in Cosmopolis in 2006, the state is still seeking information about the role of foreign competition in affecting the market for facility’s products.  An application for similar trade adjustment benefits could be submitted if the state believes that imported goods resulted in the erosion of the market for the pulp made at the Cosmopolis mill, Rep. Dicks said.

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