Trade Adjustment Assistance May Be Helpful to You
By: Gerald Hustick, Jr., National Executive Vice President
In these tough times, many workers have been laid off due to various reasons ranging from lack of business to outsourcing. With a rising unemployment rate and shrinking economy, many recently laid-off workers find themselves with very limited opportunities. While we here at NOITU do our best to avoid these situations, sometimes it is inevitable and there is not much that can be done to keep a business from shutting its doors. While a recent layoff may be difficult for you and your family, the federal government has reached out, through its Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) Program, to offer a helping hand in situations where the impact of international trade has cost you your job.
The TAA is a federal program established under the Trade Act of 1974 and was created to provide benefits and support to workers who have lost their jobs or whose hours of work and wages reduced as a result of foreign trade. The program seeks to provide U.S. workers who are adversely affected by trade with the opportunity to obtain the skills, resources, and support they need to be reemployed. Some of the benefits that are provided through this program are:
· Up to 104 weeks of cash payments for workers enrolled in full-time training. (Up to 130 weeks if the worker is also enrolled in remedial training)
· 90% of job search allowances for costs of a job search outside your local area, up to $1,250
· 90% of relocation allowances for costs of relocating to a job outside your local area, up to the statutory limit for Federal Employees
· Training services
· Health Coverage Tax Credit, which is a tax credit covering up to 80% of an eligible participant’s monthly qualifying health insurance premium
· Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance, which is available to workers 50 years of age or older.
While these benefits are available, a process must be followed in order to obtain these benefits. The first step to receiving these benefits is to submit a petition to the U.S. Department of Labor. Petitions may be submitted by three or more workers in the same firm or subdivision, the workers’ employer, one-stop operators or partners (including state workforce agencies), or one of your representatives from NOITU will gladly file a petition on your behalf. The Department of Labor will then conduct an investigation to determine whether the eligibility criteria have been met.
Once the investigation has been completed, the Department of Labor certifies or denies group eligibility to apply for the TAA. Those who have been certified will then be able to apply individually for benefits and services through their local One-Stop Career Center. Those who have been denied may be able to obtain other training and reemployment services available in your community under Title I of the Workforce Investment Act. Please contact the Department of Labor or your State Employment Service for information regarding either program.
Being laid off is not easy to cope with, especially during tough economic times. However, programs such as the Trade Adjustment Assistance offered by the federal government and helpful organizations such as NOITU help to make the transition to reemployment easier to handle.
