DuPont, Mohawk workers eligible to apply for federal aid

Workers laid off by DuPont Teijin Films of Florence and by Mohawk Industries of Dillon are eligible to apply for federal assistance, U.S. Rep. John Spratt, D-S.C., announced in a press release Tuesday.

DuPont Teijin Films announed in July it will cease polyester film manufacturing operations in Florence by September 2010.

The Florence plant is the oldest Mylar film production plant in the world. It opened in 1961 and is one of the oldest manufacturing plants in the area.

Mylar polyester film is plastic film that is used in the packaging industry. Its used to produce VHS tapes and potato chip bags, for example, and is a component in flat-screen televisions.

After the shutdown in Florence, all of the company’s polyester film business will be based out of the company’s Hopewell, Va., plant.

In 2008, the plant was among the county’s 10 largest industrial/manufacturing employers with and estimated 275 employees, according to the Florence County Economic Development Partnership.

Mohawk Industries announced plans Sept. 30, 2008, to close its yarn manufacturing facility in Dillon within 60 days. Mohawk, which closed its facility in Fort Oglethorpe Ga., cited the “present U.S. economic slump” as a primary reason for the shutdowns. The company employed 137 people at the Dillon location and 235 at the Georgia facility.

Three years ago, the Georgia-based rug and carpet manufacturer officially celebrated the grand opening of its new state-of-the-art extrusion and yarn mills in Bennettsville at a ceremony attended March 15, 2006, by Gov. Mark Sanford and Mohawk CEO Jeff Lorberbaum.

The expansion, which began in 2004, culminated in the opening of the Oak River North Site, representing 300 new jobs and a $70 million investment in the Marlboro County town.

Originally beginning its South Carolina operations in 1957, Mohawk already employed 650 people at its original mill, known as the Oak River Site. Lorberbaum indicated at the time that the completion of the Oak River North Site was the first phase of a potential expansion that could accommodate another 300 workers. The grand opening brought Mohawk’s total employment in Marlboro County at the time to almost 1,000 people.

All workers at DuPont who were totally or partially separated from employment on or after Sept. 9, 2008, and all workers at Mohawk who were totally or partially separated from employment on or after Feb. 4, 2008, may apply for benefits, Spratt said.

Eligibility for assistance was made possible when the Labor Department recently approved a Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) petition filed by the company on behalf of its workers.

“I am pleased that the Labor Department has approved this petition and made these benefits available,” Spratt said in the release. “I hope that these benefits will cushion the blow and help build a bridge to the future for those who have lost their jobs.”

Spratt said the Trade Adjustment Assistance program offers benefits, including job retraining, to workers displaced by imports or a shift of production to other countries. Once a laid-off worker has exhausted state unemployment benefits, he or she can qualify to receive supplemental benefits under TAA. These include weekly cash payments equal to unemployment benefits. To qualify, the worker must be involved in job re-training. TAA payments can last for 52 weeks if a worker is in job training and 26 weeks more if a worker needs remedial education.

The job training requirement can be waived if any one of the following six grounds for waiver is demonstrated:

1. The worker is recalled by the firm from which he or she was laid-off.

2. The worker already has marketable skills for suitable employment and has reason to expect employment at equivalent wages in the foreseeable future.

3. The worker is within 2 years of retiring and meets all requirements either under Social Security or a private pension sponsored by an employer or labor organization.

4. The worker is unable to participate in training due to his or her health.

5. The worker is unable to get job retraining because immediate enrollment is unavailable.

6. The worker is unable to find approved training from either government or private sources, or no suitable training is available at a reasonable cost, or no training funds are available.

Claimants certified for TAA after Aug. 6, 2003, qualify for a tax credit paid every month that covers 65 percent of their medical insurance premiums. The tax credit is available as soon as a worker qualifies for the TAA program, even though the worker is still drawing unemployment insurance, and has not begun receiving cash benefits under TAA.

Older workers can qualify for an alternative TAA program, which restores 50 percent of the difference (up to $10,000) between the wage they earned and the lower wage they earn at a new job. Such workers must be 50 or older and must have incomes of less than $50,000 a year. They must work full time, and must find their new jobs within 26 weeks after losing their old jobs. There is a time limit of two years to this benefit.

Up to $1250 allowance can be paid by the TAA programs for the expenses of eligible claimants who must search for work outside their regular commuting areas.

A stipend equal to three weeks pay at the previous job or $1250, whichever is less, is available to apply toward the moving costs of claimants who must relocate to find work. In addition, the U.S. Department of Labor will reimburse up to 90 percent of reasonable costs incurred to change locations.

The federal Workforce Investment Act is another avenue for retraining unemployed workers. It will pay tuition and other expenses connected with retraining. The State Employment Office can provide additional information and assistance on entering this program.

TAA Benefits will be administered by the S.C. Employment Security Commission.