Mass., R.I. get $8.3M for ‘trade-impacted’ workers

WASHINGTON – Rhode Island has received nearly $1.1 million in new federal Trade Adjustment Assistance and Massachusetts more than $7.2 million in new and old TAA funds, the U.S. Department of Labor announced. The program targets workers who lose their jobs for reasons related to global trade.
The Bay State’s share includes $1.6 million from the program’s fiscal 2007 allocation – the remainder of which is being divided among the15 states with the highest TAA expenditures – as well as the state’s fiscal 2008 base allocation of $5.6 million.
Connecticut received about $0.6 million in TAA reserve funds and a 2008 base allocation of $1.9 million, for a total of $2.5 million.
“The $44 million [in TAA reserve funds] targeted to 15 states will help workers access skills training, job-search assistance and relocation services to build new careers in high-growth industry sectors,” U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao said in a statement last night. New York and the New England states received $17.1 million of that total.
The reserve funds will be distributed immediately, along with the initial payments for fiscal 2008, which began on Monday, the Department of Labor said. Over the past four years, nearly $179 million in leftover funds have been released to the states to help aid “trade-impacted” workers.
Seventy-five percent of available TAA funds – or $165 million – is released annually on Oct. 1, while the rest is reserved for states that experience large, unexpected layoffs. A state must spend at least 50 percent of its additional allocation before requesting additional funding from the reserve account.
“Our commitment to the harder-hit states will ensure that their communities can work with employers to return their dislocated workers quickly to the work force,” said Emily Stover DeRocco, assistant secretary of labor for Employment and Training.
“As our nation’s workers strive to succeed in the competitive global economy, it is important that those facing trade-related job loss have access to expanded career opportunities.”
Additional information on Trade Adjustment Assistance and other federal work force programs is available from the U.S. Department of Labor at www.dol.gov.