APRIL
2001
2001
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APRIL
2001 |
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If Your Workplace Closes, Where to Get the Help You Need
Last fall Dura announced it was moving its East Jordan operations to Florida. Local 1503’s bargaining committee and the International went to work doing what they do best: They organized, negotiated, and drew on government, community and union resources to provide as much support as possible for the 220 members of the local. Together with the international representative, the local negotiated a $2.3-million plant closing settlement. Assistance was provided to the local by the UAW Community Services Department, the UAW Unemployment Insurance Clinic, and the United Way labor liaison. In addition, the local’s community services committee set up meetings so local members could talk to bankers, credit union officers, lawyers (for worker compensation cases), state unemployment officials and others. Glaring holes exist in the safety net for American workers--especially the lack of universal health insurance enjoyed by workers in Canada and Europe. Nonetheless, many resources exist that can ease the transition to new jobs. Finding money to live on Losing that paycheck is the first shock. As part of the plant closing settlement, Local 1503 negotiated a severance bonus of $375 per year of service with a $1,500 package for workers with less than four years. For workers who had been there for 40 years, that severance meant $15,000. The UAW also got the company to agree not to contest unemployment claims. Unemployment compensation or insurance varies from state to state. The Dura workers can expect to get up to $300 a week for up to 26 weeks. Another potential source of income when the unemployment runs out is the Trade Adjustment Assistance program, both NAFTA-TAA, which is run by the states, and regular TAA, which is administered by the federal government. When the UAW Unemployment Insurance Department works with employers to file TAA claims, the likelihood of success is greater than when locals or employers try this on their own. After unemployment insurance runs out, the TAA program can provide another 18 months of income for laid-off workers who are undergoing retraining. Keeping bills under control Local 1503 asked local banks to sit down with members to plan ways to cut back on the size of their monthly payments until they found new jobs. If you need help managing your bills, you could call your local Neighborhood Financial Care Center™. To find an NFCC member location near you, call the Neighborhood Financial Care Center Locator at 1-800-388-2227 for 24-hour automated office listings, and 1-800-682-9832 for assistance in Spanish, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST weekdays. Health insurance is a must Losing health insurance coverage is a big concern when your plant moves away. The UAW bargained extended health care coverage for Dura workers: one week of coverage for each year of work. When that runs out, some workers will choose to be covered under plans covering their spouses at other employers. Divorced workers often can get their kids covered under the parent’s coverage. Other workers can purchase health insurance for 18 months at group rates under Dura’s plan. That’s a right under COBRA, a federal law that covers employers who have 20 or more workers. Purchasing family health insurance at group rates still will cost the Dura workers $540 a month. Individuals will pay $200 a month. That’s a far cry from the Canadian single-payer system which provides all Canadians with health insurance whether they are laid off or working. Job search Local 1503 members have been looking for new jobs. Michigan Works, a state re-employment program, came to the local to help members polish up their job hunting skills and to provide leads about jobs in the area. They also helped the Local 1503 members place resumes in an Internet jobs bank. With the local economy in relatively strong shape, job hunting is going “pretty good” according to Lewis. Training and education One Dura worker wants to go to chef school; another wants to learn to be a medical technician. If the Trade Adjustment Assistance application for the Dura plant is approved, TAA will pay not only for their tuition but also provide income support for several months. But other programs exist to help workers--both laid off and still working--find money to cover training and education expenses. Today all across the U.S. one-stop career centers have been organized to help workers find programs that can help them. To find a one-stop center near you, call 1-877-348-0502 or check out this useful Internet site: www.servicelocator.org. Fill in your address and you’ll see not just a list of nearby one-stop centers, but also get a map and directions. Every layoff or plant closing has its own unique features. UAW members at Big Three contracts can draw on Supplemental Unemployment Benefits and many other negotiated programs. Other situations may call for negotiating plant closing settlements. Government programs are available to a broad cross section of people. In any event, your local union is the first place you should turn to for help.
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Debby
Lewis, president of UAW Local 1503 at the Dura plant in East Jordan, Mich.,
and Local 1503’s community services committee have been learning
the hard way how to cope when a small independent parts plant closes.