New Hampshire Governor Lynch Applauds Trade Act Assistance To Help Wausau Paper Employees

November 27, 2007 -- CONCORD - New Hampshire Governor John Lynch today announced that the U.S. Department of Labor has approved Trade Adjustment Assistance to help workers who will be laid off from the Wausau Paper mill in Groveton at the end of the year. The U.S. Department of Labor informed the Governor’s Office in a phone call this afternoon that the assistance has been approved.

“Trade Act Assistance will bolster even further our efforts to help the hard-working men and women of Wausau Paper return quickly to the workforce. With this assistance, the Wausau workers will be eligible for additional job training and counseling, and have access to more affordable health insurance,” Gov. Lynch said. “I will continue to work with state agencies and federal officials to ensure we are doing everything possible to get these workers the assistance they need to re-enter the workforce.”

Earlier this month, the Wisconsin-based Wausau Paper announced it would be closing the Groveton facility, impacting 303 employees and the entire region.

Trade Adjustment Assistance helps workers who lose their jobs because of increased imports, or shifts in production to foreign countries. The program provides eligible workers with career counseling, training, income support during training, job search assistance and access to a health coverage tax credit.

Trade Adjustment Assistance is just one of the many efforts the state is undertaking to assist the workers at the Wausau mill.

Gov. Lynch recently sent a letter to 5,400 North Country businesses asking the businesses to work with the state’s Rapid Response Team to fill any job openings they may have.

The letter also asks businesses to notify the Rapid Response Team if they need assistance because their companies are suffering as a result of the mill’s impending closure. The Rapid Response Team began to make follow up phone calls to businesses this week.

The State of New Hampshire was also recently awarded a National Emergency Grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. The grant makes available $660,000 in federal funds that can be used for assistance including counseling, job search and job training services for the workers at the mill.

The NEG grant is in addition to assistance through Trade Act certification.

A state Worker Assistance Center is currently operating at the mill, offering counseling, workshops, training classes and job search assistance to workers.

The state Division of Economic Development’s Business Recruitment Team is in the process of implementing a plan to attract a new company to the Wausau site. The division has also been actively engaged in trying to recruit new businesses to the North Country.

Source: New Hampshire Governor

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