Collins, King and Poliquin Send Letter in Support of Trade Adjustment Assistance for Madison Paper Workers

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King and Representative Bruce Poliquin sent a letter to U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Thomas Perez in support for the recently filed Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) petition to assist the more than 200 workers at Madison Paper Industries who are being displaced in large measure to increased foreign competition.

“Given the closing of three other major pulp and paper mills within 125 miles of Madison in the past two years and the bankruptcy restructuring of a fourth, the skilled Madison mill workers face an enormous hurdle in identifying and securing meaningful alternative employment in the area for which they have the qualifying experience,” wrote Senators Collins and King and Representative Poliquin in their letter. “As a result, it is crucial that these workers receive the retraining and reemployment resources available through TAA certification. Such a certification will allow them to get back on their feet more quickly and continue making critical contributions to their families and our economy.”

TAA provides a variety of assistance to workers who have been negatively impacted by trade.  Assistance programs through TAA include services for displaced workers, reemployment programs and job training efforts.

The letter to Secretary Perez is available HERE and the full text is below.

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March 17, 2016

The Honorable Thomas Perez

Secretary

United States Department of Labor

200 Constitution Avenue, N.W.

Washington, DC  20210

Dear Mr. Secretary:

We are writing in support of the recently filed Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) petition to assist the more than 200 workers at Madison Paper Industries in Madison, Maine, who are being displaced due in large measure to increased foreign competition within the supercalendered paper industry.

Last year, the U.S. Department of Commerce and International Trade Commission (ITC) investigated imports of supercalendered paper from Canada. As part of this inquiry, the Department investigated Port Hawkesbury Paper in Nova Scotia and Resolute Forest Products in Quebec and determined that imports of supercalendered paper from these mills received countervailable subsidies ranging from 17.87 percent to 20.18 percent. In December 2015, the ITC determined that the domestic industry was materially injured by these imports.

Given the closing of three other major pulp and paper mills within 125 miles of Madison in the past two years and the bankruptcy restructuring of a fourth, the skilled Madison mill workers face an enormous hurdle in identifying and securing meaningful alternative employment in the area for which they have the qualifying experience. As a result, it is crucial that these workers receive the retraining and reemployment resources available through TAA certification. Such a certification will allow them to get back on their feet more quickly and continue making critical contributions to their families and our economy.

We urge that you review this TAA application in a timely manner, consistent with all applicable rules and regulations, to ensure that these trade-affected workers receive the assistance they need to obtain work and maintain their financial stability. 

Thank you for your consideration on behalf of the workers at the Madison Paper Industries.

Sincerely,