SNOWE, COLLINS APPLAUD LABOR DEPARTMENT APPROVAL OF ASSISTANCE FOR WHATMAN WORKERS

U.S. Senator Olympia J. Snowe and U.S. Senator Susan Collins today announced that all 244 workers who will be displaced as a result of the closure of GE Healthcare's Whatman Plant in Sanford are eligible for Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA). The Senators, who offered their support and assistance to displaced workers after the closure was announced, sent a letter to Acting Secretary of Labor Howard Radzely requesting that he support a Petition for Trade Adjustment Assistance.

"This is good news, which we hope will bring some sense of relief to the many hard working individuals at the Whatman Plant who, through no fault of their own, lost their jobs. We also hope this TAA assistance will help these workers get back on their feet as quickly as possible," said Senators Snowe and Collins.

Trade Adjustment Assistance is a federal program established under the Trade Act of 1974. The purpose of TAA is to aid workers who lose their jobs or whose hours of work and wages decrease as a result of trade-related foreign competition. Following the approval of a TAA petition, the displaced workers will be eligible for employment training in another job or career, income support, job search allowance, and relocation services for individuals who obtain jobs outside of their normal commuting area.