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There are over 3.3 million people laid off from their jobs each year with many of these individuals served by Federal, state, and local career services.
See information on Permanent Layoff. Specific services do vary between Job Centers and areas of the state. Contact your local Wisconsin Job Center for details.
Other programs and services are available to individuals still unable to find a employment. Programs are targeted at groups and provide various financial and other support. These include:Training Services, like those listed below, may be available to help you get a good job. If you qualify for help you will have access to a broad range of training services. Your Wisconsin Job Center will have information on training programs available in your local area. Available services do vary between Job Centers and areas of the state.
Other sources of financial assistance may be available such as student loans, scholarships, and grants. Your local Job Center or schools can help you identify sources of financial assistance to help pay for training. For more information see Training on www.wisconsinjobcenter.org Other sources of information are the Career OneStop and Students.gov
Contact your local Wisconsin Job Center for more information.
You may be a dislocated worker if you have been permanently laid off, or have received a notice of termination or layoff from employment.
This program might serve:
Dislocated workers can receive help from the following: core services, intensive services or training.
Core Services include; eligibility determination, orientation, initial assessment of skills, job search and placement, career counseling, job vacancies, and assistance with eligibility for other programs.
Intensive Services include; comprehensive assessment of skills, development of an individual employment plan, individual career counseling, group counseling, case management, and short term pre-vocational workshops such as learning skills, communication skills, or interviewing skills.
Training can include; individual training accounts (ITA), on-the-job training, and customized training.
Contact your local Wisconsin Job Center for more information.
You may be a dislocated worker if your company has closed or had a reduction in force. Rapid Response Services provide immediate aid to workers affected by announcements of plant closings and large layoffs.
Employers in some situations are required by Federal and Wisconsin law to provide workers with notice of business closings and mass layoffs.
Contact your local Wisconsin Job Center for more information.
Wisconsin's Business Closing (Plant Closing) and Mass Layoff Law provides that, with certain exceptions, businesses employing 50 or more persons in the State of Wisconsin must give you written notice 60 days before implementing a "business closing (plant closing)" or "mass layoff" in the state.
A "business closing (plant closing)" requires notice if there is a permanent or temporary shutdown of an employment site or of one or more facilities or operating units within a single municipality that affects 25 or more employees (not including "new" or "low-hour" employees).
A "mass layoff" is at least 25% of the workforce or 25 employees, whichever is greater; or at least 500 employees.
Federal Business Closing Notification Law, the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN), helps ensure advance notice in cases of qualified plant closings and mass layoffs. The U.S. Department of Labor has a workers and employers guide to this law available at the link above.
The Guild Law Center is another source of help with WARN. Their Plant Closings Project provides direct representation to dislocated workers around the country. They also provide technical assistance to lawyers, publish invaluable information for attorneys litigating WARN Act law suits, and maintain a WARN pleading bank to assist in these efforts.
You may be a dislocated worker if you lose your job or have your hours or wages reduced by increased imports or jobs going overseas. Trade Act programs are available to assist individuals who have become unemployed as a result of increased imports from, or shifts in production to, foreign countries.
To be eligible for Trade Act programs a petition must be completed at the time of the layoff or business closing on behalf of affected workers. Petitions can be filed by the affected business, a group of affected workers, or an organization representing the affected workers. In order for any of the workers in the petitioning worker group to be eligible for Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance (ATAA) a request for ATAA consideration must be filed at the same time as the TAA petition is filed.
Trade Act Petition forms are available at you local Wisconsin Job Center or online at Trade Act Programs: Petitions. See "How to Apply" below.
Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) is a federal program that provides assistance such as job search, relocation assistance, retraining, and income support to workers who have become unemployed because of imports.
Trade Readjustment Allowance (TRA) is a weekly allowance payable to an adversely affected worker enrolled in or waived from training after entitlement to unemployment compensation has been exhausted.
Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance (ATAA) program for older workers. ATAA is a new program that provides eligible individuals over the age of 50 who obtain new employment within 26 weeks of their separation with a wage subsidy to help bridge the salary gap between their old and new employment. The program was designed to provide assistance to workers for whom the retraining offered under the regular TAA program may not be appropriate. In order for any of the workers in the petitioning worker group to be eligible for ATAA, a request for ATAA consideration must be filed at the same time as the TAA petition is filed. If the worker group is certified as eligible to apply for TAA and ATAA, individuals will have the option of applying for benefits under the TAA program or the ATAA program.
The North American Free Trade Act (NAFTA) helps workers affected by trade with Canada and Mexico. August 6, 2002, the TAA Reform Act reauthorized the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) and consolidated NAFTA into TAA. For more information see the Trade Adjustment Assistance Reform Act of 2002.
The Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) is available to TAA, TRA and ATAA recipients. HCTC is a Federal tax credit that pays 65% of the qualified health plan premiums paid by eligible individuals.
You can use HCTC to help pay purchase health coverage for yourself and your qualified family members.
You must be enrolled in a qualified health program.
There are two ways to claim the credit.
You can register to receive advance payment of the credit on a monthly basis.
You can claim the HCTC when you file your Federal income tax return
Farmers affected by foreign competition may qualify for Trade Adjustment Assistance for Farmers.
How to Apply: Petitions
To be eligible for Trade Act programs a petition must be completed at the time of the layoff or business closing on behalf of affected workers. Petitions can be filed by the affected business, a group of affected workers, or an organization representing the affected workers. In order for any of the workers in the petitioning worker group to be eligible for ATAA, a request for ATAA consideration must be filed at the same time as the TAA petition is filed.
Trade Act Petition forms are available at you local Wisconsin Job Center or online at Trade Act Programs: Petitions.
The National Employment Law Project (NELP) has a practical guide to help with filing successful petitions. "Getting Certified for Trade Adjustment Assistance: A Guide for Unions, Workforce Agencies, and Community Groups" is available at no cost. This manual begins by discussing the basics of getting certified for TAA. A detailed overview of the legal requirements for TAA certification follows. It includes a review of a sample TAA petition and supporting materials. Throughout the manual are practical tips based upon the experience of NELP that will help you get favorable TAA certification decisions from the U.S. Department of Labor.
For more information see the U.S. Department of Labor Trade Act Fact Sheet and Trade Act Programs: Key Terms Defined.
To track the status of petition go the U.S. Department of Labor Trade Act Programs: Petition Determinations web page. This can be searched by petition number, state, company name, or Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) number for the decision regarding the petition. This covers both TAA and NAFTA TAA determinations.
Contact your local Wisconsin Job Center for more information.
Disaster Unemployment Assistance provides financial assistance to individuals whose employment or self-employment has been lost or interrupted as a direct result of a major disaster declared by the President of the United States. Before an individual can be determined eligible for Disaster Unemployment Assistance, it must be established that the individual is not eligible for regular unemployment insurance benefits.
In addition, workers, self-employed individuals (including farmers or other small business owners) who are unemployed as a result of a natural disaster may qualify as a dislocated worker.
Contact your local Wisconsin Job Center for more information.
Self-employed individuals (including farmers or other small business owners) who are unemployed as a result of economic conditions in their area may qualify as a dislocated worker. Wisconsin Job Centers also provide services to assist with finding employment.
Farmers affected by foreign competition may qualify for Trade Adjustment Assistance for Farmers.
The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture's Wisconsin Farm Center provides services to Wisconsin farmers and agribusinesses to promote the vitality of the state's agricultural economy and rural communities. These include Financial Counseling and Advising and Farm Mediation They have a Farm Center Helpline at 1-800-942-2474. Services are confidential and free.
For more information on rural assistance, see Rural Development Online from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Contact your local Wisconsin Job Center for more information.
You may be entitled to certain pension protections and health benefits even if you lose your job. If your company provided a group health insurance plan, you may be able to continue health benefits for a period of time. With a change in employment, you should understand how your pension benefits are affected. Knowing your rights can help you protect yourself and your family until you are working full time again. The U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration provides information on provides information on Pension and Health Care Coverage for Dislocated Workers.
The Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) is available to TAA, TRA and ATAA recipients. HCTC is a Federal tax credit that pays 65% of the qualified health plan premiums paid by eligible individuals.
You can use HCTC to help pay purchase health coverage for yourself and your qualified family members.
You must be enrolled in a qualified health program.
There are two ways to claim the credit.
You can register to receive advance payment of the credit on a monthly basis.
You can claim the HCTC when you file your Federal income tax return.
www.wisconsinjobcenter.org has more information on healthcare options for the unemployed.
Additional assistance with pension issues may be available from the Upper Midwest Pension Rights Project. UMPRP offers free legal assistance in the form of pension counseling, pension claims assistance, and advocacy for pension participants. UMPRP attorneys can assist retirees and their families with various pension benefits related problems such as locating a pension plan, applying for benefits, correcting benefit miscalculations, and appealing benefit denials.
Whether unemployment results from layoff, plant closure, illness, injury or termination, it means a drop in income that can make life difficult and change the way we live. Some of the best coping strategies, techniques and tools are compiled here. Check them out!
Wisconsin Job Center Publications. This resource has online versions of Job Seeking pamphlets. See specifically Adjusting to Unemployment.
The Employee Benefits Guidebook (a pdf file) can help employees better understand pay and employer sponsored benefits. The charts at the end will help the employee appropriately value the benefits offered by an employer. This publication is sponsored by the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development and is available en Español
A great web site is provide by the AFL-CIO (American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations). It provides practical tips on managing your budget, dealing with creditors, putting food on the table, staying healthy and finding work when unemployment happens. En Espanol.
Here are several free, downloadable sources of information on coping with your personal finances after a job loss.
Find a Licensed Consumer Credit Counselor in Wisconsin (Adjustment Service Company). View a list from the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions.
Updated May 11, 2007
Content Contact: Dislocated
Worker Unit
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