Labor Department Gives Additional Grant for Ex-NUMMI Employees

By Bay City News Service

The U.S. Department of Labor announced a $6 million grant Tuesday to continue re-employment services for more than 4,800 workers directly affected by the closure of the New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. auto plant in Fremont two years ago.

NUMMI was a joint venture between Toyota Motor Corp. and General Motors that opened in 1984 but the plant closed on April 1, 2010, throwing 4,700 auto union employees out of work and also affecting thousands of employees at suppliers around the Bay Area and the state.

Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis came to a re-employment center across the street from the former auto plant on June 7, 2010, to announce a $19 million national emergency grant to provide training and support services to help former employees prepare for and get new jobs.

The supplemental grant will continue those services. The Department of Labor said the grant will help former employees at NUMMI and at 39 suppliers which were affected by the plant's closure.

Solis said in a prepared statement, "In today's competitive economy, it is crucial for displaced workers to obtain in-demand job skills."

She said, "The additional federal funding announced today ensures that workers impacted by the NUMMI closure will have access to job training and placement services to help qualify them for and connect them with jobs in growing local industries."

The grant is awarded to the California Employment Development Department, which will provide training and support services for the former employees.

Some former employees will receive assistance under the grant in conjunction with other services provided in the form of Trade Adjustment Assistance benefits.

The Department of Labor said national emergency grants are part of the secretary of labor's discretionary fund and are awarded based on a state's ability to meet specific guidelines.