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Labor Department helps Mohawk employees
By Sharon Hall
The Georgia Department of Labor will be on site beginning Wednesday this week to offer assistance to Mohawk employees slated to lose their jobs June 6. The state will offer a wide variety of services to the 366 people affected by the Pine Tree plant closing, said DOL representative Tyrone Carroll.
“We'll do just about anything we can do,” he said.
Employees will be asked to fill out a questionnaire, indicating what type of assistance they need, from resume writing and basic computer skills to facilitate an Internet job search to financial management and how to access support services such as food stamps, childcare and transportation until a new job is found. An interpreter will be on hand for the company's 40 percent Hispanic employees.
Once the questionnaires are in, Carroll said, DOL will evaluate what services are required. It plans to have someone on site a minimum of two days each week until the plant closes, he said.
One service that will definitely be available is DOL's Career Center. Workers will be able to get information on job openings in Georgia and other states, have access to computers, the Internet, books, videos, fax and copy machines, telephones and more to make searching for a new job easier.
DOL will offer workshops on skills identification and interviewing skills, help with writing a resume and other topics that will help in finding a new job. Other workshops will focus on the fallout of losing a job - money management, stress management, how to choose a new career and others.
One workshop that will be of particular help to many is “Age is an Asset.” It teaches workers how to present the years of experience they possess in a positive light to prospective new employers. The average age of an employee at Dahlonega's Mohawk Pine Tree plant is 42.5 years, but many are over 50.
Financial assistance is available for those who find it necessary to learn new skills or improve existing skills in order to return to work. This can include GED preparation and testing, on-the-job training and English as a second language. Support services such as transportation and childcare may be available while a worker is attending training on a full-time basis.
DOL will also offer help in applying for unemployment benefits, and coordinate with local service providers to facilitate help with food stamps and other needed assistance.
On the local level, chamber of commerce, city and county officials and development authorities are working together to provide for affected workers' needs.
“We will be planning with Mohawk a job fair in early May to help each of these employees find employment and get settled,” said chamber president Gary Powers. “In the meantime we ask everyone to keep them in their prayers. Unemployment causes a lot of stress on families and help will be needed with rent, mortgage payments, clothing food and counseling services. As we learn more, we will ask for specific help from our members to help these families.”
Lumpkin County Development Authority Executive Director Bruce Abraham gives high marks to Georgia's DOL for helping individuals caught in massive layoffs and plant closures.
“They will find these people jobs if they will follow the process,” he said.
“We'll do just about anything we can do,” he said.
Employees will be asked to fill out a questionnaire, indicating what type of assistance they need, from resume writing and basic computer skills to facilitate an Internet job search to financial management and how to access support services such as food stamps, childcare and transportation until a new job is found. An interpreter will be on hand for the company's 40 percent Hispanic employees.
Once the questionnaires are in, Carroll said, DOL will evaluate what services are required. It plans to have someone on site a minimum of two days each week until the plant closes, he said.
One service that will definitely be available is DOL's Career Center. Workers will be able to get information on job openings in Georgia and other states, have access to computers, the Internet, books, videos, fax and copy machines, telephones and more to make searching for a new job easier.
DOL will offer workshops on skills identification and interviewing skills, help with writing a resume and other topics that will help in finding a new job. Other workshops will focus on the fallout of losing a job - money management, stress management, how to choose a new career and others.
One workshop that will be of particular help to many is “Age is an Asset.” It teaches workers how to present the years of experience they possess in a positive light to prospective new employers. The average age of an employee at Dahlonega's Mohawk Pine Tree plant is 42.5 years, but many are over 50.
Financial assistance is available for those who find it necessary to learn new skills or improve existing skills in order to return to work. This can include GED preparation and testing, on-the-job training and English as a second language. Support services such as transportation and childcare may be available while a worker is attending training on a full-time basis.
DOL will also offer help in applying for unemployment benefits, and coordinate with local service providers to facilitate help with food stamps and other needed assistance.
On the local level, chamber of commerce, city and county officials and development authorities are working together to provide for affected workers' needs.
“We will be planning with Mohawk a job fair in early May to help each of these employees find employment and get settled,” said chamber president Gary Powers. “In the meantime we ask everyone to keep them in their prayers. Unemployment causes a lot of stress on families and help will be needed with rent, mortgage payments, clothing food and counseling services. As we learn more, we will ask for specific help from our members to help these families.”
Lumpkin County Development Authority Executive Director Bruce Abraham gives high marks to Georgia's DOL for helping individuals caught in massive layoffs and plant closures.
“They will find these people jobs if they will follow the process,” he said.
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Debra wrote on Apr 16, 2008 11:00 PM: