Laid-off workers retrain in new fields

With unemployment in the Flathead soaring in the last year, job retraining programs are in demand.

Many laid-off workers are taking advantage of a program that allows them to learn new skills at Flathead Valley Community College.

Workers who have lost their jobs or whose hours have been reduced as a result of foreign trade may be eligible to receive training through the Trade Adjustment Assistance program.

Robin Bunker, 48, had worked at Semitool for 14 years as a mechanical assembler before he was laid off last year.

Bunker said he would not have returned to school without the opportunity to participate in the Trade Adjustment Assistance program. He now is in his third semester of college, retraining for a career in Web design.

"FVCC has been great; they opened up extra classes and extra time for us," Bunker said. "The people at Job Service have helped immensely. Lynn Farris really helped with the whole registration process; it has been a great experience."

A total of 228 unemployed workers are enrolled at the college through the Trade Adjustment Assistance program. They come from Semitool, Plum Creek Timber Co. and Columbia Falls Aluminum Co.

In addition, workers from local logging companies qualify for the Trade Adjustment Assistance program.

"A community college must respond to the needs of the community," said Farris, TRIO Director at the college. "When layoffs happened in our community, FVCC went the extra mile to help the unemployed get a good start toward new careers."

The federally funded program offers a variety of benefits and helps participants prepare for and obtain suitable employment.

The program covers the cost of books, tuition, job searches allowances and relocation allowances.

Workers can receive additional unemployment benefits during their time in training.

The demand for the program has swamped workers at the Kalispell Job Service.

"We are very busy; we see 400 people per day, and this doesn't include phone calls," said Laura Gardner, work-force supervisor for the Job Service Operations Bureau in Kalispell. "At this point, we are doing triage for basic needs and having to see clients in group workshops to accommodate everyone interested in the TAA program."

The unemployment rate in September in Flathead County was 8.8 percent. A year earlier it was 5 percent. The local jobless rate peaked at 12.7 percent in March.

Although many of the workers now in college have gone into occupational trades, such as welding and electrical, some of the other courses they're taking are accounting, business, nursing and administrative.

Tobin Frizzell worked as an aviation mechanic at Semitool when he was laid off in November 2008. Since he earned a General Education Development diploma at FVCC in 2003, he already was familiar with college life.

Through the Trade Adjustment Assistance program, Frizzell now is training for a new career as a substance-abuse counselor.

"Returning to school has opened my mind to new ideas and concepts," Frizzell said. "When people get older, they tend to get set in their habits. Being with all new people has broadened and enriched my life."

According to Farris, "It's such a shock to people when they get laid off. It's fortunate this program is available for people to get training. It provides them with a second chance at a new career."

For more information on the Trade Adjustment Assistance program, contact the Kalispell Job Service office at 758-6200.

Sweeney is a journalism student at FVCC.