DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration

TA-W-64,347

FREUDENBERG NONWOVENS, L.P.
CURRENTLY KNOWN AS FREUDENBERG VITECH LIMITED PARTNERSHIP
A JOINT VENTURE BETWEEN
FREUDENBERG NONWOVENS, L.P. AND JAPAN VILENE COMPANY, LIMITED
HOPKINSVILLE, KENTUCKY

Certification Regarding Eligibility
To Apply for Worker Adjustment Assistance
and Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance

In accordance with Section 223 of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 USC
2273), as amended, the Department of Labor herein presents the
results of an investigation regarding certification of eligibility
to apply for worker adjustment assistance as a secondarily affected
worker group.
In order to make an affirmative determination and issue a
certification of eligibility for secondary workers to apply for
Trade Adjustment Assistance, the group eligibility requirements of
paragraph (b) of Section 222 of the Trade Act, as amended, must be
met. It is determined in this case that the requirements of (b) of
Section 222, as amended, have been met.
The investigation was initiated on November 4, 2008 in
response to a petition filed on behalf of workers of Freudenberg
Nonwovens, L.P., currently known as Freudenberg Vitech Limited
Partnership, a joint venture between Freudenberg Nonwovens, L.P.
and Japan Vilene Company Limited, Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Workers
produce headliner fabric and other nonwoven automotive media.
Workers are not separately identifiable by product.
Freudenberg Filtration Technologies, L.P., an affiliate of the
subject firm, is also in Hopkinsville. Workers of the affiliate
produce automotive filters. These workers are separately
identifiable from the workers of the subject firm and are not the
subject of this investigation.
Employment at the subject firm declined from October 2007
through December 2008.
The investigation revealed that the subject firm supplied
component parts utilized in the production of headliners and door
panels for automotive vehicles, and a loss of business with
manufacturers of such articles whose workers were certified
eligible to apply for adjustment assistance contributed importantly
to the separation or threat of separation of workers at the subject
facility.
In accordance with Section 246 the Trade Act of 1974 (26 USC
2813), as amended, the Department of Labor herein presents the
results of its investigation regarding certification of eligibility
to apply for alternative trade adjustment assistance (ATAA) for
older workers.
In order for the Department to issue a certification of
eligibility to apply for ATAA, the group eligibility requirements
of Section 246 of the Trade Act must be met. The Department has
determined in this case that the requirements of Section 246 have
been met.
A significant number of workers at the firm are age 50 or over
and possess skills that are not easily transferable. Competitive
conditions within the industry are adverse.
Conclusion
After careful review of the facts obtained in the
investigation, I determine that workers of Freudenberg Nonwovens,
L.P., currently known as Freudenberg Vitech Limited Partnership, a
joint venture between Freudenberg Nonwovens, L.P. and Japan Vilene
Company Limited, Hopkinsville, Kentucky qualify as adversely
affected secondary workers under Section 222 of the Trade Act of
1974, as amended. In accordance with the provisions of the Act, I
make the following certification:












"All workers of Freudenberg Nonwovens, L.P., currently known
as Freudenberg Vitech Limited Partnership, a joint venture
between Freudenberg Nonwovens, L.P. and Japan Vilene Company
Limited, Hopkinsville, Kentucky, who became totally or
partially separated from employment on or after October 27,
2007, through two years from the date of certification are
eligible to apply for adjustment assistance under Section 223
of the Trade Act of 1974, and are also eligible to apply for
alternative trade adjustment assistance under Section 246 of
the Trade Act of 1974."
Signed in Washington, D.C., this 14th day of January 2009

/s/ Linda G. Poole
______________________________
LINDA G. POOLE
Certifying Officer, Division of
Trade Adjustment Assistance