DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration

TA-W-91,420

PANASONIC APPLIANCES COMPANY OF AMERICA
A DIVISION OF PANASONIC CORPORATION OF NORTH AMERICA
DANVILLE, KENTUCKY

TA-W-91,420A

PANASONIC APPLIANCES COMPANY OF AMERICA
A DIVISION OF PANASONIC CORPORATION OF NORTH AMERICA
ROLLING MEADOWS, ILLINOIS

Negative Determination Regarding Eligibility
To Apply for Worker Adjustment Assistance

In accordance with Section 223 of the Trade Act of 1974, as
amended ("Act"), 19 U.S.C. § 2273, the Department of Labor
herein presents the results of an investigation regarding
certification of eligibility to apply for worker adjustment
assistance.
Workers of a firm may be eligible for worker adjustment
assistance if they satisfy the criteria of subsection (a), (b)
or (e) of Section 222 of the Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2272(a), (b) and
(e). For the Department of Labor to issue a certification for
workers under Section 222(a) of the Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2272(a),
the following criteria must be met:
(1) The first criterion (set forth in Section 222(a)(1) of the
Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2272(a)(1)) requires that a significant
number or proportion of the workers in the workers' firm
must have become totally or partially separated or be
threatened with total or partial separation.

(2) The second criterion (set forth in Section 222(a)(2) of the
Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2272(a)(2)) may be satisfied in one of two
ways:
(A) Increased Imports Path:
(i) sales or production, or both, at the workers' firm
must have decreased absolutely; AND
(ii) (I) imports of articles or services like or directly
competitive with articles or services produced or
supplied by the workers' firm have increased, OR
(II)(aa) imports of articles like or directly
competitive with articles into which the
component part produced by the workers' firm was
directly incorporated have increased; OR
(II)(bb) imports of articles like or directly
competitive with articles which are produced
directly using the services supplied by the
workers' firm have increased; OR
(III) imports of articles directly incorporating
component parts not produced in the U.S. that are
like or directly competitive with the article
into which the component part produced by the
workers' firm was directly incorporated have
increased; AND
(iii) the increase in imports described in clause (ii)
contributed importantly to such workers' separation
or threat of separation and to the decline in the
sales or production of such firm.

(B) Shift in Production or Supply Path:
(i)(I) there has been a shift by the workers' firm to a
foreign country in the production of articles or
supply of services like or directly competitive with
those produced/supplied by the workers' firm; OR
(II) there has been an acquisition from a foreign
country by the workers' firm of articles/services that
are like or directly competitive with those
produced/supplied by the workers' firm; and
(ii) the shift described in clause (i)(I) or the
acquisition of articles or services described in
clause (i)(II) contributed importantly to such
workers' separation or threat of separation.

For the Department to issue a secondary worker
certification under Section 222(b) of the Act, 19 U.S.C. §
2272(b), to workers of a Supplier or a Downstream Producer, the
following criteria must be met:
(1) a significant number or proportion of the workers in
the workers' firm or an appropriate subdivision of the
firm have become totally or partially separated, or
are threatened to become totally or partially
separated;

(2) the workers' firm is a Supplier or Downstream Producer
to a firm that employed a group of workers who
received a certification of eligibility under Section
222(a) of the Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2272(a), and such
supply or production is related to the article or
service that was the basis for such certification; and

(3) either
(A) the workers' firm is a supplier and the component
parts it supplied to the firm described in paragraph
(2) accounted for at least 20 percent of the
production or sales of the workers' firm;
or
(B) a loss of business by the workers' firm with the
firm described in paragraph (2) contributed
importantly to the workers' separation or threat of
separation.

Section 222(c) of the Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2272(c), defines the
terms "Supplier" and "Downstream Producer."
Workers of a firm may also be considered eligible if they
are publicly identified by name by the International Trade
Commission as a member of a domestic industry in an
investigation resulting in a category of determination that is
listed in Section 222(e) of the Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2272(e).
The group eligibility requirements for workers of a firm
under Section 222(e) of the Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2272(e), can be
satisfied if the following criteria are met:
(1) the workers' firm is publicly identified by name by
the International Trade Commission as a member of a
domestic industry in an investigation resulting in--
(A) an affirmative determination of serious injury or
threat thereof under section 202(b)(1);
(B) an affirmative determination of market disruption
or threat thereof under section 421(b)(1); or
(C) an affirmative final determination of material
injury or threat thereof under section
705(b)(1)(A) or 735(b)(1)(A) of the Tariff Act of
1930 (19 U.S.C. 1671d(b)(1)(A) and
1673d(b)(1)(A));

(2) the petition is filed during the 1-year period
beginning on the date on which--
(A) a summary of the report submitted to the
President by the International Trade Commission
under section 202(f)(1) with respect to the
affirmative determination described in paragraph
(1)(A) is published in the Federal Register under
section 202(f)(3); or
(B) notice of an affirmative determination described
in subparagraph (1) is published in the Federal
Register; and

(3) the workers have become totally or partially
separated from the workers' firm within--
(A) the 1-year period described in paragraph (2); or
(B) notwithstanding section 223(b), the 1-year
period preceding the 1-year period described in
paragraph (2).

The investigation was initiated in response to a petition
filed on February 3, 2016 by a company official on behalf of
workers of Panasonic Appliances Company of America, a division
of Panasonic Corporation of North America, Danville, Kentucky
(TA-W-91,420) and Panasonic Appliances Company of America, a
division of Panasonic Corporation of North America, Rolling
Meadows, Illinois (TA-W-91,420A) (herein referred to as PAPA).
The workers' firm is engaged in activities related to the
production of vacuum cleaners.
The subject worker group is engaged in activities related
to the supply of design, research, development, quality
oversight, marketing, IT, administrative support, warehouse, and
distribution services.
The subject worker group includes two locations:
Danville, Kentucky (TA-W-91,420) location consists of
design, research and development, quality oversight, marketing,
IT, administrative support functions for the manufacture of
vacuum cleaners, and warehouse and distribution of after-market
parts and distribution of finished goods.
Rolling Meadows, Illinois (TA-W-91,420A) location consists
of sales department.
The petitioner alleges that, "The manufacturing of vacuum
cleaners and other home appliances in the U.S. has been greatly
impacted by competition from overseas manufacturers with lower
labor costs. Our production has already transferred due to
global competition in price and production cost. Our
professional and technical jobs are now being shifted to foreign
countries. Panasonic North America manufacturing operation will
exit the OEM vacuum cleaner business, and will terminate all
employees and operations in Danville, Kentucky and the sales
office in Rolling Meadows, Illinois no later than March 2017."
During the course of the investigation, information was
collected from the workers' firm.
With respect to Section 222(a)(2)(A)(ii) of the Act, the
investigation revealed that imports of articles like or directly
competitive with the articles produced by the subject firm have
not increased. Although PAPA reported increased imports of
vacuum cleaners, the subject firm produces vacuum cleaners at
facilities located outside the U.S. which are then sold to the
U.S.
With respect to Section 222(a)(2)(B) of the Act, the
investigation revealed that PAPA did not shift the supply of
design, research, development, quality oversight, marketing,
IT, administrative support, warehouse and distribution
services to a foreign country or acquire design, research,
development, quality oversight, marketing, IT, administrative
support, warehouse and distribution services from a foreign
country.
With respect to Section 222(b)(2) of the Act, the
investigation revealed that PAPA is not a Supplier to a firm
that employed a group of workers who received a certification of
eligibility under Section 222(a) of the Act, 19 U.S.C. §
2272(a).
With respect to Section 222(b)(2) of the Act, the
investigation revealed that PAPA does not act as a Downstream
Producer to a firm that employed a group of workers who received
a certification of eligibility under Section 222(a) of the Act,
19 U.S.C. § 2272(a).
Finally, the group eligibility requirements under Section
222(e) of the Act, have not been satisfied either because
Criterion (1) has not been met since the workers' firm has not
been publicly identified by name by the International Trade
Commission as a member of a domestic industry in an
investigation resulting in an affirmative finding of serious
injury, market disruption, or material injury, or threat
thereof.













Conclusion
After careful review of the facts obtained in the
investigation, I determine that the requirements of Section 222
of the Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2272, have not been met and, therefore,
deny the petition for group eligibility of Panasonic Appliances
Company of America, a division of Panasonic Corporation of
North America, Danville, Kentucky (TA-W-91,420) and Panasonic
Appliances Company of America, a division of Panasonic
Corporation of North America, Rolling Meadows, Illinois (TA-W-
91,420A) engaged in activities related to the supply of design,
research, development, quality oversight, marketing, IT,
administrative support, warehouse, and distribution services to
apply for adjustment assistance, in accordance with Section 223
of the Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2273.
Signed in Washington, D.C. this 15th day of June 2016.
/s/Jacquelyn R. Mendelsohn
______________________________
JACQUELYN R. MENDELSOHN
Certifying Officer, Office of
Trade Adjustment Assistance