DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration

TA-W-95,443

WESTERN PANEL MANUFACTURING INC.

EUGENE, OREGON

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 December 4, 2019, by a State Workforce Office on behalf of
workers of Western Panel Manufacturing Inc., Eugene, Oregon
(hereby referred to as "Western Panel").

The workers' firm is engaged in activities related to the
production of specialty veneer and wood products.

The petitioner alleged that, "Western Panel Manufacturing
closing both locations in Eugene due to multiple trade contributing
factors. They are struggling to compete with Canada, China and
Indonesia for raw materials needed for their products. They
recently lost a big customer in Simpson Door Company, who is now
buying directly from China. They also supply materials for building
hardwood cabinets and are competing with Chinese imports of
hardwood cabinets."

During the course of the investigation, information was
collected from the petitioner, the workers' firm, and the major
declining customer(s) of the workers' firm.

With respect to Section 222(a)(2)(A)(ii) of the Act, the
investigation revealed that Criterion (2)(A)(ii) has not been met
because imports of articles like or directly competitive with the
specialty veneer and wood products have not increased during the
relevant period when compared to the representative base period.
The workers' firm did not report imports of specialty veneer and
wood products or articles like or directly competitive in 2017,
2018, or during the period of January through November 2019. The
workers' firm's major declining customer(s) did not report
increased imports of specialty veneer and wood products or
articles like or directly competitive during the aforementioned
period.

With respect to Section 222(a)(2)(B) of the Act, the
investigation revealed that Western Panel did not shift its
production of specialty veneer and wood products, or like or
directly competitive articles, to a foreign country or acquire
specialty veneer and wood products, or like or directly
competitive articles, from a foreign country.

With respect to Section 222(b)(2) of the Act, the
investigation revealed that Western Panel 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 Western Panel 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 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 Western Panel Manufacturing
Inc., Eugene, Oregon, to apply for adjustment assistance, in
accordance with Section 223 of the Act, 19 U.S.C. § 2273.

Signed in Washington, D.C. this 11th day of February, 2021


/s/ Hope D. Kinglock
_______________________
HOPE D. KINGLOCK

Certifying Officer, Office of

Trade Adjustment Assistance