98-28445. Matsushita Electric Corporation of America (Matsushita Television Company), San Diego, CA; Notice of Negative Determination Regarding Application for Reconsideration

[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 205 (Friday, October 23, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56946-56947]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-28445]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration
[TA-W-34,899 and NAFTA-02551]


Matsushita Electric Corporation of America (Matsushita Television 
Company), San Diego, CA; Notice of Negative Determination Regarding 
Application for Reconsideration

    By application of September 25, 1998, the petitioners requested 
administrative reconsideration of the Department's negative 
determination regarding eligibility to apply for Trade Adjustment

[[Page 56947]]

Assistance (TAA) and NAFTA-Transitional Adjustment Assistance (NAFTA-
TAA), applicable to workers and former workers of the subject firm. The 
denial notices applicable to workers of the subject firm located in San 
Diego, California, were signed on September 16, 1998. The NAFTA-TAA 
decision was published in the Federal Register on September 28, 1998 
(63 FR 51606). The TAA decision will be published soon.
    Pursuant to 29 CFR 90.18(c) reconsideration may be granted under 
the following circumstances:
    (1) If it appears on the basis of facts not previously considered 
that the determination complained of war erroneous;
    (2) if it appears that the determination complained of was based on 
a mistake in the determination of facts not previously considered; or
    (3) if in the opinion of the Certifying Officer, a 
misinterpretation of facts or of the law justified reconsideration of 
the decision.
    The denial of TAA and NAFTA-TAA for workers and Matsushita Electric 
Corporation of America, Matsushita Television Company, San Diego, 
California was based on the finding that the workers do not produce an 
article, as required by Section 222 and 250 of the Trade Act of 1974. 
As stated in the original negative determinations, the workers provide 
technical and administrative functions and are not affiliated with a 
facility for which the Department has certified the workers eligible to 
apply for adjustment assistance. Layoffs were a result of the parent 
company making a strategic business decision to shift the technical and 
administrative functions to Mexico. The company did not shift 
``production'' of items to Mexico from San Diego during the relevant 
time period. Shifting job functions does not qualify the worker group 
to be certified under NAFTA-TAA under Section 250.
    The petitioners did not provide any new information to indicate 
that the worker group was involved in the production of televisions or 
any article with the meaning of Section 222 or 250 of the Trade Act of 
1974, as amended.

Conclusion

    After review of the application and investigative findings, I 
conclude that there has been no error or misinterpretation of the law 
or of the facts which would justify reconsideration of the Department 
of Labor's prior decisions. Accordingly, the application is denied.

    Signed at Washington, D.C. this 6th day of October, 1998.
Grant D. Beale,
Acting Director, Office of Trade Adjustment Assistance.
[FR Doc. 98-28445 Filed 10-22-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-30-M