[Federal Register: December 3, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 231)]
[Notices]
[Page 67968-67970]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr03de07-108]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employment and Training Administration
[TA-W-60,827]
Sun Microsystems, Inc., Louisville, CO; Notice of Negative
Determination on Reconsideration
By application dated April 15, 2007, a worker requested
administrative reconsideration. The request for reconsideration alleged
that the subject firm shifted production and support functions abroad.
On May 27, 2007, the Department issued a Notice of Affirmative
Determination Regarding Application for Reconsideration for the workers
and former workers of Sun Microsystems, Inc., Louisville, Colorado (the
subject firm). The Department's Notice of Affirmative Determination was
published in the Federal Register on June 7, 2007 (72 FR 31614).
The worker-filed petition for Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) and
Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance (ATAA) identified the
appropriate subdivision employing the workers group as ``Sun
Microsystems, Louisville, Colorado,'' the articles produced at the
subject firm as ``high tech computer storage devices,'' and the subject
worker group as workers engaged in ``Production AME + R+D
(Inspection).'' The petitioners stated that their work has been
``outsourced to Mexico and possible Hungary.''
Because the petition is dated January 19, 2007, the relevant period
is January 19, 2006 through January 18, 2007.
The initial negative determination (issued March 14, 2007) stated
that the subject firm ``did not shift work performed in Louisville,
Colorado abroad, nor did it shift production from its manufacturing
facility in Puerto Rico to a foreign country;'' that the parent entity,
Sun Microsystems (Sun), sold the Puerto Rico facility to another firm,
``thus curtailing the need for support persons'' at the subject firm;
and that ``separations of workers at the Louisville location are in
great part attributable to
[[Page 67969]]
a worldwide company restructuring and reduction in workforce.''
A document attached to a petition (dated February 6, 2007, and
filed on behalf of the same worker group) explained that, as a result
of Sun's acquisition of StorageTek Classic (StorageTek), certain staff
positions in the Storage Operations organization were eliminated. For
example, StorageTek's products and their associated business processes,
tools and systems would be merged with Sun's products and their
associated business processes, tools and systems; the supply chain
management and materials organizations for Sun and StorageTek would be
consolidated into a single team; Sun's manufacturing and support
activities in Puerto Rico would be outsourced in September 2006 to a
contract manufacturer; and the staff that supported Sun's Puerto Rico
facility would be eliminated since the contract manufacturer would be
taking over those functions.
According to previously-submitted information, StorageTek was a
company with production facilities in Puerto Rico and a pre-production
facility in Louisville, Colorado. The information also revealed that
after Sun acquired StorageTek in August 2005, Sun ceased to operate the
manufacturing facility in Puerto Rico and that those workers at the
Louisville, Colorado facility who supported the Puerto Rico facility
were separated.
Because the subject workers inspected sheetmetal parts, cables,
harnesses, tape rollers, motherboards, personal computer boards, and
disk drives during the relevant period, and the workers are not
separately identifiable by product line, the Department determines that
the subject workers are engaged in the production of inspected
component parts of computer storage devices.
In order for a TAA certification to be issued, the subject workers
must meet the group eligibility requirements under Section 222 of the
Trade Act of 1974, as amended. The applicable requirements can be
satisfied in one of two ways:
I. Section (a)(2)(A)--
A. A significant number or proportion of the workers in such
workers' firm, or an appropriate subdivision of the firm, have become
totally or partially separated, or are threatened to become totally or
partially separated; and
B. the sales or production, or both, of such firm or subdivision
have decreased absolutely; and
C. increased imports of articles like or directly competitive with
articles produced by such firm or subdivision have contributed
importantly to such workers' separation or threat of separation and to
the decline in sales or production of such firm or subdivision; or
II. Section (a)(2)(B)--
A. A significant number or proportion of the workers in such
workers' firm, or an appropriate subdivision of the firm, have become
totally or partially separated, or are threatened to become totally or
partially separated; and
B. there has been a shift in production by such workers' firm or
subdivision to a foreign country of articles like or directly
competitive with articles which are produced by such firm or
subdivision; and
C. One of the following must be satisfied:
1. The country to which the workers' firm has shifted production of
the articles is a party to a free trade agreement with the United
States; or
2. the country to which the workers' firm has shifted production of
the articles is a beneficiary country under the Andean Trade Preference
Act, African Growth and Opportunity Act, or the Caribbean Basin
Economic Recovery Act; or
3. there has been or is likely to be an increase in imports of
articles that are like or directly competitive with articles which are
or were produced by such firm or subdivision.
Previously-submitted information revealed that the subject firm's
employment level declined more than five percent from the corresponding
period the previous year, the Department determines that a significant
number or proportion of the workers at the subject firm has become
totally or partially separated. Because the subject firm has ceased to
inspect component parts of computer storage devices, the Department
determines that, during the relevant period, the subject firm's
production of inspected component parts of computer storage devices
have decreased absolutely.
Because the employment decline and the production decline criteria
were met, the Department focused the reconsideration investigation on
whether either Section (a)(2)(A)(C) or Section (a)(2)(B)(B) and Section
(a)(2)(B)(C) were met.
The first issue is whether, during the relevant period, the subject
firm shifted production of inspected component parts of computer
storage devices to a country that is a party to a free trade agreement
with the United States or a beneficiary country under the Andean Trade
Preference Act, African Growth and Opportunity Act, or the Caribbean
Basin Economic Recovery Act.
Sun officials confirmed that after Sun acquired StorageTek in
August 2005, it ceased to operate the facility in Puerto Rico. The
official also stated that, pursuant to a September 2006 agreement
between Sun and a domestic contract manufacturer, the contract
manufacturer is performing production and inspection work at Sun's
Puerto Rico facility. As such, the Department determines that the
subject firm did not shift production to a foreign country; rather, the
inspection work that was done by the subject workers is being done by
the afore-mentioned contract manufacturer in Puerto Rico.
Even if the subject firm shifted inspection work to Puerto Rico,
the subject workers would not be eligible to apply for TAA benefits
because Puerto Rico is a U.S. Territory and is not a foreign country.
The second issue is whether, during the relevant period, increased
imports of articles like or directly competitive with the inspected
component parts produced at the subject firm contributed importantly to
the subject workers' separations.
During the reconsideration investigation, Sun officials confirmed
that Sun's Louisville, Colorado facility did not import articles like
or directly competitive with the component parts produced at the
subject firm. Because the inspected component parts produced at the
subject firm were sent to Puerto Rico to be assembled, the Sun
officials also confirmed that while it controlled the Puerto Rico
facility during the relevant period, the Puerto Rico facility did not
import any articles like or directly competitive with the component
parts produced at the subject firm. Further, the contract manufacturer
who took over production at the Puerto Rico facility provided
information that revealed no imports of articles like or directly
competitive with the component parts produced at the subject firm.
Because the reconsideration investigation has not produced any
information that support a finding that the subject workers'
separations are due to either a shift of production abroad or increased
imports of articles like or directly competitive with the inspected
component parts produced at the subject firm, the Department affirms
the initial negative determination.
In order for the Department to issue a certification of eligibility
to apply for Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance (ATAA), the
subject worker group must be certified eligible to apply for Trade
Adjustment Assistance (TAA). Since the subject workers are denied
[[Page 67970]]
eligibility to apply for TAA, the workers cannot be certified eligible
for ATAA.
Conclusion
After careful reconsideration, I affirm the original notice of
negative determination of eligibility to apply for worker adjustment
assistance for workers and former workers of Sun Microsystems, Inc.,
Louisville, Colorado.
Signed at Washington, DC, this 20th day of November 2007.
Elliott S. Kushner,
Certifying Officer, Division of Trade Adjustment Assistance.
[FR Doc. E7-23372 Filed 11-30-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-FN-P