Georgia Department of Labor - Press Release 
Georgia Department of 
Labor 
Suite 642  148 International Boulevard N.E. 
Atlanta, Georgia 30303-1751 (404)656-3032 
 
December 2, 1999. 
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
 
LABOR DEPARTMENT MOVES QUICKLY TO HELP ITHACA PLANT WORKERS 
 
ATLANTA -- State Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond is taking immediate action to provide assistance to the 390 employees to be laid off at the Ithaca Manufacturing plant in Glennville. 
 
Thurmond has sent a team of Georgia Department of Labor officials to Glennville to discuss the services of the department with laid-off employees and to work with local elected officials and business and community leaders to develop a strategy to deal with the plant's closure. Ithaca Manufacturing Corp. has announced it will close the Glennville plant at the end of January 2000. The plant, which has been manufacturing t-shirts for the past 12 years, is the 13th Ithaca facility to close in Georgia since 1995. 
 
"This closure has created a difficult situation for the workers and the Tattnall County community as a whole," said Thurmond. "When you have this many people who are suddenly out of work, it affects the entire community and not just the workers who lose their jobs, so we are working closely with local elected officials and business and community leaders to meet their needs. I want to emphasize that they are not alone in dealing with this problem and make sure everyone knows what the state labor department can do to help. 
 
"We provide a wide range of services designed to get people back to work as soon as possible, as 
 
well as money management workshops and counseling on dealing with stress that sometimes accompanies unemployment," the commissioner continued. "Because the plant closure is due to foreign competition, the company plans to petition the U.S. Department of Labor for additional employment and training assistance for its employees. Based on past experience, we expect the petition to be approved. Many of these workers will have to upgrade their skills in order to find 
 
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 Georgia Department of Labor - Press Release 
another job. I encourage them to begin planning for their new careers and we can help them get started right away. 
 
The Georgia Department of Labor conducts job search workshops, career counseling and provides 
 
resource centers in each office for self-directed job seekers. Some job seekers may also be eligible 
 
for occupational/skills training, on-the-job training, GED preparation and testing, and supportive 
 
services such as child care assistance, transportation assistance and meals while enrolled in fulltime school training. 
 
Information about job openings is available at each labor department office, on Georgia Job TV which is seen over several cable television systems and on the department's internet web site (www.dol.state.ga.us). 
 
The labor department office that serves the Tattnall County area is located at 16 Carter Center on Queen Street in Vidalia. Other labor department offices in the area are located in Suite 202 at 740 General Stewart Way in Hinesville and at 62 Packinghouse Road in Statesboro. The offices are open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. 
 
NEWS MEDIA NEEDING ADDITIONAL INFORMATION SHOULD CALL THE GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF LABOR'S OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS AT (404) 656-3032. 
 
E-mail: communications@dol.state.ga.us. 
 
FY-00-275 
 
An Equal Opportunity Employer 
 
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