Downsizing

If you think your business may be downsizing or even shutting its doors, SC Works can help.

Employer Resources for Layoff Aversion

• Try layoff aversion through SCMEP reviews
• Apply for Incumbent Worker Training

Talk with your local Economic Development Office to discuss other possible solutions:

• Anderson County
• Oconee County
• Pickens County

Employer Resources when Layoffs Occur

Rapid Response Services

Get 24-hour, on-site assistance to help laid-off workers get jobs, get training, and income support if eligible. We are prepared to provide Rapid Response services regardless of the layoff or closure’s cause.

Rapid Response, an information-sharing service for employees and employers, expedites access to SC’s public workforce system and services. Its goal is to help workers get new jobs as quickly as possible. When plant closings and layoffs affect 50 or more workers, the Dislocated Worker Unit (DWU) goes into action for these reasons:

• Trade Impact
• Company Downsizing/Restructuring
• Natural Disaster
• Plant Relocation
• Bankruptcy
• Other Factors

DWU quickly contacts an employer to offer and coordinate Rapid Response services:

• When it receives a layoff notice or plant closure as the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act mandates
• When an employer voluntarily notifies a local SC Works center or DWU
• When the DWU otherwise learns of such an event.
• A meeting with the company’s management staff comes first. (For unionized companies, it’s vital an employee representative attend the meeting.)

This meeting covers crucial information:

• Anticipated Layoff Schedule
• Employee Demographic Data
• Re-employment Services
• Unemployment Benefits
• Retraining Programs

Next, based on an agreed-upon schedule, the Rapid Response team informs affected workers in an Employee Group Orientation Session on-site prior to the first layoff.

Benefits of Rapid Response

Early intervention helps affected workers make informed decisions concerning their future. Providing workers information and adjustment/re-employment services before layoffs also generates a more positive attitude toward employers. It better maintains production levels as well. Pre-layoff meetings benefit employers, employees, the workforce system, and community at large, ensuring a smoother transition and better re-employment success for layoff-affected employees and families.

Need more information?

South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce
Dislocated Worker Unit
P.O. Box 1406 Columbia, SC 29202
Phone: (866) 721-7867
Fax: (803) 737-2119
For more information on DWU or Rapid Response, contact Nina Staggers. For more information on Rapid Response services, contact Kimberly Burke.