WorkSource to hold orientations for REC workers

MOSES LAKE — Washington WorkSource will be holding a special event for the workers hit by the latest round of REC Silicon layoffs.

WorkSource Central Basin will hold a Dislocated Worker Orientation for recently laid-off REC employees on Thursday, July 5, beginning at 1:30 p.m., and Friday, July 6, at 9 a.m. in the WorkSource/SkillSource office at 309 E. 5th Ave in Moses Lake.

“Any time there’s a large layoff, we do what is called a rapid response,” said SkillSource Training Manager Emily Anderson.

Anderson said the two-to-three hour event will help the former REC employees become familiar with the services and programs available to them — such as unemployment benefits, job search help, and special assistance for those who have lost their jobs as a result of trade disputes or imbalances.

“This is a super overwhelming time for them,” she said.

There is also assistance available to “displaced homemakers,” stay-at-home spouses in single-income families, Anderson said.

Displaced REC employees do not need to attend both sessions. Everything they need to know will be explained at one session, Anderson said.

Anderson also said she expects that many of the laid-off REC employees — especially those with a maintenance or mechanical background — will likely find new work fairly quickly. However, because REC’s wages were so high, they will likely not find comparable pay.

“They will find new work without a lot of difficulty,” she said.

REC, which produces “high purity” polysilicon for the solar power and electronics industries, has been engaged in a lengthy battle with Chinese companies and the Chinese government over tariffs, with REC claiming the Chinese government has unfairly imposed duties on the company’s products, blocking access to the Chinese market.

The weekend layoffs are only the latest in a round of downsizing at the Norwegian company’s U.S. production facilities in Moses Lake and Bozeman, Montana.

REC Silicon’s shares have lost more than 50 percent of their value on the Oslo Stock Exchange over the last two months, falling from an early April high of 1.54 Norwegian Kroner per share (19 U.S. cents), falling about 17 percent from a Monday opening of 88 øre (11 cents) to end trading at 77 øre (9 cents).

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached via email at countygvt@columbiabasinherald.com