By Hillary Gavan
For StatelineBusiness

United Industries in Beloit will layoff 109 workers, according to a WARN notice provided by the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD). Permanent layoffs will begin on or about July 11, and continue until the end of August.

United Industries, 1546 Henry Ave., announced on April 3 that it will cease manufacturing operations at its Beloit facility, but hadn't specified how many employees would be laid off.

Approximately 84 union represented and 25 non-union represented employees will be affected, according to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notice. The International Association of Machinists and "Aerospace Workers, AFL, CIO and its District Lodge 10" represents many of the employees.

Just a few of the jobs to be eliminated include the following: crane operator, inspector, shipping clerk, stock keeper, supervisor, grinder and fork lift driver.

United Industries is a manufacturer of stainless steel tubing used in the automotive, high-purity, heat exchanger and ornamental markets. The company has experienced a dramatic decline in the demand for its automotive related products, as a direct result of accelerating weakness in the automotive industry.

Products currently manufactured in the Beloit facility will be transferred to United Stainless Inc., an affiliated company with a manufacturing facility located in Selmer, Tenn.

A DWD Rapid Response team has been in contact with the company, and orientation sessions for the affected workers will be held today. The DWD Dislocated Worker Program provides assistance to workers, companies and communities affected by mass layoffs or business closings. 

Under state law, employers with 50 or more employees must give 60 days notice before a mass layoff or closing. Once the state becomes aware of any event affecting 50 or more workers, the Dislocated Worker Program's Rapid Response Team is activated.

DWD will also look at each dislocation to determine if the workers have lost their jobs as a result of foreign trade or competition. 

If that is the case, DWD will help the workers to request additional funding from US DOL. Workers might be eligible for additional assistance under the federal Trade Adjustment Act (TAA). Services available under TAA include income support while in training, job search allowance and relocation allowance.

Wisconsin spends nearly $55 million annually serving approximately 35,000 dislocated workers in various programs.