Congress of the United States “au a ‘Bouse of Representatives surarra Gare ‘Washington, BE 20515-0531 cmon September 14, 2016 ‘The Honorable Thomas E, Perez Secretary US. Department of Labor 200 Constitution Avenue, NW ‘Washington, DC 20210 Dear Secretary Perez: Lam writing in support ofthe Trade Adjustment Act (TAA) Petition Number 92185, submited by the California Employment Development Deparment (EDD) on behalf ofthe 840 displaced workers of Ashley Furniture, Ine. in Colton, California, These workers were adversely impacted by the closure of Ashley Furniture’s Manufacturing Facility, where they manufactured furniture products for the company, ‘The petition submitted on behalf ofthe workers alleges that a significant part ofthe production in. the Colton facility is being outsourced to Vietnam, despite the company's claims. Ithas been ‘eported that Ashley Furniture relies on foreign imports fora lage percentage ofits production, notably from China and Vietnam. Previous TAA certifications for other laid-off Ashley Fumiture workers in other parts of the country found that the company increased it imports of famiture and that contributed tothe separation ofthe employees. The evidence appears to peint to similar situation inthe case of the Colton Ashley Furniture location ~ that these workers ‘were adversely affected by foreign trade, California's Inland Empire was devastated by the Great Recession; unemployment rates inthe area hovered near 14 percent from 2009 to 201 1. While the unemployment rate has fallen in recent years, these layoffs are a major blow to the region's recovery, which still lags behind the rest ofthe state. These workers deserve the support that a TAA certification extends, especially Workforce training in other in-demand careers throughout the region, ‘As the Office of Trade Adjustment Assistance conducts its review ofthe Colton petition, my office is available to provide any assistance necessary I encourage you to give this applicatcn Your attention and we look forward to your findings. Sincerely, Pete Aguilar Member of Congress