Welfare Info

Trade Adjustment Assistance for Dislocated Workers

The Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) provides transition assistance to workers who have been determined by the U.S. Department of Labor to have been adversely affected by imports from or shifts in production to foreign countries. Benefits include tr...

What is Trade Adjustment Assistance for Dislocated Workers?

The Trade Act of 1974 (Pub. L. No. 93-618), as amended, Title II, Chapter 2, established the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers (TAA), Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance (ATAA), and Reemployment Trade Adjustment Assistance (RTAA) programs. These programs, collectively referred to as the Trade Adjustment Assistance Program (TAA Program), provide assistance to workers who have been adversely affected by foreign trade. Benefits include training, job search allowances, job relocation allowances, trade readjustment allowances (TRA), case management and employment services and access to the Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC).

Program Requirements

An individual must be experiencing a separation, threat of separation or reduction in wages as a result of imports or shifts of production to foreign countries and must be part of a worker group for whom a petition for Trade Adjustment Assistance has been certified by the Office of Trade Adjustment Assistance.  Generally, a petition must be filed within one year of the layoff,  and a certification covers two years after the petition is certified.  Workers covered by certified petitions are then eligible to apply with their state for TAA Program benefits and services.

Application Details

What is the application process for Trade Adjustment Assistance for Dislocated Workers?

A Petition for Trade Adjustment Assistance may be filed by a group of three or more workers, by a company official, by one-stop delivery system operators or partners (including state employment security agencies and dislocated worker units) , or by a union or other duly authorized representative of such workers, on behalf of three or more workers. For petition forms and information on how to file a petition for visit the TAA Application Process page. To file a petition online, please follow the instructions on the Petition for Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) and Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance (ATAA) form.