ꦯ ꦦWhat Was the Federal Trade Readjustment Allowance?

The federal trade readjustment allowance (TRA) was a form of supplemental unemployment income. It was a provision of the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA)🅺 program, which wဣas established under the Trade Act of 1974.

The TRA provided income to individuals who had lost their jobs because of the effects of foreign trade/imports and after they exhausted their state 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:unemployment compensation.

Workers with hours that were reduced because of increased imports also qualified. The TAA expired on June 30, 2022.

How the Federa𓆉l Tradಞe Readjustment Allowance Worked

Congress passed the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Trade Act of 1974 in January 1975. The goal was to expand the United States'𒆙 participation in international trade.

It also provided ways to resolve 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:trade wars and disputes. It 🎉paved the road to either reduce or completely eliminate barriers to trade. And it supported developing trade relations withಌ other countries.

Lessening the Negative Eff🉐ects of Intern♔ational Trade

An important part of the Act was its focus on American workers. It included provisions to help those whose livelihoods were affected by 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:international trade.

The Act established the Trade Adjustment Assistance program. It offered supplemental income for those who lost their jobs due to an increase in foreign imports and whose unemployment benefits ran out.

It also help📖ed financially those who retained their jobs but worked✃ fewer hours.

This income was refཧerred to as the feder💖al trade readjustment allowance.

The qualifications for the TRA were as follows:

• Individuals were required to be covered by a certification
• Individuals lost their jobs within the certification period
• Individuals met the minimum requirements for wages and employment
• Individuals qualified for state 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:unemployment insurance (UI)
• Individuals exhausted their UI benefits
• Individuals met the extended benefits work test
• Individuals took part in TAA training (enrollment had to take place within 26 weeks of certification or the most recent separation with certification)

TRA benefit amounts were the same as a worker's first unemployment benefit. The eligibility period for benefits depended on the type of allowance, which included basic, additional, and completion.

As notღed above, Congress terminated the TAA on June 30, 2🍒022. As a result, the TRA was discontinued.

The move affected more than 100,000 workers on an annual basis. Individuals who lost their jobs due to foreign imports after the program's expiration date were no longer eligible for benefits.

Special Considerations

In order to file a TRA claim, an affected person was required to obtain a petition to apply. This petition was first filed through the state unemployment agency, and then with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) for approval.

The DOL determined whether the petitioner's job loss was due to foreign imports and trade. If the DOL approved and certified the petition, the affected worker was then entitled to file a claim under the TAA program.

Types of Federal Trade Readjustment Allowances

The TRA came in three different forms: basic, addit꧋ional, and completion. Each had its own qu♐alifications and paid benefits on a different timeline. Some of the most important details of each are listed below.

Basic TRA

Basic TRA required no-cost skills or job training from a TAA-approved provider unless a worker obtained a training waiver.

Waivers were granted if the affected individual was unable to participꩲate in or complete training for health reasons, or if there was no available training program near🐻by.

This form of financial support equaled one's weekly UI amount received from the state multiplied by 52 weeks, minus the total amount of UI already received.

Thus, basic TRA payments were not available to people who had already received a full year of state 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:unemployment benefits.

Additional TRA

The additi🉐onal TRA🌟 gave individuals financial assistance to complete a TAA training program. This type of benefit kicked in after basic TRA benefits were exhausted and the worker required ongoing financial assistance.

It provided workers with up to 65 more weeks of benefits as long as they were enrolled in ongoing training. This maximum amount was payable within a 78-week eligibility period.

Completion TRA

Completion TRA provided an added 13 weeks of benefits if the additional TRA benefits were exhausted and the affected individual still required assistance. Benefits were payable during a 20-week eligibility period.

Eligibility was conditional on continued enrollment in training and meeting certain benchmarks associated with those training programs.

Example of Federal Trade Readjustment Allowance

Steel became a central focus of international trade news when President Donald Trump introduced tariffs on imported steel in March 2018.

The motivation behind the move was a campaign promise Trump made during the 2016 election to protect American steelworkers.

As much as 31.5 million net tons of steel was imported into the U.S. in 2021, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute, which reported data from the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:U.S. Census Bureau.

That was an increase of 43% from the previous year. Reports indicated that job losses in the steel industry were in the neighborhood of 140,000 as a result of closures due to imports.

If a steelworker was laid off prior to the cancellation of the TAA and was unable to find work within the window of standard UI coverage, they may have been entitled to a TRA benefit if it was determined that cheap 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:steel imports directly resulted in the loss of their job.

The Bottom Line

The federal trade readjustment allo🐼wance was temporary financial assistance provided by th⛦e U.S. federal government to help workers who had lost their jobs due to the effects of foreign trade and imports into the country.

The program it was part of expired on June 30, 2022.𒊎 As of the end of 2024, it had not been re🐷authorized.