[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 174 (Friday, September 6, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47179-47180]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-22800]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
[TA-W-31,635]


Distribution and Auto Service, Inc. Seattle, WA; Notice of 
Negative Determination on Reconsideration on Remand

    The United States Court of International Trade (USCIT) granted the 
Secretary of Labor's motion for a voluntary remand for further 
investigation in Teamsters, Local Union No. 117, International 
Brotherhood of Teamsters, AFL-CIO-CLC v. U.S. Department of Labor (96-
04-01047).
    The Department's initial denial for the workers of Distribution and 
Auto Service, Inc. (herein after referred to as DAS), Seattle 
Washington, issued on December 5, 1995 and published in the Federal 
Register on January 26, 1996 (61 FR 2537), was based on the fact that 
the workers provided a service and did not produce an article.
    The petitioners' request for reconsideration was dismissed on 
February 9, 1996 and published in the Federal Register on February 23, 
1996 (61 FR 7021). The Department's dismissal was based on the fact 
that the application contained no new

[[Page 47180]]

substantial information which would bear importantly on the 
determination.
    The workers at DAS are engaged in predelivery services for imported 
Nissan automobiles, including repair to damaged cars. Workers also 
install components including air conditioners, graphics decals and 
appliques, luggage racks, floor mats, arm rests, bed liners (for pickup 
trucks), running boards and steps, tire covers, cargo nets, fenders 
flares, air deflectors and security systems. None of these activities 
constitutes production of an article within the meaning of the Trade 
Act.
    Local 117 claims that until these accessories are installed, the 
vehicles are ``incomplete'' and not ready for sale. Findings on remand 
show that the components installed on vehicles by workers by DAS are 
accessories which are optional according to buyer preference. All 
except air conditioners are exterior dress-up items. None of these 
items is essential to make a motor vehicle ready for retail sale, nor 
does any of them play any essential role in the operation of a motor 
vehicle. All of the accessories installed at the subject firm are 
frequently installed by the retail dealer's own service department if a 
customer wants them installed.
    Other findings on remand show that the accessories are not 
manufactured at the subject facility but purchased from other domestic 
firms. (See AR pp. 33-41.)
    Service workers may be certified eligible to apply for TAA only if 
the worker separation was caused by a reduced demand for their services 
from a parent or controlling firm or subdivision whose workers produce 
an article and who are currently under a certification for TAA. These 
conditions have not been met for Distribution and Auto Service, Inc.

Conclusion

    After reconsideration on remand, I affirm the original notice of 
negative determination of eligibility to apply for adjustment 
assistance for workers and former workers of Distribution and Auto 
Service, Inc., Seattle, Washington.

    Signed at Washington, D.C. this 22nd day of August 1996.
Russell T. Kile,
Acting Program Manager, Policy and Reemployment Services, Office of 
Trade Adjustment Assistance.
[FR Doc. 96-22800 Filed 9-5-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-30-M