[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 78 (Monday, April 25, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21247-21248]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-1940]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration

[TA-W-55,826]


Dendrite International Stroudsburg, PA; Notice of Negative 
Determination on Reconsideration

    On January 31, 2005, the Department of Labor issued its Notice of 
Affirmative Determination Regarding Application for Reconsideration for 
workers and former workers of the subject firm. The Department's Notice 
was published in the Federal Register on February 22, 2005 (70 FR 
8638).
    The Department's initial determination was issued on the basis that 
the workers did not produce an article within the meaning of section 
222(a)(2) of the Trade Act.
    In the request for reconsideration, the petitioner alleged that the 
workers produced an article, licensed pharmaceutical sales software 
sold in a physical medium, such as CD-ROM.

[[Page 21248]]

    During the reconsideration investigation, the Department contacted 
several members of the subject worker group and several company 
officials to determine whether the workers were engaged in activity 
related to the production of an article.
    The reconsideration investigation revealed that the workers used to 
work for another company that produced sales force automation software 
and began working for the subject company when it was purchased by the 
subject company in 1999. After the purchase, the subject company 
continued to sell the sales force automation software to vendors within 
the pharmaceutical industry and provided related software support and 
maintenance services to its clients, such as implementing changes in 
the software configuration to adapt to a client's needs. Sales of the 
software ceased in 2002 and the subject facility did not replicate any 
software available to the retail public after 2002.
    From that time in 2002 until the subject facility closed in 2004, 
the workers provided software support and maintenance services. The 
services rendered pursuant to a service contract included providing a 
``bug-fix'' solution burned on a CD to a client in response to a 
specific problem, sending another copy of the obsolete software per a 
client's request, and updating software via electronic mail or network 
messages.
    The reconsideration also revealed that those activities which were 
moved to Bangalore, India did not subsequently enter the United States 
in a physical medium and that the remaining support services were 
consolidated into the subject company's Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and 
Bedminster, New Jersey facilities.
    Furthermore, because the ``bug-fix'' solution was not mass-produced 
but custom designed to meet specific, one-time needs of an individual 
client, it was inherently unique. As such, each ``bug-fix'' release was 
a separate creation of a trouble-solving solution. Therefore, even if 
the Department were to consider the ``bug-fix'' CD to be a product for 
purposes of TAA, neither Section 222(a)(2)(B)--increased imports--nor 
Section 222 (a)(2)(A)--shift of production--of the Trade Act would have 
been met because each solution could not have been considered ``like or 
directly'' competitive with other custom designed solutions.

Conclusion

    After reconsideration, I affirm the original notice of negative 
determination of eligibility to apply for worker adjustment assistance 
for workers and former workers of Dendrite International, Stroudsburg, 
Pennsylvania.

    Signed at Washington, DC, this 1st day of April 2005.
Elliott S. Kushner,
Certifying Officer, Division of Trade Adjustment Assistance.
[FR Doc. E5-1940 Filed 4-22-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-30-P