Plant closings in the textile and apparel industries have resulted
in a loss of more than a third of all U.S. jobs in those industries
since August 2000. Because these jobs are disproportionately located
in nonmetro counties, the closings have had a major impact on rural
areas. In response to large local job losses in rural communities,
the Commonwealth of Virginia established Coordinated Economic Relief
Centers (CERCs) in early 2002 to provide dislocated workers and
other low-income residents access to a broad range of programs and
services in one location.
Nonmetro counties of Southside Virginia, bordering North Carolina,
were particularly hard hit by plant closings due to the concentration
of textile, apparel, and furniture plants in the area. The Martinsville
area, with a population of 93,000, lost 9,000 jobs over 1999-2002.
Pillowtex, a towel-manufacturing plant in Henry County, announced
that it was going out of business in 2003, thus eliminating an estimated
1,000 additional jobs in the area.
Operated by the Virginia Employment Commission and based
on the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s model of a single
point of contact for natural disasters, CERCs provide a one-stop
location for assistance in rural counties. Employment counseling
and training are the primary services provided at the CERCs, but
social services, health/mental health services, child support enforcement,
and emergency assistance are also available. CERCs have partnered
with community colleges, and also with nonprofit organizations such
as faith-based organizations to provide emergency food assistance
and other services.
Coordinated
Economic Relief Centers: Locations and service
areas in Virginia
CERC
location
Service
area
Population
Job
loss from plant closings
Marion
Smyth
County
33,081
2,380
over 1998-2002
Martinsville
Martinsville
City
Patrick County
Henry County
57,930
15,416
19,407
9,000
over 1999-2002
South
Boston
Halifax
County
37,355
2,000
over 1999-2002
Clarksville
Mecklenburg
County
32,380
1,400
over 2001-2002
Source:
Population is from 2000 Census of Population; job loss
is from the Virginia Employment Commission.
An ERS-funded study of the Virginia initiative found that the CERCs
helped customers obtain information about a variety of services
more conveniently. The CERCs also improved communication among partnering
agencies and strengthened ties among community service providers.
This cooperation led to improved service delivery in the community,
which resulted in low-income customers who were better informed
about available employment services.
Operating the CERCs increased staff workload and strained the resources
of the partnering agencies and organizations
significantly. Office space was also insufficient. Service integration
among agencies was limited due to the short setup time for opening
CERCs. With Federal encouragement for States to co-locate services,
the Virginia CERC experience helps in understanding the difficulties
involved. Despite implementation challenges, the Virginia CERCs
illustrate a useful strategy to help States respond to large job
losses in rural communities.
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