Worker Advocates to Hold Unemployment Training for NYC Retail Workers (1/12/09)

Retailers are reeling from one of the worst holiday shopping seasons in memory and retail workers are working reduced hours and being laid off. In order to help retail workers cope with the dramatic changes in the economy, the Retail Action Project (RAP), a project of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) and community group Good Old Lower East Side (GOLES), is holding an unemployment training for retail workers in New York City.

 The training, “Know Your Unemployment Rights,” will teach workers how to navigate the unemployment system while they continue looking for new employment. The first training will take place in the RWDSU offices on January 15th at 12noon at 30 E. 29th Street on the 2nd floor. 

“Nationally, we could be looking at more than 70,000 stores close in the first half of 2009,” said Stuart Appelbaum, president of the 100,000 member RWDSU. “We’re working with community partners to make sure retail workers – union and non-union – know their rights and know how to access critical services like unemployment benefits.” 

“The retail sector impacts the livelihoods of many residents in the Lower East Side, and throughout the entire city,” said Damaris Reyes, executive-director of the Good Old Lower East Side (GOLES), a community organization. “We need to make sure that retail workers have avenues to provide for their families in this economically bleak period.”

“This is just one of many services that we provide,” said Carrie Gleason, a spokesperson for RAP. “In addition to helping people navigate the unemployment system, we also provide customer service trainings and help retail workers write resumes and look for jobs. We’re one-stop shopping for people that work in New York’s retail industry.”

**Please note the unemployment training is not a media event. Press availability with the RWDSU, GOLES, RAP and individual retail workers can be arranged prior to the training by contacting Paul J. Karr at 917-450-2451 or pkarr@rwdsu.org.