OFFICIALS WEIGH PLANT CLOSINGS

CHARLESTON -- A group of about 30 government and economic development officials met here Tuesday to discuss how best to help ease the blow of Brown Shoe Co.'s planned closure of four Southeast Missouri facilities.

As many as 1,400 employees will be out of work within the next three months. Brown Shoe plans to close factories in Charleston, Bernie and Fredericktown and a warehouse in Caruthersville.

The company announced the closings Friday as part of a restructuring plan to bring manufacturing capacity in line with a continued drop in sales.

The Charleston factory employs 400-500 of the workers and is the city's largest employer.

Several local, regional and state agencies were represented at Tuesday's meeting, held at Charleston City Hall.

"The main reason for calling this meeting is to get information on the programs for these workers that are going to be laid off; and, two, to identify economic development programs to give these workers replacement jobs," said Charleston City Manager Brian Donovan.

"This is going to take a total effort. Not just in Charleston, but there are a tremendous amount of workers in East Prairie, and it goes beyond Mississippi County. There's a tremendous impact in the entire region."

Mark Bauer of the Missouri Division of Job Development and Training said the state provides several programs to help displaced workers.

He said the Brown Shoe plant closing presents an excellent opportunity for Missouri to get additional federal funding for worker job training and counseling services.

"One of the problems that we're facing with this dislocation is funding," Bauer said. "The state of Missouri is a leader in providing these services, but the state budget is strapped.

"This will provide a very good opportunity for the state to ask the Department of Labor for additional funds, not only for this dislocation, but others around the state."

Dan Bollinger of the Bootheel Regional Planning Commission said the various agencies also want to coordinate efforts to attract industry to the region to replace the jobs lost by the Brown Shoe closings.

"You've done a lot of talking about helping the displaced workers, and we'll do whatever we can to help that," he said. "But the other thing you've got to look at is replacing those jobs."

Forrest E. Koch of the Missouri Economic Development Agency in St. Louis said some federal and state funds are allocated to help attract industry in areas affected by major layoffs. He said Charleston and Southeast Missouri likely would qualify for the funds, if there are any available.

"The problem is, $12 million is the national budget, and plants are closing all over the country," Koch said. "It's a very competitive program, so money doesn't just fall out of the sky."

Koch said the economic development funds might be used to purchase the Brown Shoe building if a new industry wants to come into the area.

The officials at Tuesday's meeting agreed that any economic development efforts must be done regionally.

Bollinger said the Bootheel Regional Planning Commission and the Southeast Missouri Regional Planning Commission in Perryville could coordinate a survey of area businesses to determine what types of jobs are available and the training needed for the laid off Brown workers.

He said the agencies also would help the Missouri Division of Job Development and Training with its federal Department of Labor grant application.

Bauer said there are nine types of discretionary grants available from the Department of Labor.

"We'll probably apply for an emergency grant," Bauer said. "We just finished one for the McDonnell Douglas (Corp.) closings in St. Louis, so we're getting proficient at this, unfortunately."

Ruth Dockins of the Southeast Missouri Regional Planning Commission said local city councils and chambers of commerce also need to get involved in the grant application.

She explained to the group several of the agencies programs for the displaced workers, including its "Rapid Response" and job-search programs. The commission also helps workers write or update resumes and provides funds for vocational training and other education.

The agency also provides funds to employers for on-the-job training programs involving the displaced workers.

"We offer the employer up to 50 percent of the wages for on-the-job training," Dockins said. "These people are out of work for no fault of their own. They're not job-hoppers; They're out of work for unfortunate reasons outside their control, and we want to help them catch their breath and do what it takes to get back in gainful employment."

Amy Phillips, who works with the Missouri AFL-CIO Worker Re-entry Program, said that program helps workers manage stress associated with a layoff.

Rick Sparks, who heads the University of Missouri Extension Service in Jackson, said the extension provides similar assistance through its two-day career-options program.

"We do a lot of self-esteem building," Sparks said. "They will see that there is going to be life after Brown Shoe Co., is gone."

Bauer said that at some point the "Rapid Response" team will hold a meeting with all the employees about to be laid off.

"At that meeting, they are bombarded with information," Bauer said. "What may happen is, you'll get calls here locally. These people are under terrible stress when we're talking and they don't always understand what we're telling them."

William Swift of the local AFL-CIO union said the layoffs likely will cause tremendous stress in the workers.

"We have seen some real problems arise when we've had these big layoffs," he said. "It's going to be hard for the (union) members to realize when they put the bolt on the door out there that it's probably not going to reopen again. The stress that they'll be dealing with will be just tremendous."

J.R. Grimsley, manager of the Sikeston Job Service office, agreed. "he experts tell us that next to divorce and a death in the family, the loss of a job is the most stressful thing we can go through," Grimsley said.

He said he would like any information on layoffs as it becomes available so he can plan for a "rush" of workers at the office, which only includes three unemployment claims processors.

"People in the state tend to think the state line ends in Cape Girardeau," Grimsley said. "When 1,600 people are laid off in the Bootheel, the people in St. Louis don't think anything of it.

"But when 6,000 people are laid off at Chrysler in St. Louis, we have the same problem with 1,600 people laid off down here."