‘Sunny outside, but everything’s cloudy’

State outreach team knows how laid-off sugar workers feel

LIHU’E – As unemployment benefits begin to expire for hundreds of former workers of Amfac Sugar Kaua’i operations displaced by the closure of the plantations last November, the state Workforce Development Division’s Kaua’i chapter is trying to reach individuals affected by the massive layoffs.

Manolo Herrera, Stan Dotario, Ernie Domingo and Anthony Acain are former Amfac employees who now are outreach workers for the agency. Herrera and Dotario work the east side of the island from Puhi to the North Shore area, while Domingo and Acain take care of territory from Puhi out to Kekaha on the west side.

The former sugar workers’ task is to canvass the island in search of workers and families who have been affected directly by the closure of Amfac sugar operations but have not come forward to register or take advantage of the programs being offered by the workforce agency.

“There are a lot of them,” Domingo said. “But they are afraid to come in” to the Workforce Development office.

Reasons for not registering vary, but the most common reason is that they are not fluent in English or they feel they don’t have any educational background, officials say.

Frustration is another common problem encountered by the outreach workers. They have heard complaints from affected workers that prospective employers at the career fairs held before the Amfac closure offered only empty promises in the guise of application forms with no prospect of employment, nor any form of educational training that would qualify them for jobs.

Part of this frustration, the outreach workers say, is a result of the finality of the plantation lifestyle and work culture and being able to accept the new work culture.

The Workforce Development workers are also affected by this cultural transition, having graduated from the job-readiness programs.

“I look at the dry mountains and I say to myself, ‘I should be opening up the…'” Acain said, catching himself.

“I just saw them truck the vehicles I used to drive,” Dotario sighed. Domingo added, “Yeah, I watched them move my D8 down the road.”

Dotario explained he has encountered families who are “in limbo.” and say “something needs to happen.”

“They’re just waiting,” he said. “It might be sunny outside, but everything’s cloudy.”

Collective data brought back by the outreach team indicates that many of the laid-off workers have retired, while others indicate their unwillingness to participate in the program that would equip them with new work skills.

Workforce Development counselor Edie Ignacio said the workers “need to do something” to adjust, “even if it means taking an entry-level position to get in the door.”

“Encouragement,” said Domingo. “We offer them a lot of encouragement. Don’t give up. That’s about all we can do. But they need to come in (to the office) so they can see if there’s something they can use.”

Ignacio and Erin Doo are encouraged by the outreach findings. In addition to getting an idea of how many people are being affected by the Amfac closure, the counselors are learning how many more people will be coming through the program – or, on the other hand, have no intention of taking advantage of the program.

According to statistics released by Workforce Development, 416 employees were put out of work by the closure. Of this total, 145 are not actively seeking employment because of various reasons, including the that some are still working or are retired, relocated or ill.

That leaves 247 workers, or over half of the former sugar workforce, who are still job-hunting or are capable of being a part of the employment picture. To date, only 75 of these people have registered or have taken advantage of the Workforce Development programs.

The Workforce outreach team also brings back data on why people are reluctant about participating in the programs.

“A lot of them have been job-searching on their own,” Dotario explained. “Some of them have even gone off-island in search of employment. But they come back with nothing.”

That has made the outreach workers’ task even harder. Domingo said he has had to call people back several times, and sometimes his only contact is at night or during the weekends.

“We’re working with the Community School of Continuing Education,” Igancio said of the agency’s plans to start a program teaching English as a second language in answer to some of the concerns expressed by the displaced workforce.

However, she emphasized that this is only in the planning stages. There is also communication talk of encouraging people to enroll in programs to acquire their high school diploma.

The addition of the outreach workers to help the agency reach displaced workers is not the only action taken to facilitate the transition from a sugar plantation culture. Ignacio said the Waimea Neighborhood Center has been opened each Tuesday from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. so the laid-off workers on the west side don’t have to travel to Lihu’e to find out more about Workforce programs.

Most of the ex-Amfac employees are at the stage where their unemployment benefits will end in a few weeks. For those who were casualties of the first furlough last July and never returned to work, the benefits will expire shortly if they haven’t already, the Workforce Development counselors said.

Staff photographer Dennis Fujimoto can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253).