Trudy

Trudy, 56, was laid off—along with 550 of her co-workers—from the Bayer Corp. manufacturing plant in Elkhart, Ind., in December when production was moved to Mexico and Germany. She had worked there for 23 years. Since leaving Bayer, Trudy has been working with dislocated workers who are dealing with the ramifications of job loss.

My Story
When Bayer decided to move production overseas, I was so angry—angry at Bayer’s disregard for the 550 people whose lives were impacted and angry at their decision to outsource jobs. This anger compelled me to action. I have been traveling to countries around the world to talk about the need for workers to unite on a global level to protect human rights. We need to have trade policies that encourage job creation here in the United States, not take good jobs away from hard-working Americans.

Now that I’m spending my time trying to help dislocated workers, I have heard too many stories about people whose lives have been devastated by their job loss. With older workers, they are finding their age to be an impediment on finding new work and getting retrained. Retirees are concerned about the skyrocketing cost of health care. So many—too many—are dealing with stress and depression.

I am trying to help them cope with issues like job retraining and paying for their health care. I am trying to keep them from getting evicted when they can no longer afford their rent or mortgage. And I am trying to prevent them from committing suicide when the outlook seems bleakest.

I’m a survivor—I feel like it’s my duty to do all that I can to help others. Myself, I’m in school completing my bachelor’s of science in labor studies. I’m scared, however, for the future of others. My husband still works at the Bayer plant and worries every day that he might get laid off. After my youngest daughter got laid off, my husband and I are helping to put her through nursing school, a career that we hope will be immune to the jobs crisis. I have 13 grandchildren, and I worry about what the economic future holds for them.

I hope we can get this country back on track because I fear for our future if we don’t have a leader who is dedicated to creating good jobs for all.