The state government plans to close its Tennessee Career Center in Greeneville, effective Aug. 31, a spokesman for the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development confirmed this week.

The spokesman said that inadequate federal funding was the key factor forcing the closure here and in a number of other Tennessee communities.

Local job-seekers will be able to find help in other state Career Centers in this area.

The closing of the local Career Center, which is located in the Rhea Building at 214 N. College St., had been rumored here recently.

No official announcement of the impending closure of the office had been made, however, and no announcement was planned, according to Milissa Reierson, a spokesman for the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development.

"Yes, it is true," Reierson wrote in response to an e-mail message about the rumored closing.

"Our staff will inform employers and job-seekers about the transfer of [career center] services to other career centers near them," she said in response to a Greeneville Sun reporter's question.

Reierson said the three employees of the local Tennessee Career Center likely will be transferred to the Tennessee Career Center in Talbott when the Greeneville office closes on Aug. 31. The Talbott Career Center currently has nine employees, she said.

Several other local offices across the state have been affected as well since last year, she stated.

Since Jan. 1, 2007, Reierson said, the Department of Labor & Workforce Development has closed -- or has made plans to close -- 12 career centers across the state.

Tennessee Career Centers located in Dandridge and Tazewell also are being closed this summer, according to information provided by Reierson.

"No (career center) employees will lose their jobs, and instead (will) be transferred to other centers," Reierson said.

After the Tennessee Career Center at Greeneville closes on Aug. 31, job-seekers and those wishing to file unemployment insurance claims may go to any other nearby Tennessee Career Center of their choice, according to Reierson.

The Tennessee Career Centers in Talbott and Johnson City are two of the larger alternatives for Greene County residents, she said.

* The Talbott Tennessee Career Center is located at 6057 W. Andrew Johnson Highway (U.S. Highway 11E), Suite 6A, in Talbott.

The Talbott community is located between Morristown and Jefferson City near the Hamblen-Jefferson County line.

According to Mapquest.com, the Talbott Tennessee Career Center is located 36.3 miles from the Tennessee Career Center at Greeneville.

That means a round trip from downtown Greeneville to Talbott would be roughly 72.6 miles.

The Talbott center is a "comprehensive career center" that serves what state officials call a Local Workforce Investment Area (LWIA). Greene County is part of a 10-county LWIA served by the Talbott Career Center.

The Tennessee Career Center in Johnson City serves a similar function for Carter, Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi and Washington Counties, according to state officials.

Besides the Talbott facility, other area Tennessee Career Centers that Greene County residents may visit include:

* The Tennessee Career Center at Johnson City, at 2515 Wesley St., Johnson City, TN 37601. Its phone number is (423) 610-0222.

* Tennessee Career Center at Newport, at 440 Eastern Plaza Way, Newport, TN 37821. Its telephone number is (423) 623-1108.

* Tennessee Career Center at Rogersville, at 1112 East Main St., Rogersville, TN 37857. Its telephone number is (423) 272-2661.

Don Ingram, administrator of the Employment Security Division of the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development, said job-seekers may conduct job searches over the Internet.

But, Ingram explained, job-seekers must first register in person at a Tennessee Career Center in order to be referred to job interviews.

Ingram also said efforts are under way to develop a system that will allow persons trying to find jobs to register with a Tennessee Career Center by Internet or by telephone in the future.

"The Tennessee Career Center System was designed with valuable input from businesses and private industry statewide," the department's Web site says.

"Each center offers computerized labor market information, Internet access, workshops, and an online talent bank, in addition to job placement, recruitment, and training referrals."

In her e-mail response, Reierson blamed the closing on lack of federal funding.

"The federal government has chosen to inadequately fund the national Wagner-Peyser program that allows states to operate these centers," she wrote.

"The centers are 100 percent federally-funded, and we have experienced flat funding to the Wagner-Peyser program for the last 10 years."

The Wagner-Peyser Act of 1933 established a nationwide system of public employment offices known as the Employment Service, according to the Web site of the U.S. Department of Labor.

The Act was amended in 1998 to make the Employment Service part of the One-Stop services delivery system.

"The One Stop delivery system provides universal access to an integrated array of labor exchange services so that workers, job-seekers and businesses can find the services they need in one stop and frequently under one roof in easy-to-find locations," the U.S. Department of Labor Web site says.

But Reierson says federal funding for operations of offices such as the Tennessee Career Centers has not kept pace with rising operating costs.

She noted that "business costs [of operating the centers] have increased steadily over the years."

In addition, she wrote, "the Employment Security Division (of the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development) is now faced with a projected budget deficit of approximately $12 million for fiscal year 2009.

Division of Employment Security Administrator Ingram said federal funding for Tennessee Career Centers has remained at the same level since 1998, while operating costs have risen considerably.

"If we continue to operate in this budget deficit mode, it could lead to a significant increase in employer taxes," Reierson wrote.

Reierson also wrote that closing the center was "a tough decision."

"We don't want to close any centers, but due to federal budget deficits, we have to in order to remain effective," she wrote.

Reierson wrote that the Employment Security Division "chose to close the centers whose leases were coming up for renewal and were in close proximity of other larger, more comprehensive centers."

"The state signs long-term leases for these offices, and with more cuts possible in the future, we could not sign another long-term lease in these areas.

"In addition, due to the lack of funding, the department is transforming a 50-year job service process into a more regional concept. We are currently developing a plan to work with employers in the affected areas."

Many other states have had to make much more drastic cuts, according to Reierson.

"For example," she wrote, "Alabama closed 50 percent of their centers and laid off 50 percent of their employees."

"Our department is working to save the jobs of our civil service full-time staff. We have transferred staff to other offices that work in the affected centers."

Besides the Greeneville Career Center, the other affected offices, according to a list provided by Reierson, are:

* Celina, in Clay County, which closed Feb. 1, 2007;

* Erwin, in Unicoi County, which closed Feb. 1, 2007;

* Dandridge, in Jefferson County, which is scheduled to close June 30, 2008;

* Fayetteville, in Lincoln County, which closed Jan. 25, 2008;

* Gainesboro, in Jackson County, which closed Feb. 1, 2007;

* Jasper, in Marion County, which is scheduled to close June 30, 2008;

* Livingston, in Overton County, which closed Feb. 1, 2007;

* Opry Mills, in Davidson County, which closed Sept. 28, 2007;

* Tazewell, in Claiborne County, which is scheduled to close June 30, 2008;

* Camden, in Benton County, which is scheduled to close June 1, 2008; and

* Dayton, in Rhea County, which is scheduled to close July 1, 2008.