Workforce Development
The federal Workforce Investment Act (WIA) provides the framework for delivery of employment and training activities at the state and local levels. Businesses seeking employees, job seekers, dislocated workers, youth, incumbent workers, new entrants to the workforce, veterans, persons with disabilities and employers access many of the services that are offered in this system. In Minnesota, federally funded employment and training activities are supplemented by training paid for through the programs under the MN Job Skills Partnership and a handful of smaller, state-funded programs.
Title I of WIA addresses the needs of job-seekers who are adults, dislocated workers, and youth. Other sections of the law cover programs for adult education and literacy (Title II), the Wagner-Peyser Act (which funds the federal Employment Service that administers Unemployment Insurance and other services job seeker and employer services), and Rehab Services. In many Minnesota counties, federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and other health and welfare services are delivered through the employment service delivery system.
WIA emphasizes the development of a universal system of access to a range of federal employment and training programs through the creation of “one-stop” WorkForce Centers. It also established a federally defined “sequence of services” to regulate how and when training and other supports could be offered to individual workers, emphasized inter-agency coordination, provided for consumer choice through the creation of a voucher-based funding system for training programs, and encouraged local planning through the creation of Workforce Investment Boards (WIBs).
Workforce Service Areas
Employment and training services are delivered through defined geographic regions which are created in agreement with local elected officials. At present, there are sixteen Workforce Service Areas (WSAs) in Minnesota. They are each structured differently, reflecting the local flexibility which is a key component to WIA law.
Workforce Boards
Each WSA is overseen by the WIB (also referred to as a Local Workforce Council). Members are appointed by Local Elected Officials and include individuals representing local businesses, labor unions, educational institutions, economic development agencies, and other community based organizations. The chair of the council and a majority of the members must be representatives of the private sector. Key responsibilities of the WIBs include:
ð Developing a local plan
ð Entering a MOU with designated partners
ð Identifying eligible training providers
ð Developing a budget and administering grants
ð Overseeing the system
ð Negotiating performance measures
Each WSA has a Workforce Service Area Director, who in most cases provides support to the WIB. The director is in charge of administering WIA services through the local WorkForce Centers and local vendors who may also be contracted to provide services.
Local WIBs oversee the delivery of services through WorkForce Centers -- shared facilities in which there are state and local staff delivering employment services; and, through contracts with independent nonprofit service providers. There are currently 47 WorkForce Centers in Minnesota and about two dozen contracted service providers throughout the state who deliver services. Nonprofit service providers include (but are not limited to):
ð Arrowhead Economic Opportunity Agency
ð Employment Action Center
ð Goodwill/Easter Seals
ð HIRED
ð Teamworks, Inc.
ð Workforce Development, Inc.
Services offered at WorkForce Centers are available to everyone, including those who are transitioning from one job to another, entering into formal work for the first time, transitioning from public assistance or recent graduates. Information about services and benefits from a range of federal and state programs is provided at the WorkForce Centers and through contracted service providers.
There are over a dozen required partners in the delivery of publicly funded employment and training programs. Some programs are required to be located in a WorkForce Center; others not required to be co-located. For instance, one may find an Adult Basic Education program in on WorkForce Center but not another. This is because ABE is a required partner under WIA, but it is not mandatory that they be housed in the WorkForce Center.
In addition, a partnership of state agencies and higher education institutions operate ISEEK - the Internet System for Education and Emplyment Knowledge, a web resource for Minnesotans looking for information on planning a career, finding a job, pursuing education, or growing a business.
In practice, individuals eligible for WIA are divided into three subpopulations:
ð Adults (18 or older)
ð Dislocated Workers, including workers who have been laid off or received notice of termination from employment, are eligible for or have exhausted unemployment compensation, are self-employed but unemployed as a result of general economic conditions, and are displaced homemakers
ð Youth, defined as 14 years of age or older who are low-income individuals meeting at least one of the following conditions: deficient in basic literacy skills, a school dropout, homeless, a runaway, a foster child, pregnant or a parent, an offender, or someone who requires additional assistance to complete an educational program or to secure and hold employment
WIA Services are divided into three tiers, described in the chart below.
|
|
Eligibility |
Services |
|
Core Services |
Available to any job seeker looking to enter or re-enter the job market or looking to change jobs or careers |
Outreach, intake, orientation initial assessment;
Job search, placement assistance and career counseling;
Information on supportive services in the area (i.e., child care & transportation);
Information regarding filing claims for unemployment compensation;
Follow-up services for a period of 12 months following placement in unsubsidized employment; and,
Information on employment statistics, cost of training services, etc.
|
|
Intensive Services |
Available to individuals who have already received core services and have been designated to receive more intensive assistance |
Specialized assessments, diagnostic testing, in-depth interviewing and evaluation;
Developing an employment plan;
Out-of-area job search assistance;
Group counseling, individual counseling, career planning and case management; and
Work experience, internships and short-term prevocational services.
|
|
Training Services |
Available to individuals who received intensive services, are ineligible for other grant assistance, and are unable to obtain employment |
Occupational skills training
On-the-job training, skill upgrading, and retraining, and
Customized training with commitment from employers or a group of employers to employ individuals upon successful completion of training. |
State Funded Workforce Development Programs
Minnesota is one of few states who provide state funding for dislocated worker and youth employment programs to supplement Federal WIA dollars.
TANF/MFIP Funded Activities
In addition to WIA, many other employment and training programs (generally targeted to economically disadvantaged persons) are delivered in WorkForce Centers. For instance, most Counties have contracted with WSAs to deliver Federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and the state Minnesota Family Investment Program. Measures are taken to ensure that welfare recipients are engaged in one of the following activities:
ð Unsubsidized employment;
ð Subsidized private sector employment;
ð Subsidized public sector employment;
ð Work experience
ð On-the-job training;
ð Job search and job readiness assistance;
ð Community Service programs;
ð Vocational educational training;
ð Job skills training related directly to employment;
ð Education directly related to employment;
ð Secondary or certificate-bearing education
While local boards are primarily responsible and accountable for the management administration of grant funds allocated to the local area, the local elected officials are liable to the state and Federal governments for any misuse of funds. To help administer funds, the LEOs and the WIB must designate a fiscal agent to receive and be accountable for funds.
Performance Accountability
The performance measures and standards to which the workforce system is held accountable start first with the federal government's "common measures". Additional expectations may be created for state-funded programs or special federally-funded programs. However, most publicly-funded workforce development programs for adults are measured on three basic measures: entered employment; employment retention rate; and average earnings. Youth-serving programs may also count transitions to education as a positive outcome.
 
 
 
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