Workforce Investment Act State Compliance Policies. SECTION: 1.8 Core, Intensive and Training Services August 2005

Transcription

1 Workforce Investment Act State Compliance Policies SECTION: 1.8 Core, Intensive and Training Services August 2005 I. Core Services: The following core services may be provided to eligible adults and dislocated workers by One-Stop operators or through providers approved by the Local Workforce Investment Board (LWIB) [ and Section 134(d)(2)]: A. Outreach, intake (which may include worker profiling), and orientation to the services and information available through the One-Stop delivery system; B. Initial assessment of skill levels, aptitudes, abilities, and supportive service needs; C. Job search and placement assistance; D. Career counseling; E. Provision of employment statistics information, including the provision of accurate information relating to local, regional, and national labor market areas: 1. Job vacancy listings in such labor market areas; 2. Information on job skills necessary to obtain employment; 3. Information relating to local occupations in demand and the earnings and skill requirements for such occupations; F. Provision of performance information and program cost information on eligible providers of training services, eligible providers of youth activities, providers of adult education, providers of postsecondary vocational education activities, and vocational education activities available to school dropouts; G. Provision of information regarding how the local area is performing on the local performance measures, and any additional performance information with respect to the One-Stop delivery system in the local area; H. Provision of accurate information relating to the availability of supportive services, including childcare and transportation, available in the local area, and referral to such services, as appropriate; Section Core, Intensive, Training Services Page 1 of 5

2 I. Provision of information regarding filing claims for unemployment compensation; J. Assistance in establishing eligibility for programs of financial aid assistance for training and education programs that are not funded under WIA and are available in the local area; and K. Follow-up services, including counseling regarding the workplace, for individuals receiving core services and placed in unsubsidized employment, for not less than 12 months after the first day of the employment. II. Intensive Services: The following intensive services are available if the individual is unable to obtain employment through core services, and must be provided to eligible adults and dislocated workers through the One-Stop Delivery system, including specialized One-Stop centers. Intensive services may be provided directly by the One-Stop operator or through contracts with services providers, which may include contracts with public, private for- profit and private non-profit service providers (including specialized service providers) approved by the Local Workforce Investment Board [ , Sections 117(d)(2)(D) and 134(d)(3)(C)]. Note: There is no Federally required minimum time period for participation in intensive services before receiving training services. The period of time an individual spends in intensive services should be sufficient to prepare the individual for training or employment [ (a) and ]. A. Comprehensive and specialized assessments of the skill levels and service needs of adults and dislocated workers, which may include: 1. Diagnostic testing and use of other assessment tools; and 2. In-depth interviewing and evaluation to identify employment barriers and appropriate employment goals; B. Development of an Individual Employment Plan (IEP), to identify the employment goals, appropriate achievement objectives, and appropriate combination of services for the participant to achieve the employment goals; C. Group counseling; D. Individual counseling and career planning; E. Case management for participants seeking training services; Section Core, Intensive, Training Services Page 2 of 5

3 F. Short-term pre-vocational services, including development of learning skills, communication skills, interviewing skills, punctuality, personal maintenance skills, and professional conduct, to prepare individuals for unsubsidized employment or training; G. Out-of-area job search assistance; H. Literacy activities related to basic workforce readiness; I. Relocation assistance; J. Internships; K. Work experience; Note: Work experience is a planned, structured learning experience that takes place in a workplace for a limited period of time. Work experience may be paid or unpaid, as appropriate. A work experience workplace may be in the private for-profit sector, the non-profit sector, or the public sector. Labor standards apply in any work experience where an employee/employer relationship, as defined by the Fair Labor Standards Act, exists [ (b)]. III. Training Services: A. The following training services may be provided to eligible adults and dislocated workers through eligible providers approved by the LWIB, if they have received an intensive service and they have been unable to obtain or retain employment [ and Section 134(d)(4)(D)]: 1. Occupational skills training, including training for nontraditional employment; 2. On-the-Job training (see WIA State Compliance Policy Section 1.14); 3. Programs that combine workplace training with related instruction, which may include cooperative education programs; 4. Training programs operated by the private sector; 5. Skill upgrading and retraining; 6. Entrepreneurial training; 7. Job readiness training; 8. Adult education and literacy activities provided in combination with services described in 1 through 7 above; 9. Customized training; and 10. Other training services authorized by the LWIBs. B. Training services are limited to participants who are unable to obtain grant assistance from other sources to pay the costs of their training, or who Section Core, Intensive, Training Services Page 3 of 5

4 require assistance beyond that available under grant assistance from other sources to pay the costs of the training activity [ (a)(1)(2)]. 1. One-Stop operators must coordinate the uses of all available training funds and make funding arrangements with One-Stop partners. Training providers must consider the availability of Pell Grants and other sources of grants to pay for training costs, so that WIA funds supplement other sources of training grants [ (b)]. 2. An individual receiving training services may enroll in WIA-funded training while his/her application for a Pell Grant is pending as long as the One-Stop operator has made arrangements with the training provider and the individual regarding allocation of the Pell Grant. If it is subsequently awarded, the training provider must reimburse the One-Stop operator the WIA funds used to underwrite the training for the amount the Pell Grant covers. Reimbursement is not required from the portion of Pell Grant assistance disbursed to the WIA participant for education-related expenses [ (c) and Section 134(d)(4)(B)(ii)]. C. Training services must be directly linked to occupations that are in demand in the local area, or in another area to which the individual receiving training services is willing to relocate. In addition to published demand occupations, the LWIBs may approve additional training services for occupations determined by the LWIBs to be sectors of the economy that have a high potential for sustained demand or growth in the local area [Section 134(d)(4)(G)(iii)]. D. All training services must be provided in a manner that maximizes informed consumer choice in selecting an eligible provider. Each Local Board, through the One-Stop center, must make available to customers the State list of eligible training providers (see WIA State Compliance Policy Section 1.12). The list will include a description of [134(d)(4)(F)]: 1. The programs through which the providers may offer the training service; 2. The information identifying eligible providers of on-the-job training and customized training; and 3. The performance and cost information about eligible providers of training services. Note: An individual who has been determined eligible for training services may select a provider from the State eligible provider list after consultation with a case manager. Unless the program has exhausted funds for the program year, the One-Stop operator must refer the individual to the selected provider, and establish an Individual Training Account (ITA) for the individual to pay for the selected course of training. A referral may be carried out by Section Core, Intensive, Training Services Page 4 of 5

5 providing a voucher or certificate to the individual to obtain the training [ ]. State policies relating to supportive services and needs related payments are indicated in WIA State Compliance Policy Section Section Core, Intensive, Training Services Page 5 of 5