ELEVEN STATES CHOSEN TO CONDUCT PILOT RE-EMPLOYMENT PROJECTS
U.S. Department of Labor
Employment and Training Administration
Office of Public Affairs
| MEDIA CONTACT: OFFICE: |
David Stewart 202-219-6871 ext. 152 |
FOR RELEASE: IMMEDIATE
Wednesday, June 30, 1999 |
Assistant Secretary of Labor Raymond Bramucci today announced that the U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration is awarding 11 states a total of $5.1 million to conduct re-employment service demonstration projects.
"This administration believes that every person that wants a job should be able to find one," said Bramucci. "These grants demonstrate our commitment to providing the best possible service to our customers - American workers."
The goals of these demonstration projects are to increase the effectiveness of re-employment services for unemployment insurance (UI) claimants, provide support for the implementation of the Workforce Investment Act and shape future policies for UI claimants at risk of exhausting benefits and need help to find new employment.
In addition to enhancing worker profiling and re-employment services, states will implement a number of innovative strategies to enhance linkages with other agencies, provide better customer service and make changes that fully comply with the Workforce Investment Act.
Summaries of the projects chosen are attached.
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AWARDS - RE-EMPLOYMENT DEMONSTRATION
STATE OF ALASKA DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Rebecca Gamez, (907) 465-2712 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $388,665 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Profiled and referred dislocated workers. |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | To promote coordination within and between all three entities Unemployment Insurance, Employment Service and EDWAA, in an effort to improve the identification of eligible claimants and to serve a larger portion of those identified. |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Statewide |
LOUISIANA DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Wanda Matessino, (225) 342-2835 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $314,374 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Profiled and referred dislocated workers. |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | WPRS has been implemented in Louisiana, but is in need of enhancements. Grant funding will be used to: implement an improved statistical model; increase resources available to profiled claimants; improve client tracking and reporting capabilities; and increase the level of service provided by job search workshop facilitators. |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Statewide |
MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, LICENSING & REGULATION
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Paulette Hall, (410) 767-2005 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $446,384 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Profiled and referred dislocated workers. |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | Given the focus on a One-Stop delivery of services, Maryland plans to improve its WPRS system by: updating the formula for the statistical model currently used; analyzing and resolving tracking systems issues; changing the delivery of the program; retraining staff; and, improving and increasing job search resources. |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Statewide |
NORTH CAROLINA EMPLOYMENT SECURITY COMMISSION
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Manfred Emmrich, (919) 733-7522 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $500,000 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Selected UI claimants who have multiple barriers to employment and are mainly dislocated workers. |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | Grant funds will allow North Carolina to provide more immediate and effective reemployment services through quicker identification of those needing services and the capability to focus on specific UI claimant populations and geographic areas. |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Certain areas with claimants who were former employees of textile, apparel, and tobacco industries. |
STATE OF NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Roger Gerby, (518) 457-6398 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $500,000 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Profiled and referred dislocated workers. |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | The profiling model needs to be evaluated and an in-depth evaluation of the system is needed to ensure reliability and validity. |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Statewide |
SOUTH CAROLINA EMPLOYMENT SECURITY COMMISSION
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Hubert Bonneau, (803) 737-2628 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $496,501 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Profiled and referred dislocated workers. |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | Grant funds will allow South Carolina to implement further improvements directed at follow-on reemployment services more closely associated with longer claim duration; local office staff development, tracking and management information systems and effective program monitoring and feedback. |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Statewide |
WASHINGTON EMPLOYMENT SECURITY DEPARTMENT
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Felix D'Allesandro, (360) 438-4810 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $498,000 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Profiled dislocated workers |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | Recognizing the current WPRS limitations, Washington will use grant funding to make improvements in three areas: total systems integration; inclusion of additional initial claims in the selection pool; and development of a new assessment tool. |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Statewide |
WEST VIRGINIA BUREAU OF EMPLOYMENT PROGRAMS
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Steve Daily, (304) 558-1138 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $482,760 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Profiled and referred dislocated workers. |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | To assist the dislocated worker through intensive case management to obtain gainful employment, therefore reducing the likelihood of long-term employment. |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Statewide |
CALIFORNIA EMPLOYMENT DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Mark Heilmann, (916) 654-6967 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $500,000 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Profiled and referred dislocated workers. |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | Demonstration project to increase the effectiveness if reemployed services for UI claimants who attend Initial Assistance Workshops by targeting self-directed work search utilizing the Internet and making improvements to tracking and reporting systems |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Statewide |
MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC SECURITY
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Jack Weidenbach, (651) 296-1692 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $500,000 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Profiled and referred dislocated workers. |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | Demonstration project that profiles claimants earlier to more rapidly intervene after the onset of unemployment and to reduce spell of unemployment. Improved assessment tool which will result in the most appropriate allocation of services and early treatment to reduce barriers to reemployment. Enhancement of eligibility review system to provide staff with Internet based tools necessary to monitor the work search efforts of profiled claimants. |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Statewide |
WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
| STATE CONTACT PERSON: | Ron Danowski, (608) 266-7406 |
| FUNDING APPROVAL: | $482,092 |
| TARGET GROUP: | Profiled and referred dislocated Workers |
| DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: | Demonstration project designed to increase the number of claimants profiled by approximately 20%, increase the intensity of services to claimants by adding to the menu of reemployment services available at selected sites, and decrease the exhaustion rate and duration of UI benefits in the specific sites by targeting profiled claimants who collect UI in their 12th week of their initial claim. |
| GEOGRAPHIC AREA COVERED: | Green Bay/Fox Valley, Madison and Milwaukee |
