What's New in Workforce Investment?

The Department of Labor has announced nearly $147 million in grants to develop and expand innovative strategies to help Americans return to work by delivering services more efficiently, facilitating cooperation across programs and funding streams, and focusing on partnerships with specific employers or industry sectors to develop programs that reflect current and future skill needs.

One of the overarching goals of the Workforce Innovation Fund is to better assess the effectiveness of each workforce strategy, so all grants include an evaluation component. By evaluating projects, the fund will significantly increase the body of knowledge about the most effective strategies in workforce development.

Twenty-six grants, ranging from $1 million to $12 million each, have been awarded to a combination of state workforce agencies and local workforce investment boards, as well as one Workforce Investment Act Section 166 grantee serving Indian and Native American communities.

The Labor Department also is highlighting the availability of up to $20 million through the second round of Workforce Innovation Fund funding - expected to be announced in spring 2013 - to pilot the "Pay for Success" model. This model represents a new way of financing workforce investment projects through which the government only pays for services that achieve measurable results, shifting the risk of investment from the government to the private sector.

News Release / Listing of Grantees

Workforce Innovation Fund / Pay for Success Webpage

Pay for Success Solicitation

Remarks by Secretary Solis at the Workforce Innovation Fund Press Conference