12/18/2009
Arbor Sponsors the Mega Job Expo in Maryland
12/07/2009
ResCare – New Deal in the UK
12/01/2009
2nd Arbor E&T Bake Sale raises $500 for SHARE
11/25/2009
Notification of Breach of Private Information
11/23/2009
Mon Valley Bridge Open House
11/20/2009
SuperJobs Seasonal Hiring
11/18/2009
National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week 2009, Allen County
11/16/2009
Arbor Welcomes New Texas Regional Vice President
11/06/2009
A moment to honor our veterans
10/22/2009
Arbor Fights the Flu
10/16/2009
ResCare Comments on Indiana Governor’s Announcement
10/07/2009
In the News: Arbor and Green Guide Network
10/01/2009
Tremendous Project in Cincinnati
9/28/2009
Five Project Directors: Interview Five
9/22/2009
Five Project Directors: Interview Four
9/15/2009
Five Project Directors: Interview Three
9/15/2009
Arbor Sponsors Literacy Gala
9/08/2009
Five Project Directors: Interview Two
9/01/2009
Five Project Directors: Interview One
8/26/2009
Snohomish County Enlarges Dislocated Worker Program
8/20/2009
Pennsylvania Governor Visits Harrisburg Summer Youth Program
8/18/2009
Canoga Park Job and Resource Fair
8/13/2009
VIPs in SuperJobs Cincy
8/12/2009
U.S. Department of Labor’s 2009 United We Serve Initiative Begins
7/28/2009
An Innovative Summer Youth Project in Oregon
7/21/2009
Tulsa iJobs Program in Full Swing
7/20/2009
ARRA 2009
7/17/2009
Green Strategies Workgroup
7/15/2009
Green Jobs
7/6/2009
Arbor TANF Partnership in Nebraska Receiving Positive Feedback
7/1/2009
Arbor E&T is Thinking Green
ResCare – New Deal in the UK
By Jamie M. Barnes
(Austin, Texas) - ResCare, Inc., parent company of Arbor E&T, LLC, recently shared the good news that its subsidiary, PeopleServe, was awarded five contracts in the United Kingdom that will operate under the Flexible New Deal to assist the unemployed. Because not all of us are familiar with these programs, this article is intended to shed some light on PeopleServe and the Flexible New Deal by comparing them to Arbor and the Workforce Investment Act.
The new contracts, which began October 5th, 2009, operate out of 15 training centers in five regions of the U.K. PeopleServe joined the ResCare family of companies in December 2007, and has since been expanding its services across the U.K. ResCare’s long history of workforce and human services success in the U.S. brought ResCare to international attention, allowing the company to competitively serve customers in the U.K. As one of the world’s largest providers of employment, training and community support services, ResCare takes pride in helping its customers reach their full potential.
As a ResCare subsidiary in the U.K., PeopleServe delivers a diverse range of services, including educational and vocational training, job placement assistance, redundancy support and employment programs. In this context, the term “redundancy” in the U.K. means “laid off from work.” Terminology aside, the services offered by PeopleServe at Jobcentre Plus locations are not much different from those offered by its U.S. cousin, Arbor E&T, at the One-Stop centers. Instead of the Flexible New Deal, Arbor adheres to the Workforce Investment Act policies, which are quite similar and were designed for essentially the same purpose.
The Flexible New Deal, the most recent adaptation of the U.K.’s 1998 New Deal, is a response to the socioeconomic changes of the last decade. The program began as welfare reform designed to lower the alarming rate of youth unemployment. Young jobseekers were no longer allowed to remain on unemployment benefits indefinitely, with the New Deal requiring that they participate in meaningful activities designed to improve their chances of getting a job. It should be noted, however, that there is actually more than one New Deal.
After the initial success of the first New Deal (New Deal for Young People) in early 1998, more New Deal programs were introduced to serve other targeted groups of individuals claiming unemployment benefits, such as the New Deal for Lone Parents, or the New Deal 50 Plus and the New Deal for Disabled People. In all, during the period between 1998 and 2008, the New Deals took on six forms covering all public assistance recipients. In addition, the U.K. created the Jobcentre Plus and the Pathways to Work program as part of the New Deal, enabling claimants to prepare for and seek work in a positive, can-do atmosphere.
The New Deals, including the most recent version, are less confusing if you stop and consider the following two facts:
- Anyone applying for out-of-work benefits through Jobcentre Plus is potentially eligible for one of the New Deals.
- All the New Deals work essentially the same way, ensuring that benefits recipients are engaged in meaningful activities that improve their chances of securing a job.
Interestingly, the way the New Deals work is pretty much the same way the welfare-to-work programs function here in the U.S., each with the goal of stopping the cycle of poverty and dependence on public assistance. More interesting still is that the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, which mandated the creation of One-Stop centers across the U.S., offers services that are strikingly parallel to the New Deals’. Below is a description of how the core services of each of the New Deal programs work, with commentary on the Workforce Investment Act or One-Stop centers:
- Every participant in the New Deals can call on the services of a caseworker. A caseworker can help the claimant to look for a job or overcome their own personal barriers to finding a job. All Workforce Investment Act participants have a case manager who works one-on-one with the participant to identify and remove barriers to employment.
- The New Deals allow those out of work to take a new look at their own personal situation, and to take the skills and experience that they may have already and build on them to create better opportunities for work. All Workforce Investment Act participants engage in individual employment planning, and are assessed for their particular needs, skills, interests and experiences to develop an achievable career path.
- From the beginning, the New Deals have been delivered in close partnership with the private and voluntary sectors. The private and voluntary sector directly provides most of the support available through the New Deal for Disabled People and a substantial proportion of that available through the other New Deals. The Workforce Investment Act program and the One-Stops work to remove barriers to employment by partnering with other providers to meet all the special needs of the customer. These partnerships include schools, social services agencies, disability support agencies, employers and volunteer agencies working together to ensure the customers’ success.
- Caseworkers help to motivate and raise the expectations of the individual. But in return for the help and support provided through the New Deals, and the financial support provided through the benefit system, society has a legitimate expectation that participants will make their own best efforts to get and keep a job. The rights and responsibilities attached to different benefits and different New Deals vary, from the mandatory New Deals (NDYP and ND25+), where participants are required to participate in mandatory activity, through to the four voluntary New Deals where support is offered to help people back to work or make them more prepared for employment. Workforce Investment Act participants in all programs (Adult, Youth, Dislocated Worker, and Trade Adjustment Assistance) are held accountable for their work and are expected to make reasonable progress to maintain eligibility for the program benefits. Additionally, customers may be co-enrolled in other public assistance programs, and must meet all participation requirements to remain eligible. WIA tracks services to ensure that none are duplicated across the different welfare-to-work and public assistance programs.
- Jobcentre Plus led the world in integrating benefits and employment services, ensuring customers receive their rights and meet their responsibilities. Jobcentre Plus takes overall ownership of the individual’s experience of the welfare to work system and the New Deals, helping customers to navigate the system.
The nationwide One-Stop centers serve as a central location where participants can access the welfare-to-work education and training programs, as well as job readiness and job search activities.
- A key feature of the New Deals has always been to work closely with employers. Helping our customers get the jobs they want at the same time as helping employers get the workers they need. One-Stop centers work closely with employers, ensuring that customers obtain satisfying jobs and employers find qualified employees.
To further simplify function of the programs, the New Deals and the Workforce Investment Act program are both designed to assist in the identification and removal of barriers that prevent individuals from working. Examples of common barriers are literacy and numeracy deficits, transportation, child care, work readiness and occupational training. The goals of the programs are much the same in that they direct their efforts to reduce or eradicate poverty and dependence on public assistance.
Similar in function to the state workforce commissions in the U.S., the U.K. Department for Work and Pensions describes five core principles of the Flexible New Deal that are nearly the equivalent of those of the Workforce Investment Act:
- A stronger framework of rights and responsibilities to move benefit customers from being passive recipients to active jobseekers. Workforce Investment Act customers must actively participate and show reasonable progress to continue receiving Workforce Investment Act services.
- A personalized and responsive approach to individual customer needs which will provide tailored employment and skills support to meet the needs of both customers and local employers. Workforce Investment Act customers have one-on-one support from case managers who know the local job market and the needs of the employers.
- A partnership approach with public, private and third sector organizations working together to maximize innovation, leading to more and better outcomes. Workforce Investment Act case managers work with the customer and the community to ensure that all the customer barriers are overcome.
- Devolving and empowering communities for future sustainable employment which will be at the heart of neighborhood renewal. Workforce Investment Act allows individual states to guide the program, ensuring that participants receive career guidance that not only meets their needs and interests, but also benefits the local economy.
- Not just jobs, but jobs that pay and offer opportunities for progression, with an emphasis on sustaining and progressing in work to ensure all customers who need help to develop their skills have access to the relevant pre-employment and in-work training. Workforce Investment Act uses localized job market research to determine the occupations with the most growth potential when assisting customers with training and career preparation.
As illustrated above, the New Deals and the Workforce Investment Act are very much alike in their mission to remove barriers to employment. They are designed to eliminate poverty and stop dependence on public assistance programs by empowering individuals to become self-sufficient. Additionally, they assist their participants to take control of their futures and achieve the realistic, personally meaningful goals they set within the safety and structure of the programs.
Furthermore, the New Deals and the Workforce Investment Act assist communities by staffing local businesses and training workers for high-growth occupations that often benefit the municipal infrastructure. In many areas, as poverty and joblessness is reduced by these welfare-to-work programs, the local crime rate shrinks and public safety increases. ResCare is proud to be part of the delivery and administration of these programs, and is already assisting new customers in the U.K. to reach their full potential.
For more information about the programs and agencies mentioned in this article, visit the following links:
http://www.arboret.com
http://www.doleta.gov/usworkforce/wia/act.cfm
http://www.doleta.gov/USWORKFORCE/WIA/wialaw.txt
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/pmnewdeal2-01-08.pdf
http://www.peopleserve.com/
http://www.rescare.com
http://www.rescare.com/news/success_stories/2009/new_deal.cfm
