Funded through the Recovery Act, the programs that directly benefit job seekers include:
Adult Employment and Training Activities: This $500 million program provides training services to eligible individuals through local One-Stop Career Centers (www.careeronestop.org). With more than 3,000 local centers nationwide, job seekers can benefit from three levels of services:
1. Core services that offer outreach, job search and placement assistance, and labor market information.
2. Intensive services that provide comprehensive assessments, development counseling, and career planning.
3. Training services that give job seekers workplace opportunities within their communities as well as basic skills and individual occupational tutorials from qualified instructors.
Dislocated Worker Employment and Training Activities: This $1.25 billion program assists workers who have been terminated or laid off from employment due to a permanent closure or substantial layoffs. Other eligible workers include individuals who have exhausted unemployment insurance; self-employed workers who can’t find work because of an economic downturn or a natural disaster; and homemakers who no longer receive support from another family member. An additional $2 million in funds have been allocated for National Emergency Grants related to plant closings, mass layoffs or other worker dislocations.
Program of Competitive Grants for Worker Training and Placement in High Growth and Emerging Industry Sectors: This $750 million program provides grants for worker training and placement in projected high-growth industries. Of the total, $500 million supports research, labor exchange, and job training projects for careers in energy efficiency and the renewable industry. The remaining $250 million supports projects in the healthcare sector.
Community Service Employment for Older Americans: This $120 million program provides part-time employment for low-income seniors nationwide. The Department of Labor’s Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) promotes high-quality job training and employment assistance to workers age 55 and older with a family income of no more than 25% over the federal poverty level, which is an annual income of $22,050 for a family of four in 48 states and Washington, D.C. Senior workers can benefit from community and participant services, which include Individual Employment Plans (IEP).