1. 1 Program and Compliance Management Workshop: Serving Veterans within the Context of Priority of Service V I R T U A L L Y

2. 2 OUTLINE Introduction – About Veterans Serving Veterans – What American Job Center Staff Should Know Priority of Service – Getting it Right Every Time Policy Requirements Available Resources! Your Data / Your Story

3. 3 Introduction – About Veterans

4. Key Differences Veteran and Non-Veteran AJC Customers Over half of veteran participants at AJCs are 45+ For veterans 45+ the EER is 40% For most age groups, unemployment rates for veterans are higher than for non-veterans Age and duration of military service interact to produce identifiable veteran subgroups Veterans of recent conflicts face new challenges in current labor market 4

5. Facing Unique Challenges Veterans of Recent Conflicts Heavy reliance of Armed Forces on Guard and Reserve units resulting in high numbers returning from deployments –May need help with reinstatement of old job > Referral to VETS staff under USERRA Recent conflicts are resulting in disabilities such as PTSD and TBI –Employers hesitant to take on risks –Veterans hesitant to seek treatment and/or to disclose conditions for fear of consequences 5

6. Most Helpful Workforce Services 2010 Study of Key Veteran Subgroups  Young and recently separated (UCX claimants): low intensity services, such as job search and referral  Mid-career, not recently separated (UI claimants): medium intensity services, such as job search and referral + career guidance  Older, recently separated (Retired): high intensity services like case management  Those with significant barriers (e.g., homeless): not included in study; referral to needed services Question: How does this align with your current service design and delivery strategy? 6

7. 7 Serving Veterans – What AJC Staff Should Know

8. What Local Staff Need to Know Priority of Service Applies to ALL Services POS applies to the full range of services offered by workforce programs –Self-service* –Staff-assisted core services –Intensive services –Training services POS is not restricted to program enrollment *POS would apply to the extent access to self-services is limited (e.g., computers in resource rooms) 8 8

9. What Local Staff Need to Know Excluding Military Income Income earned while on active duty is disregarded when considering eligibility or low income status –Also includes service-connected disability compensation –See WIA Regulations (Sec. 667.255) –Does not include DOD pension for retirees 9

10. What Local Staff Need to Know Coordinating Benefits to Fund Training WIA requires coordination of “other grant assistance” when funding training (e.g., Pell grants) –VA benefits such as the GI Bill are not other grant assistance,” meaning veterans do not have to exhaust VA benefits as a condition for receipt of WIA training TEN 29-11 (2/16/12) – Post-9/11 GI Bill 10

11. What Local Staff Need to Know Verification of Veteran Status POS emphasizes immediate delivery of services to veterans and eligible spouses, not verification of status While awaiting verification, program staff may provide services on a priority basis, including intensive services While awaiting verification, services based on outside resources (such as classroom training) may not be delivered on a priority basis 11

12. 12 Priority of Service – Getting it Right Every Time

13. Highlights—What POS Actually Means “Priority” earlier or instead of –Veterans and eligible spouses are entitled to precedence over non-covered persons to services – in other words, a covered person either receives access to a service earlier or instead of the non-covered person If a non-covered person is already enrolled, POS does not mean that the veteran or eligible spouse can bump that individual 13

14. How It Works Across Programs Universal Access Programs – No eligibility criteria  First priority level – Veterans and Eligible Spouses  Second priority level – Non-covered persons Programs with Eligibility Criteria – Conditions that all participants must meet (e.g., WIA DW)  First priority level – Veterans and Eligible Spouses who meet eligibility criteria  Second priority level – Non-covered persons who meet eligibility criteria 14

15. 15 Policy Requirements

16. From Joint Guidance Policies Needed! “…recipients … should review and, if necessary, enhance their current policies and procedures to ensure that adequate protocols are in place.” “Each state … must develop policies for the delivery of [POS] by all qualified job training programs…” “[Policies] must require that processes are in place to ensure that veterans and eligible spouses are identified at the point of entry…” “Written copies of local [POS] policies should be maintained at all service delivery points…” 16

17. Monitoring Priority of Service The regulations require joint monitoring by:  The Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS)  The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) as the DOL agency responsible for the program’s administration and oversight  Policy not yet developed but it’s coming  Some regions use DV reviews as opportunity to assess compliance with POS including R4 17

18. Issues from Regional Data Validation Reviews No priority of service provided Lack of signage /appropriate notification No/Outdated policies at state and/or local levels Requiring 180 days of active duty service Requiring a DD-214 before POS can be applied Veterans immediately shepherded to VETS staff 18

19. Recommendations Review/Revise/Refine policies and procedures NOW …or develop them Get assistance from VETS 19

20. 20 Available Resources!

21. NRD – Veterans Job Bank 21

22. www.nrd.gov Co-managed by DOL, VA, DoD Gives veterans the ability to search for jobs from thousands of military-friendly employers worldwide based on keyword, MOC (military occupation code) and/or location Easy to use tool to help veterans find job postings from companies looking to hire them >1M jobs posted and still growing –Companies can post their announcements 22

23. My Next Move for Veterans 23

24. www.MyNextMove.org/vets Allows veterans to enter their MOC and discover civilian jobs where their skills translate Veterans can browse over 900 career options Contains user-friendly information such as: –Who’s hiring in the area –Overall hiring outlook in the area –Earnings for different jobs –Where to receive training needed to get hired 24

25. Veterans’ Retraining Assistance Program – VRAP 25

26. 26 Approved Applications

27. 27 In Training

28. Gold Card Initiative 28

29. Joint effort of ETA and VETS Entitles every post-9/11 veteran to get six months of one-on-one job assistance at an American Job Center –Career assessments –Individual Development Plans –Direct referrals to open jobs –Interview coaching –Training referrals Our experience shows that veterans who get one- on-one job assistance have much greater success launching civilian careersOur experience shows that veterans who get one- on-one job assistance have much greater success launching civilian careers 29 Gold Card Initiative Highlights

30. IVMF Publication Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University IVMF published, in collaboration with a large cross- section of the nation’s leading employers of veterans and military family members –Guide to Leading Policies, Practices & Resources: Supporting the Employment of Veterans and Military Families Services to veterans Innovations tied to recruitment, assimilation, retention and advancement in the workforce Best practices Licensing and certification Small business partnerships 30

31. WOTC 31

32. For State and Local Staff On-Line Tutorial Short, interactive tutorial providing highlights regarding –Service to veterans –Reporting services to veterans –Providing priority of service to covered persons www.doleta.gov/performance Look under “Tutorials”www.doleta.gov/performance 32

33. 33 Your Data / Your Story

34. Just to Clarify Up Front This is WIA data, not Labor Exchange data Information from public WIASRD file –Four quarters of data through PY12 Q1 It’s the data reported by your state, which begins with data collection at the AJC level 34

35. WIA Service Levels for Veterans States NEW (Veteran) Participants Qtr Ending 12/31/11 Qtr Ending 3/31/12 Qtr Ending 6/30/12 Qtr Ending 9/30/12 Montana 1821127 North Dakota 49 South Dakota 15271727 Utah 3,4024,9852,4354,537 Wyoming 5568 35

36. WIA Service Levels for Veterans (2) States Veterans SERVED* Qtr Ending 12/31/11 Qtr Ending 3/31/12 Qtr Ending 6/30/12 Qtr Ending 9/30/12 Montana 245233205166 North Dakota 30242622 South Dakota 779597102 Utah 12,27215,36916,65219,205 Wyoming 27282934 Served = new participants plus those already on board 36

37. Receipt of Staff-Assisted Services by (New) Veterans Numbers Served Veteran Disabled Veteran Recently Separated Montana Staff Assisted Services51458710 Core131 Intensive2251844 Training2763936 North Dakota Staff Assisted Services306133 Core2 Intensive8042 Training22491 South Dakota Staff Assisted Services1,06786175 Core55151104 Intensive2191231 Training297234 Utah Staff Assisted Services176,39715,3592,2902,338 Core146,04613,4052,0601,947 Intensive26,5421,815218363 Training3,8091391228 Wyoming Staff Assisted Services3172425 Core Intensive486 2 Training2691823 37

38. Looking at Provision of Staff- Assisted Services Over Time as a Proxy for Looking at POS* States Percentage of NEW Veterans Receiving Staff-Assisted Services Qtr Ending 12/31/2011 Qtr Ending 3/31/2012 Qtr Ending 06/30/2012 Qtr Ending 09/30/2012 Montana 12.1%11.7%9.7%11.5% North Dakota 0.0%4.3%7.8%0.0% South Dakota 7.9%8.1%6.4%9.7% Utah 7.3%6.9%6.4%23.1% Wyoming 8.5%6.3%8.3%7.5% 38

39. *The Full Story Qtr Ending 09/30/2012 Qtr Ending 06/30/2012 Qtr Ending 3/31/2012 Qtr Ending 12/31/2011 Rec'd Staff- Assisted Service %age of veterans Rec'd Staff- Assisted Service %age of veterans Rec'd Staff- Assisted Service %age of veterans Rec'd Staff- Assisted Service %age of veterans MontanaNew Participants61 124 180 149 Veteran711.5%129.7%2111.7%1812.1% Not a Veteran54 112 159 131 North DakotaNew Participants23 115 93 75 Veteran 97.8%44.3% Not a Veteran23 106 89 75 South DakotaNew Participants279 266 332 190 Veteran279.7%176.4%278.1%157.9% Not a Veteran252 249 305 175 UtahNew Participants19,615 37,934 72,369 46,479 Veteran4,53723.1%2,4356.4%4,9856.9%3,4027.3% Not a Veteran15,078 35,499 67,384 43,077 WyomingNew Participants106 72 80 59 Veteran87.5%68.3%56.3%58.5% Not a Veteran98 66 75 54 39

40. Uniform National Threshold EER for Veterans Final Rule published 3-11-13 Uniform National Threshold Entered Employment Rate (UNTEER) for veterans for use in evaluating state performance in assisting veterans to meet their employment needs (WP and JVSG, not WIA) States’ Actual EER compared to UNTEER –If below [90%] threshold, it may reflect a deficiency in performance or factors beyond state control If deficiency, there is a procedure for CAPs and delivery of TA Effective May 10, 2013 40

41. David Vogt/VETS –Vogt.david@dol.govVogt.david@dol.gov Maria Weidmark –Weidmark.maria@dol.govWeidmark.maria@dol.gov 41