Workforce Partnership of Greater Rhode Island 1511 Pontiac Avenue Cranston, Rhode Island (401)

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1 Workforce Partnership of Greater Rhode Island 1511 Pontiac Avenue Cranston, Rhode Island (401) Local Workforce Development Board Notice: PY18-08 Date: November 13, 2018 To: From: Re: Greater Rhode Island Local Workforce Development Board Area Nancy J. Olson, Executive Director Steven H. Kitchin, Chairman WIOA Program Policy: Career Planning and Case Management PURPOSE: To provide guidance and instruction to the One-Stop Operator for the WPGRI American Job Center (AJC) and the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training Workforce Development Services regarding Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Title I Career Planning and Case Management. EFFECTIVE DATE: This policy is effective immediately. REFERENCES: WIOA Section 8(a) and (b) WPGRI Policy PY18-01 Adult and Dislocated Worker Eligibility and Career Services US DOL TEGL GWB RI WIN BACKGROUND: The term career planning means the provision of a client-centered approach in the delivery of services, designed to: (A) Prepare and coordinate comprehensive employment plans, such as service strategies, for participants to ensure access to necessary workforce development activities and supportive services, using, where feasible, computer-based technologies; and (B) Provide job, education, and career counseling, as appropriate during program participation and after job placement. This policy provides guidance and clarification related to the uniform and consistent interpretation and application of WIOA career planning for job seeker participants under a formal Individual Employment Plan (IEP) and ensures the integrity of reporting career planning activities and services through employri.org. 1

2 POLICY: The WIOA counselor must provide Career Planning services to participants based on individual needs, including the seamless delivery of multiple partner services. WIOA defines Career Services in three types: basic career services, individualized career services, and follow-up services. (See PY18-01 Adult and Dislocated Worker Eligibility and Career Services) Career Planning is the method of providing job seeker participants with a formal, structured plan of action designed specifically to identify an appropriate employment goal and to develop a schedule of activities and services that will empower the participant to overcome or mitigate barriers to attaining their goal(s). Career Planning is a customer-centered, goal-oriented process in which the WIOA counselor, or a team of career center staff, assist the participant with the development and coordinated delivery of a structured program of planned, interconnected services to achieve a specific employment goal. It is characterized by advocacy, communication and coordination of resources that promote interventions and outcomes that benefit each participant s unique needs. The WIOA counselor must collaboratively assess, plan, implement, track and provide follow-up on services required to meet the participant s employment needs. The career planning model implies a partnership between the WIOA counselor and the participant. The partnership involves distinct responsibilities aimed at linking the participant to appropriate career center services and ultimately moving the participant to suitable employment. Career Planning is considered to be an Individualized Career Service. The term career planning means the implementation of a person-centered approach in the delivery of services. Case management (career planning service) is indeed a two-way contact communication via personto-person, back and forth on the same date or day, or a two-way telephone conversation of substance that results in direct, personalized, and real customer service that is value driven. The Career Planning delivery model is designed to prepare and coordinate comprehensive employment plans for participants to ensure access to appropriate workforce investment activities and supportive services, using, where feasible, computer based technologies and to provide the appropriate job, education, and career counseling during program participation and after job placement. For career planning to be effective, the WIOA counselor must be fully responsible for monitoring the participant s progress throughout the entire service plan schedule, not only for those elements of the plan provided directly by the WIOA counselor, but also for services provided by other career center staff or staff of other service organizations. As a standard best practice, the WIOA counselor must contact the participant at least every thirty (30) days unless program requirements or contractual agreements stipulate shorter durations, such as the Veterans under the JVSG Program. This includes a face-to-face meeting to: 1. Ensure timely identification and resolution of any issues that could either significantly impede or negate participation in, or successful completion of, any planned service activity (particularly in relation to key services such as assessment, counseling, training, job development, job referral, etc.); 2. Review strategy regarding the participant s employment goals or to identify issues that could jeopardize attainment of the participant s employment goal and ensure an appropriate placement is being sought; and 2

3 3. Ascertain whether additional services are necessary to obtain employment and to ensure active participation under WIOA regulations. All meetings or attempts must be documented in case notes. WIOA counselors must provide effective career planning and case management characterized by the following: Services tailored to individual participants needs, abilities, skills, and interests, as well as to opportunities and supports available in the community where participants are located (or to which they might relocate); Supportive relationships with participants, via a person-centered approach, in which WIOA counselors assist participants in making key decisions and in meeting requirements and milestones, by using such techniques as active listening and celebrating participant successes; High-quality, specialized knowledge and guidance relating to occupations, job openings, training and educational programs; Easy coordination of services with partner agencies, thorough knowledge of local agencies and the ability to communicate and share information about participants*; Seamless transitions for participants between programs and services, when needed, without lengthy, involved, or duplicative processes and information requests*; and Management and information systems (including electronic data systems and related forms, checklists, and procedures) that efficiently facilitate documentation, tracking, and reporting.* Thorough assessments are necessary to determine the participant s status (starting point). The assessments should determine the participant job readiness, specific employment and training needs, specific strengths and deficiencies, financial, social and/or supportive service needs, and must justify the services to be provided. The assessment is an on-going activity that continues throughout the participant s relationship with the WIOA counselor and can include: Career services received Other fund sources investigated Other fund sources being accessed or combined with the WIOA Title I-B A comprehensive assessment that includes current skills and educational level and previously completed education and training Individual s ability to complete the course of training Cost and duration of the training Wage and wage progression expectations, and Employment opportunities that result in long-term job retention in the local labor market or an area to which the client is willing to relocate *Processes under development and ideal element of case management. 3

4 The TABE (Test for Adult Basic Education) and/or CASAS (Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System) assist in assessing relevant basic skills for success in the workforce, help place clients into appropriate education and employment training programs and can monitor progress and certify attainment of employment related competencies. The WIOA counselor must completed an Objective Assessment and Individualized Employment Plan (IEP) for all participants who received an Individualized Career Service or Training Service. Objective Assessment WIOA counselors must complete an Objective Assessment in employri.org for each participant which includes a review of academic and occupational skill levels, as well as service needs and strengths to identify appropriate services and career pathways for participants. The Objective Assessment must be completed in entirety and include an analysis of strengths and possible challenges in relation to the participant s education, work history, skills, knowledge, interests, abilities, aptitude, tests scores. This includes obstacles the participant must address to overcome and attain employment. The results will assist in the development of an Individual Employment Plan (IEP). When determining eligibility and preparing the Objective Assessment, WIOA counselors are encouraged to document all barriers to employment that a participant might disclose. This information is key to the determination of local performance metrics and ultimately the negotiation of local performance goals. It also helps to determine priority of service and provides an accurate understanding of the participants served. The populations included in the individuals with barriers to employment in WIOA sec. 3(24) include: (FROM TEGL 19-16) a. Displaced homemakers (as defined in WIOA sec. 3(16)); b. Low-income individuals (as defined in WIOA sec. 3(36)); c. Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians (as defined in WIOA sec. 166(b)); d. Individuals with disabilities, including youth who are individuals with disabilities (as defined in WIOA sec. 3(25) (includes individuals who are in receipt of Social Security Disability Insurance); e. Older individuals (age 55 and older) (as defined in WIOA sec. 3(39)); f. Ex-offenders ( offender as defined in WIOA sec. 3(38)); g. Homeless individuals or homeless children and youth h. Youth who are in or have aged out of the foster care system; i. Individuals who are: (1) English language learners (WIOA sec. 203(7)), (2) Individuals who have low levels of literacy (an individual is unable to compute or solve programs, or read, write, or speak English at a level necessary to function on the job, or in the individual s family, or in society); and (3) Individuals facing substantial cultural barriers; j. Eligible migrant and seasonal farmworkers (as defined in WIOA sec. 167(i)(1-3); k. Individuals within two years of exhausting lifetime TANF eligibility; l. Single parents (including single pregnant women); m. Long-term unemployed individuals (unemployed for 27 or more consecutive weeks); and n. Such other groups as the Governor involved determines to have barriers to employment Statutory Priority: Per RI GWB WIN 18-03, # 6. Policy: Dislocated Workers as Defined by WIOA Sec. 3 are designated as a priority Group. 4

5 Individual Employment Plan The WIOA counselor will deliver formal Career Planning as the standard service delivery model for job seeker participants. Participants who receive Individualized Career Services and/or Training Services will also have a formal Individual Employment Plan (IEP). An IEP is an Individualized Career Service consisting of connected activities, jointly developed by the WIOA counselor and the participant. The plan includes an ongoing strategy to identify employment goals, achieve objectives, and an appropriate combination of services for job seeking participants to attain employment goals and objectives. The IEP is an effective tool to serve participants with barriers to employment and to coordinate various services, including training services, they may need to overcome these barriers. The actual writing of the IEP must be done by the WIOA counselor. This does not mean that the WIOA counselor should simply write the IEP and give it to the participant. The IEP is a negotiated agreement with the participant detailing what the participant will do for their development, and what the WIOA counselor and program will do to assist in that effort. It must be written with the full participation of the participant. The participant must be part of developing their IEP so they will buy into it and give it their full effort. IEP goals should be S.M.A.R.T.: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time Driven action steps. Specific: The participant must have a specific goal(s) so they are very clear about what they are trying to achieve. Steps must be very specific so the participant knows exactly what is needed to achieve the goal. If a goal is stated specifically, it will clarify who is to do what, when, how, where, and why. For instance, an action step that simply says the participant will do a job search is very vague. If you want the participant to contact employers and submit applications for clerical jobs, the IEP should state contact 5 employers and submit applications for clerical jobs in the next 10 days. The more specific the goal is, the more effective the IEP will be. Measurable: A goal should be written in such a manner as to help the participant measure whether the goal has been reached. The criteria should be explicit. For a goal to be measurable, ask questions such as how much? and how many? The participant cannot know if a goal is completed or achieved unless it is measurable. Attainable: Goals should be realistically attainable within a time frame. If you break down the goal into smaller sub-goals that identify step-by-step procedures, there is a better chance of determining if the larger goal is achievable. Realistic and Relevant: Realistic, relevant goals are focused, valued goals the participant is willing and capable of achieving. The steps to be undertaken must be relevant to the goal. The action steps must focus on what the participant must do to achieve the goal. For example, an IEP with a goal of getting a clerical job, should not contain an action step about taking an art class. While such a class may be desirable for its own reasons it is not relevant to the goal, and it will distract the participant from the goal. The purpose of an effective IEP is to get the participant to focus on what they need to do to reach their goal. Timely: Specific dates must be set for the completion of each step. The IEP is a commitment for the participant to do certain things by certain dates. There must be concrete deadlines including a target dates for progress and completion. 5

6 IEP Progress Reviews: The WIOA counselor must conduct periodic reviews and updates of the participant s IEP to determine progress and any related problems that may arise. Participant progress shall be conducted and documented at least once monthly. Additional progress reviews shall be initiated when a problem or change occurs. Documentation: The WIOA counselor must use employri.org to document services and activities developed and undertaken under the auspices of an IEP and within the context of a career planning service model including career planning functions from an individual's initial assessment and program eligibility determination through service delivery documentation, follow-up, and case closure. Regular contact with other direct service providers is also an important step in assessing progress and assuring the participant s overall success. Contact is defined as providing a recognized employri.org service and a detailed case note of the service. Systematic and timely data entry of career planning activities ensures program continuity. When the Objective Assessment is prepared, the WIOA counselor must enter Activity #203 Objective Assessment in employri.org. When the IEP is prepared, the WIOA counselor must enter Activity #205 Develop Service Strategies (IEP/ISS/EDP) and it should remain open until program closure/exit. The WIOA counselor must review and update the IEP to reflect the participant s current goals. Goals must be updated and supporting case notes entered. A copy of the IEP must be given to the participant at the time of development and each time it is updated. The WIOA counselor must enter a case note to indicate the participant s acknowledgment of receipt of the IEP and agreement to its content. Plans are to be reviewed by WIOA counselors after each service element is completed. The WIOA counselor must enter services, activities and case notes in employri.org within two (2) business days of occurrence. Inquiries: Questions related to this policy may be directed to: Nancy Olson, Executive Director, WPGRI Nancy.Olson@dlt.ri.gov The Workforce Partnership of Greater Rhode Island serves as the Local Workforce Development Board (LWDB) for thirty-seven of the state s thirty-nine communities (excluding Providence and Cranston). The organization s mission is to provide strategic leadership to meet the current and future human resource needs of Rhode Island's employers and to ensure a well-trained, self-sufficient and adaptable workforce. If you have questions or concerns regarding this policy, please contact Nancy Olson, Executive Director, at (401)