Evaluation of customized employment in building the capacity of the workforce development system

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Elinson, Lynn | Frey, William D. | Li, Tiandong | Palan, Martha A. | Horne, Richard L.

Affiliations: Westat, Inc., Rockville, MD, USA | Office of Disability Employment Policy, Department of Labor, Washington, DC, USA

Note: [] Address for correspondence: Richard L. Horne, Office of Disability Employment, Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Suite S-1303, Washington, DC 20210, USA. Tel.: +1 202 693 4923; Fax: +1 202 693 7888; E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract: The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998 established a national system to meet the needs of businesses and job seekers through a one-stop system of employment services, job training, and education [16]. Although one of the principles of WIA is universal access, it is generally acknowledged that the workforce development system does not yet have the capacity to fully meet the complex needs of people with disabilities. The Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) in the United States Department of Labor is the federal agency assigned to address this issue. Consequently, ODEP initiated the ODEP Demonstration Program to improve the capacity of the One-Stop system to meet the needs of people with disabilities through a customized approach to employment in an adult targeted program. This paper describes the evaluation of the ODEP Demonstration Program. Westat, a private research firm in Rockville, Maryland, conducted an independent evaluation of the program for ODEP. A one-group pretest-posttest study design was used to assess changes to the workforce development system, employment, and employment retention among program participants. Initial and followup site visits were conducted at 31 demonstration sites to examine program implementation and systems change outcomes over time. Quantitative data were also collected from study sites to examine competitive employment and retention rates, as well as demographic and work-related characteristics (e.g., employment history, need for supervision) and program services received by program participants. This study shows that it is feasible to deliver a customized employment approach to people with disabilities as part of the WIA One-Stop system and to build and sustain the capacity of the workforce development system through training, physical and programmatic accessibility improvements, and improved coordination of services. Since some factors were strong predictors of whether or not individuals retain their jobs and earn a living wage (e.g., individualized services, type of disability, previous work experience, years of education), we conclude that continued policy and research efforts are necessary to customize supports and services so the One-Stop system will truly achieve universal accessibility.

Keywords: Disability, employment, evaluation, policy

Journal: Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, vol. 28, no. 3, pp. 141-158, 2008