The U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (ETA) hosted a webinar on January 28, 2021 to demonstrate how CareerOneStop can provide virtual services to help job seekers find immediate employment and file for unemployment benefits. This webinar was a deeper dive into two CareerOneStop user pathways that were initially presented in the September 24, 2020 “Using CareerOneStop to Provide Virtual Career and Job Services” webinar. Presenters included representatives of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

Previous research from the National Skills Coalition described the extent of a digital skills gap among U.S workers, noting that one in three workers had few or no digital skills. Building upon the Coalition’s earlier work, this brief outlines the work’s emerging lessons, drawing on interviews with business leaders, workforce and education practitioners, and public officials. In addition, the brief identifies opportunities to foster the development of effective approaches to address the skills gap and to expand the adoption of innovative strategies to increase digital literacy.

This toolkit offers steps on how the juvenile justice and workforce development systems can collaborate to serve youth with justice involvement. The toolkit includes a review of evidence-based practices in youth workforce development, an examination of how the public workforce system is funded under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), examples of how to utilize WIOA-funded services for better outcomes for youth with justice involvement, and steps that could be taken to form interagency partnerships between the juvenile justice and workforce development systems.

This brief reviews youthCONNECT, an initiative implemented in Prince George’s County, Maryland. The initiative integrates college and career preparation skills, life skills training, and connection with a caring adult to improve healthy behaviors, school engagement, and the social and emotional skills of participating students. The youthCONNECT initiative seeks to leverage these improvements into increased high school achievement and postsecondary educational enrollment and employment. The brief describes a survey of 721 students enrolled in the youthCONNECT program based on self-reporting as well as data from these students’ academic records (grades, attendance, and disciplinary actions taken).

The U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (ETA) will host a webinar on January 8, 2021 from 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET which will discuss their process for exploring vendor capacity to develop a state level holistic case management system across Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) partner programs. WIOA requires that American Job Center (AJC) partners support aligning technology and data systems to improve service delivery. Stakeholders, including workforce practitioners, local and state government representatives, ETA program operations professionals, and information technology professionals from AJC partners, are invited to participate in the discussion and ask questions. Presenters will include the Administrator and the Enterprise Program Advisor of the Office of Workforce Investment at the ETA.

The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education published a Request for Information (RFI) on Expanding Work-Based Learning Opportunities for Youth. This RFI supported efforts to implement the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 and the amended Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act (Perkins V). The RFI solicited information on approaches to expand work-based learning, including paid internships, work study, cooperative education, apprenticeships, and pre-apprenticeships. The input received was useful to support lessening the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on youth employment. Input can be provided by states, tribes, state and local educational agencies, community-based and other nonprofit organizations, employers, industry associations, philanthropic organizations, faith-based organizations, researchers, and other engaged stakeholders. Responses to the RFI were due by January 13, 2021.

REDF will host a free virtual Lab for Employment Social Enterprise Leaders from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. PT on December 11, 2020, January 15, 2021, and February 19, 2021 (participants will have an opportunity to sign up for one of these three event dates). Geared toward leaders of employment social enterprises, this lab will offer an overview of REDF’s Accelerator program and will help participants assess their interest in applying for this program when the application cycle resumes in February 2021. The lab will also provide leaders with networking opportunities and will support them in setting goals and identifying stakeholder needs.

This issue brief explores the need for expanding the early care and education workforce. The brief highlights the T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Initiative in 20 states, which provides scholarships to teachers and child care providers interested in improving their formal professional credentials. The brief also discusses approaches to increase the wages and benefits that early care and education providers can offer their staff. There is also a section on improving working conditions in the field that includes coaching and professional development for teachers. In addition, the brief offers support to providers in sustaining their child care businesses with curricula on fiscal management, marketing, and personnel management.

The U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (ETA) will host a webinar on December 14, 2020 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. ET which will cover the agency’s vision for implementation of the Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) 07-20. The TEGL describes the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) requirement that individuals who are basic skills deficient, low-income, or public assistance recipients must receive priority when receiving individualized career services training under the WIOA Adult program. ETA staff will highlight the requirements in TEGL 07-20, ETA’s method of monitoring these requirements using performance data, and how other resources can be leveraged to support WIOA adult priority populations.

This report reviews models and success factors of successful American Apprenticeship Initiative (AAI) grantees. AAI, which commenced in 2015, was a $175 million five-year grant program with a goal of registering 34,000 new apprentices in health care, IT, and advanced manufacturing by 2020. AAI success factors discussed in the report include sustainability of funding from other federal sources, partnerships with employers and industry to design apprenticeship programs, a simplified process for identifying and registering apprenticeship programs at the state level and for complying with federal and state regulations on these programs, and flexibility to meet employers’ and apprentices’ needs.