The Congressional Research Service released a report on October 02, 2012 that examined the work participation standards and requirements for cash assistance recipients of the TANF block grant, which was created in the 1996 Welfare Reform law. This report provides a short history of work requirements in programs that provide cash assistance to needy families with children; reviews the major studies that contribute to the knowledge of what types of welfare-to-work programs are effective; discusses the TANF work provisions that apply directly to individuals; discusses the TANF work participation standards that apply to States; and addresses future issues for Congressional discussion, such as how work standards can address changing circumstances and the difficulties of measuring performance of States in the context of a block grant.

The Urban Institute introduced the Low-Income Working Families (LIWF) project. This project tracks the well-being of low-income families over time and analyzes the risks families can face. The new Web site for the Low-Income Working Families project features the latest information on factors that contribute to poor outcomes for families and policy options that would reduce barriers and promote meaningful work for adults and positive outcomes for children.

The Office of Disability Employment Policy launched the Workplace Flexibility Toolkit. This Toolkit makes more than 170 resources easily accessible for workers and job seekers with complex employment situations, such as parents with young children, single parents, family caregivers, mature workers, at-risk youth, ex-offenders, individuals with disabilities, veterans, and people with HIV/AIDS. Visitors may access case studies, fact and tip sheets, issue briefs, reports, articles, websites and a list of frequently asked questions. This Toolkit is funded by the ODEP in partnership with the department's Women's Bureau.

From the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development and the Kessler Foundation, this research brief outlines innovative practices by employers who operate warehouse distribution centers. Such strategies can be applied to increasing the quality of employment for people with disabilities. Authors highlight a paradigm shift in this area, which focuses on the importance of employer partnerships to meet the needs of both employers and potential employees with disabilities. Companies, such as Walgreens, Lowe's, Toys R Us, and Proctor and Gamble, have been successful in creating local partnerships to recruit people with disabilities.

In this article, Brookings discussed this month's release of the Census Bureau's latest round of Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage data, giving insight into poverty levels for 2011. Rates from the data show an increase in working full-time, year-round jobs in 2011; however, they also show a continual decrease in household income. This article touches upon important findings released, along with suggestions for various factors that will influence poverty levels in the future.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on August 24, 2012 that from January 2009 through December 2011, 6.1 million workers were displaced from jobs they had held for at least three years. This is down from the 6.9 million for the survey period covering January 2007 to December 2009. In January 2012, 56 percent of workers displaced from 2009-11 were reemployed, up by seven percentage points from the prior survey in January 2010.

The Brookings Institute published a paper that aimed to provide metro, State, and national policy makers with a clearer understanding of the specific problems facing metropolitan labor markets today. An analysis examining trends in the demand for educated labor, and an explanation on how the gap between education supply and demand is related to unemployment, is addressed. This study concludes with a discussion of the implications of these findings for public policy.

Federal funding for child care subsidies has increased substantially since 1996. Although many more low-income families receive help paying for child care, there is little rigorous evidence to guide states’ decisions on structuring subsidy programs. This is the final report of a random assignment study in Cook County, Illinois, that seeks to answer two policy questions: whether providing subsidies to families whose incomes are just over the state’s eligibility limit affects their child care and employment outcomes, and whether extending the length of time before families must reapply for subsidies affects the receipt of subsidies and related outcomes.

This study included 1,884 families who applied for child care subsidies in Cook County, Illinois, between March 2005 and May 2006, and whose incomes exceeded the state’s eligibility limits. Families were randomly assigned to a program group, which was approved to receive subsidies even though family income was above the usual eligibility limit, or to a control group, which remained ineligible for subsidies as long as family income was above the state guidelines. In addition, a random half of the program group was asked to confirm its eligibility for subsidies every six months (the state standard) while the other half was asked to reconfirm eligibility annually. Because families were assigned at random to the program and the control groups, any systematic differences that emerged after random assignment can reliably be attributed to the policy changes being studied. (author abstract)

This Research Brief analyzes quarterly data from the Current Population Survey, the nation's primary data collection instrument for labor force activity. Analyses of the employment patterns of persons with children under age 18 show that they have largely mirrored the employment patterns of the rest of the labor force since the beginning of the most recent recession, including a decrease in employment. Findings show an increase in the percent of couples with neither parent employed and an increase in the percent of single mothers who were neither employed nor living with an employed cohabiting partner.

Cornell University's School of Employment and Disability Institute collaborated to conduct a survey on the practices and policies related to accessibility and accommodation for people with disabilities. On May 17, 2012, these findings were published and are currently the second in a three-part series on organizational practices and policies related to the employment of people with disabilities. Results show that three out of four (75%) organizations designate an office or person to address accommodation questions, and more than one-half of organizations (56%) indicate that having a centralized accommodation fund (i.e., companywide fund to provide accommodations for people with disabilities) was a very effective practice.