Briefing: Re-employment Funding
Gov. Deval Patrick and U.S. Rep. John Tierney, D-6th District, recently announced that $8 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds will be invested in the state’s Re-employment Services (RES) programs. These programs were initiated in November 2009 and are assisting more than 37,000 job seekers state wide.
How does the availability of the funding break down?
The state has received $4 million to support RES programs at all 37, one-stop career centers this fiscal year, and it is scheduled to receive an additional $4 million in ARRA funds to support those programs again next fiscal year.
What do the RES programs offer?
The programs support the state’s unemployed residents by providing job seekers with skill assessments, job search techniques and resume development workshops. The programs also are tailored to each career center’s customer base and include: comprehensive job search inventories, career action plans, options to upgrade job seekers’ current skills, connections to community resources, a redesigned career center curriculum, and support groups.
What impact will these funds have?
The ARRA funds allow the career centers to expand their programs to include specialized job recruitment to businesses and will allow them to provide job referrals to the unemployed. The funds also will allow the centers to hire more staff members, and job seekers now will have the chance to work one-on-one with experts on re-training and career coaching.
How is Central Massachusetts affected?
This fiscal year’s funds have been allocated to 16 regional Workforce Investment Boards based on the number of unemployed claimants in each region. The Central Mass region, which includes Worcester, received the second highest amount: $327,836. The other two regions in the WBJ coverage area receiving funds were the Metro SouthWest, which includes Framingham, Newton and Marlborough ($297,132) and the North Central region, which includes Fitchburg, Leominster and Gardner ($221,303).
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