Unemployment Insurance Intitial Claims Fall

The U.S. Department of Labor reported that seasonally adjusted unemployment insurance (UI) initial claims decreased by 50,000 for the week ended January 14, 2012, to 352,000. This is well below the 400,000 figure economists typically look at as a signal that job growth is strong enough for the unemployment rate to come down. The last time initial claims were at this level was April 19, 2008. The 4-week moving average was 379,000, down 3,500 from last week’s revised average of 382,500. This marks the tenth consecutive week for which initial claims were at, or below, 400,000. The unadjusted initial claims level totaled 521,613, down 124,606 from the previous week.

UI continued claims, seasonally adjusted, for the week ending January 7, 2012, decreased 215,000 to 3,432,000 from the prior week’s revised number of 3,647,000. The 4-week moving average decreased 34,000 from the prior weeks revised 3,610,250. The total number of workers claiming benefits (unadjusted) in all programs for the week ending December 31st was 7,826,665. Regular state continued claims (unadjusted) increased by 379,856, and EUC 08 (unadjusted) increased by 100,170.

WWW.US.JOBS

According to to a press release from the DirectEmployers Association, in partnership with The National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA) announced the transition of the National Labor Exchange from www.JobCentral.com to the appropriately named www.US.jobs. The National Labor Exchange gives job seekers direct access to hundreds of thousands of jobs from companies like Hilton Worldwide, IBM, ConocoPhilips, Newell Rubbermaid, AT&T and over 90,000 other large and small organizations. 

All listings on the National Labor Exchange site connect job seekers directly to the employer listing the job. New employment opportunities are added daily with special emphasis placed on veterans, people with disabilities, diversity, and green jobs.

“State workforce agencies are a critical component in today’s economy because they represent jobs from thousands of small companies that are not found anywhere else on the Internet,” states Chad Sowash, Vice President of DirectEmployers Association. 

The move to www.US.jobs is a natural fit in more ways than one. First, it is short, memorable, and describes exactly what the site is, a national database of jobs. Second, the .JOBS extension works much like .EDU or .GOV, a restricted zone where not just anyone can set up shop thus adding to the trust factor that embodies the National Labor Exchange. With nearly every state now participating, the timing for this transition is perfect. 

“Since October 2001, DirectEmployers Association has been committed to making the connection between employers and job seekers more efficient, quicker and easier, and US.jobs is the next big step,” stated Rodney Moses, VP of Global Recruitment, Hilton Worldwide and DirectEmployers Board President.  According to Moses, “US.jobs is the pilot for an international roll-out. Understanding how the platform performs and interlinks with states will help us in our future expansion on a global scale. DirectEmployers Association members represent many global organizations and it is important to take our successes from US.jobs and share them across the international workplace.”

Grants to Assist Former Offenders

Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis announced this week the availability of $20.6 million in grant funds to assist adult former offenders who are returning to their communities after serving time in justice facilities. The U.S. Department of Labor expects to award 17 grants of approximately $1.21 million each to organizations that will provide these individuals with employment-focused services and support.

"By supporting these employment training programs, we are fulfilling a core promise of our justice system: Those who do wrong and serve their time deserve a second chance to make a positive contribution to their families and their communities," said Secretary Solis. "Ultimately, these investments are turning 'tax takers' into 'tax payers,' and helping to relieve a major economic strain on state and local budgets, while also helping individuals get back on their feet and enhancing community stability."

Grantees will provide job training and employment preparation assistance, mentoring and connections to support services such as housing, substance abuse programs and mental health treatment. These grants represent the fifth generation of the Reintegration of Ex-Offenders-Adult Program, which previously was called the Prisoner Re-entry Initiative.

Each year, approximately 700,000 inmates are released from state and federal prisons, and return to their communities and families. Without assistance to make a successful transition, the majority of former offenders return to criminal activity. In order to successfully reintegrate into their communities, it is essential that these individuals have the skills and support necessary to compete for and obtain jobs.

UI Website Prototype

In collaboration with USDOL, NASWA’s technology arm – the Information Technology Support Center (ITSC) developed a Web site prototype as a proposed standardized approach for the content and layout of state unemployment insurance (UI) websites. The website prototype targets the structural organization and visual layout of state UI claimant and employer informational content and also provides an example of straightforward wording of the content.

According to NASWA, Web sites are playing an increasingly important role in disseminating information to large audiences and State Workforce Agencies have a responsibility to communicate effectively with employers and job seekers/claimants. With each state maintaining its own site, components such as site design and content presentation vary greatly from state to state. In some situations, information may be difficult to locate, or may be ambiguous, incomplete or dated. The site’s layout and navigation might be confusing.

In October 2010, an analysis of the 53 state UI website was conducted by America's Job Exchange (AJE) to evaluate how states compared to each other in the features, functions and content areas they offered. AJE developed a Summary Analysis Report in which the states were ranked on overall site design and on claimant/employer/re-employment content and functionality.

Using the rankings, ITSC and AJE selected 20 states to review more closely. The sites ranged from those deficient in content and/or functionality to those that were superior in those areas. During this detailed analysis phase, AJE was tasked with confirming existence of key UI areas and evaluating the quality of the associated content areas.

ITSC is currently seeking state partner(s) interested in integrating the Web site prototype in a state test environment.

NASWA Survey

According to the January 10, 2012 NASWA NewsWire, states are spending their Workforce Investment Act funds much faster than required under the law, according to a NASWA analysis of U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) data for the period ending June 30, 2011. By the end of Program Year (PY) 2010, states had spent virtually all funds allocated in PY 2008 and almost 98 percent of funds allocated for PY 2009.

At the end of PY 2010 (June 30, 2011), states had roughly $630 million in “unobligated/unspent” funds from PY 2010 funds going into Program Year 2011. The NASWA analysis shows the unobligated/unspent funds for all three program years is just over $700 million or about 7 percent of appropriated funds. By contrast, USDOL data suggests a much slower pace of spending, as they reported some $1.2 billion as unobligated/unspent for the June 30, 2011 period.

The NewsWire continues to to describe what accounts for the difference:

USDOL financial reports do not take into account unliquidated obligations. These funds (unliquidated obligations) are legally binding commitments made by states and for which an accrued expenditure has not yet been booked. These and other terms are defined in Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) 28-10

In short, USDOL generally recognizes expenditures to gauge budgetary needs; therefore overestimating the funds states actually have available for spending. Further, much of the remaining unobligated/unspent funds going into program year 2011 are for future expenses such as leases, long term training, or salaries., which cannot be booked as obligations until they are due. For example, USDOL’s guidance allows training funds to be obligated for the “current” semester, but funds set aside for future semesters are considered unspent. For leases and salaries, states are only permitted to recognize costs as they occur and cannot show projected costs as unliquidated obligations. Much of the unspent funding going into program year 2011 are such items.

These reporting issues have created misunderstanding and confusion among states, USDOL, and Congressional staff on the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations. The issue carries serious implications as Congress is under the impression states are not spending their formula funds in a timely manner. This has led (in the past) to rescissions and over the last two years funding cuts to the workforce system.

NASWA indicates that it continues to work with USDOL to help resolve these differences so the most accurate picture of state spending can be provided to policy makers.

Will WOTC be Extended?

While Congressional leaders in both parties hope to work on passage of the annual tax extenders, including the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) in the coming months, passage may prove difficult as the committees of jurisdiction -- the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance -- are focused on a full-year extension of Emergency Unemployment Compensation Benefits and the Social Security payroll tax cut. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) are playing key roles in the payroll tax cut and unemployment insurance extensions, leaving little time for other tax matters. A conference committee faces a February 29 deadline to produce an agreement.

The Work Opportunity Tax Credit expired on December 31, 2011 for non-veterans. State Workforce Agencies administer the credit and although it has lapsed, it is likely, given its 20 plus year history, to be extended by Congress along with other expired tax provisions at some point in 2012. It remains unclear when Congress may act, but state workforce agencies are encouraged to continue collecting and certifying WOTC recipients. It is likely the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) will issue guidance in the next several weeks.

Summer Jobs+

Today, the White House announced Summer Jobs+, a new call to action for businesses, non-profits, and government to work together to provide pathways to employment for low-income and disconnected youth in the summer of 2012. The President proposed $1.5 billion for high-impact summer jobs and year-round employment for low-income youth ages 16-24 in the American Jobs Act as part of the Pathways Back to Work fund. When Congress failed to act, the Federal government and private sector came together to commit to creating nearly 180,000 employment opportunities for low-income youth in the summer of 2012, with a goal of reaching 250,000 employment opportunities by the start of summer, at least 100,000 of which will be placements in paid jobs and internships. Today’s announcement is the latest in a series of executive actions the Obama Administration is taking to strengthen the economy and move the country forward because we can’t wait for Congress to act.