U.S.
Department of Labor
Employment
& Training Administration
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To: All State Workforce Agencies All State Workforce LiaIsons /s/ From: Emily Stover DeRocco Assistant
Secretary Subject: Implementation
of Common Performance Measures for Job Training and Employment
Programs 1. Purpose. To
inform the workforce investment system of the implementation of common
performance measures for job training and employment programs in 2004. 2. Background. In
2001, the President announced a Management Agenda to improve the
management and performance of the federal government. One of the five government-wide goals, budget and performance
integration, emphasizes program effectiveness.
As part of the President’s budget and performance integration
initiative, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has developed common
performance measures for programs with similar goals. In explaining this initiative, OMB has stated: “Such measures
are not determinative of whether a program is effective nor does such a
comparison automatically mean one program is necessarily better or worse than
another. However, such measures help
raise important questions and can help managers improve certain aspects of
their programs. This information can
then be used to inform decisions about how to direct funding and how to improve
performance in specific programs.” 3. Common Measures. In
coordination with federal agencies, OMB has developed uniform evaluation metrics,
called “common measures,” for job training and employment programs as well as
four additional crosscutting, government-wide functions, including housing
assistance, wildland fire management, flood mitigation, and disaster insurance. The common measures are intended to
institute uniform definitions for performance.
The common measures for job training and employment will be applied to
31 programs administered by six federal agencies. Attachment A provides a list of covered programs. These programs are expected to implement the common measures
(begin information collection and reporting) in 2004. EMPLOYMENT
AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR Washington,
DC 20210 Four
performance measures for adults and four indicators for youth have been
established for job training and employment programs: Adult
Measures ·
Entered Employment – Percentage employed
in the 1st quarter after program exit. ·
Retention – Percentage of those employed
in the 1st quarter after program exit that were still employed in the 2nd and
3rd quarters after program exit. ·
Earnings Increase – Percentage change in
earnings: (i) pre-registration to post-program and (ii) 1st quarter after exit
to 3rd quarter after exit. ·
Efficiency – Annual cost per participant. Youth
and Lifelong Learning Measures ·
Placement in Employment or Education –
Entered employment or enrolled in education and/or training in the 1st quarter
after program exit. ·
Attainment of a Degree or Certificate –
Percentage of participants that earned a diploma, GED or certificate. ·
Literacy and Numeracy Gains – Attainment
of literacy and numeracy skills by participants. ·
Efficiency – Annual cost per participant. Attachment
B further describes these measures. The
common measures will affect the current performance measurement systems of all
covered programs. For example, the following are some key differences
between the common measures and the current performance indicators for
Workforce Investment Act Title IB programs: ·
Exclusive
use of Unemployment Insurance (UI) wage records – supplemental sources of data
will not be permitted for employment-related measures. ·
One
set of indicators for both adult and dislocated worker programs. ·
Earnings
measure for both adults and dislocated workers will be the percentage change in
earnings at two points – the 1st and 3rd quarters after exit. The common measures do not include a wage
replacement rate for dislocated workers. ·
One set of
measures for youth – eliminates distinction between older and younger youth. ·
New cost
efficiency indicator added to both adult and youth measures. There are similar differences
between the common measures and the current performance indicators for
Wagner-Peyser, Trade Adjustment Assistance, and the other job training and
employment programs administered by ETA. To the extent possible, ETA
will administratively implement the common measures within the existing
statutory framework to minimize reporting on multiple sets of measures. For all covered programs, when current program
indicators and common measures are similar, the definitions of current
indicators will be replaced by the common measure definitions. For current program indicators that are not
comparable to the common measures, programs will continue to report on the
current indicators as well as the common measures. The Department will provide guidance and
assistance to the grantees and program operators in the implementation of these
measures. A workgroup of
representatives from the federal agencies implementing common measures for job
training and employment programs has been established by OMB. This workgroup will facilitate communication
among agencies and will serve as a forum to work on common implementation
issues. 5.
Action Required. Please make this information available to
appropriate program staff. 6.
Inquiries. Questions
regarding the common measures should be directed to the appropriate regional
office or grant administrator. 7. Attachments. Attachment
A: Job Training and Employment Programs
Impacted by Common Measures Attachment
B: Common Measures for Job Training and
Employment Programs Attachment
A: Job Training and Employment Programs
Impacted by Common Measures Department of Labor
(17) Adults: Dislocated Workers Adult Employment and Training Trade Adjustment Assistance NAFTA Transitional Adjustment Assistance (TAA) Employment Service Native American Employment and Training Community Service Employment for Older Americans Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers H-1B Technical Skills Training Programs for Veterans (4): Veterans Workforce Investment Program Disabled
Veterans Outreach Program Local
Veterans Employment Representatives Homeless
Veterans Youth and Lifelong Learning: Youth Activities Job Corps Youth Opportunity Grants Responsible Reintegration of Youthful Offenders Department of Education
(10) Adults: Adult Education Vocational Education (3): Basic Grants Tribally
Controlled Post-Secondary Vocational & Technical Institutions Tech-Prep Education Rehabilitation Services (5): Vocational Rehabilitation Grants to States American
Indian Vocational Rehabilitation Services Supported
Employment State Grants Projects
with Industry Migrant
and Seasonal Farmworkers Youth and Lifelong Learning: State Grants for Incarcerated Youth Offenders Department of Health
and Human Services (1) Temporary Assistance to Needy Families Department of Veterans
Affairs (1) Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment
Services and Benefits Department of the
Interior (1) Job Placement and Training Department of Housing
and Urban Development (1) Youthbuild Attachment B: Common Measures for Job Training and
Employment Programs
Footnotes: [1] For the TANF program, the Entered Employment
numerator is "Of those who receive TANF cash assistance in a quarter, the
number who became employed in that quarter after being unemployed in the
previous quarter.” [2] For the TANF program, the Entered Employment
denominator is "The total number of unemployed TANF cash assistance
recipients from the "previous quarter" identified in the numerator.” [3] For the TANF program, the Retention in
Employment numerator is "Of those who received TANF cash assistance and
are employed in a quarter (Q-a), the number of adults who were employed one
(Q-b) and two quarters (Q-c) later (regardless of TANF assistance
status)." [4] For the TANF program, the Retention in
Employment denominator is "The number of participants employed in
Q-a." [5] For the TANF program, Earnings Increase
Numerator 1 is “For those who received TANF cash assistance and who had
earnings from employment in Q-a, their earnings in Q-a minus their earnings two
quarters prior to being determined eligible for TANF cash assistance.” Earnings Increase Numerator 2 is "For
those who received TANF cash assistance and who had earnings from employment in
Q-a, their earnings in Q-c minus their earnings in Q-a." [6] For the TANF program, Earnings Increase
Denominator 1 is "TANF cash assistance recipients’ earnings two quarters
prior to being determined eligible for TANF cash assistance.” Earnings Increase Denominator 2 is
"TANF cash assistance recipients’ earnings in Q-a." [7] For the TANF program, the Efficiency
numerator is "Total federal TANF and State Maintenance of Effort
expenditures, as reported by the states, on work-related activities/expenses,
transportation, and a proportional amount on administration and
systems." [8] For the TANF program, the Efficiency denominator
is "Number of adults receiving TANF." [9] "Not in Education" includes those
participants who have completed high school or its equivalent and have not yet
entered post-secondary education. [10] In the case of DOL programs, attainment of
a degree/certificate will be determined within the one year follow-up period
that exists for those programs. In the
case of ED programs, the completion rates for secondary and postsecondary
vocational education are calculated by each State using a methodology and time
period it determines. General Notes: A. The
Adult Education Program includes participants with both employment and
educational outcomes. As a result, the
program will be measured under the Adult measures; however, the Department may
opt to use the "Attainment" and "Literacy/Numeracy"
measures from the Lifelong Learning measures in addition. B. The
Vocational Education Program for post-secondary students includes participants
with both employment and educational outcomes.
As a result, the program will be measured under the Adult measures;
however, the Department may opt to use the "Attainment" measure from
the Lifelong Learning measures in addition. C. VA’s
Vocational Rehabilitation Program follows-up on cases for 60 days after
placement before closing the case and declaring rehabilitated status. To be consistent with other programs in the
job training common measures, VA will use the date of employment as the program
exit point. D. Education's Vocational Rehabilitation: an
employment outcome is defined as competitive employment (at least the minimum
wage) in the integrated labor market, and other outcomes as determined by the
Secretary, which include homemakers/unpaid family workers. E. Tribal programs will move toward use of UI
wage records. In the meantime, there
may be some reliance on administrative records as tribes make the shift to UI
wage records. F. Where UI Wage Records are cited as the data
set, UI records are either the sole source of data or the source against which
administrative records must be verified. G. All programs will need to use a unique client
identifier that can calculate the unduplicated count of program participation
but it will not specify what that identifier is.
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