Native American grantees shall design and operate programs funded
under the Act which support growth and development as determined by
representatives of the Indian and Native American communities and groups
served (sec. 401(a)). Training shall be only for occupations for which
there is a demand in the area served or in another area to which the
participant is willing to relocate, and consideration in the selection
of training programs may be given to training in occupations determined
to be in sectors of the economy which have a potential for sustained
demand or growth. The CAP will provide evidence based on local labor
market information that occupational demand exists for planned training.
The basic types of training activities available to Native American
grantees, subgrantees and contractors include, but are not limited, to
the following:
(a) Classroom training. This program activity is any training of the
type normally conducted in an institutional setting, including
vocational education, and designed to provide individuals with the
technical skills and information required to perform a specific job or
group of jobs. It may be coupled with other employment and training
activities and may also include training designed to enhance the
employability of individuals by upgrading basic skills, through the
provision of courses such as remedial education, GED, training in the
primary language of persons with limited English-speaking proficiency,
or English-as-a-second-language training.
(b) On-the-job training. (1) On-the-job training (OJT) is training
in the private or public sector given to a participant, who has been
hired first by the employer, and which occurs while the participant is
engaged in productive work which provides knowledge or skills essential
to the full and adequate performance of the job. This does not preclude
a participant who has been hired by and received OJT from one employer
from being ultimately placed with another employer. Innovative
approaches to financing, particularly involving the sharing of training
costs by the private sector are to be encouraged.
(2) OJT may be coupled with other JTPA employment and training
activities. As needed, OJT participants may receive any of the
employment and
training services or supportive services through the system, through
community resources, or through employer resources.
(3) Reimbursement. Payments to employers for OJT which shall not,
during the period of such training, average more than 50 percent of the
wages excluding fringe benefits paid by the employer to such
participants, and payments in such amount shall be deemed to be in
compensation for the extraordinary costs associated with the training
costs and lower productivity of such participants. No direct wage
payments will be made to OJT participants by the Native American
Grantee.
(4) OJT agreements. Employers will be held responsible with respect
to JTPA costs only in accordance with the provisions of their OJT
agreements. At a minimum, the OJT agreement shall contain the elements
listed below. Native American grantees may place additional provisions
in the OJT agreement only after a careful assessment is made of the
additional burdens imposed on participating employers. Agreements may be
entered into only with employers which have not been seriously deficient
in their conduct of or participation in any DOL program. Each OJT
agreement shall contain:
(i) A brief training outline, including the length of training and
the nature of the training;
(ii) The method and maximum amount of reimbursement for OJT training
costs;
(iii) The number of participants to be trained;
(iv) Job descriptions and specification of participant wage rates;
(v) Reporting requirements;
(vi) An assurance that payroll records, time and attendance records,
job duties and documentation of classroom training, employment and
training services, or supportive services, costs for which the employer
is being reimbursed will be subject to review;
(vii) A termination clause for nonperformance; and
(viii) An assurance that the employer will comply with the Act and
regulations.
(c) Tryout employment. Tryout employment in private-for-profit
worksites may be conducted in accordance with section 205(d)(3)(B) of
the Act (sec. 141(K)).
(d) Training assistance. Such assistance includes:
(1) Orientation to the world of work;
(2) Counseling. This includes employment and training related
counseling and testing;
(3) Job development;
(4) Job search assistance. This includes transition services, such
as job seeking skills instruction, individualized job search plan, labor
market information, and other special activities for transition to
unsubsidized employment;
(5) Job referral and placement; and
(6) Vocational Exploration Program (VEP). A Native American grantee
may conduct a VEP program to expose participants to jobs available in
the private sector through observation of such jobs, instruction, and,
if appropriate, limited practical experience.
(e) Combined activities. (1) A participant may be simultaneously or
sequentially enrolled in two or more activities.
(2) (i) Reimbursement may be up to 100 percent to employers,
including private-for-profit employers, for expenditures for the costs
of classroom training, employment and training assistance or supportive
services for participants in combined activities including the costs of
participants' wages paid by the employer for time spent in these
activities during working hours.
(ii) Reimbursement may be made on a cost reimbursement or fixed cost
basis and shall be supported by business receipts, payroll, or other
records normally kept by the employer.
(iii) Nothing in this paragraph (b)(1) shall allow reimbursement to
private-for-profit employers for the costs of OJT to exceed the amounts
allowable in Sec. 632.78.
