DOL Annual Report, Fiscal Year 2008
Performance and Accountability Report

Strategic Goal 2: A Competitive Workforce

Meet the competitive labor demands of the worldwide economy by enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of the workforce development and regulatory systems that assist workers and employers in meeting the challenges of global competition.

To succeed in the 21st Century, America must be prepared to adapt to changes in the global economy — and that success will largely depend on a workforce that meets employers' needs for new and skilled workers. Through partnerships with State and local workforce agencies, business and industry, education and training providers, faith-based and community organizations, and economic development agencies, DOL makes strategic investments in job training and increases accessibility and quality of information to help match workers with employers.

DOL agencies and offices supporting this goal are:

• Employment and Training Administration (ETA),
• Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP),
• Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy (OASP), and
• Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB).

Fostering a competitive workforce means helping American workers acquire the necessary tools and skills to succeed. Increasingly, advanced skills are required to meet the rapidly evolving workforce needs of employers. Customized training and assistance to workers — including those with unique needs such as dislocated workers, individuals with disabilities, and veterans — improve their chances to obtain better paying jobs, to keep those jobs and to advance their careers.

Sasha was pregnant for the first time at 12 and abusing drugs by 13; she lived with substance abuse as a driving force for decades. With ten children to care for between the ages of 32 and six, Sasha left prison knowing that things could not continue as before. In addition to working the 12 steps of recovery as treatment for her addiction, Sasha sought out courses in anger management and parenting and requested assistance with housing. Project REACH, a collaborative effort between One-Stop Career Centers and faith-based and community organizations, was able to place her in a supportive home for women until she was employed. Sasha found a job doing what she loves best: cleaning. One day she was vigorously cleaning outdoor windows at the women's home. A business owner happened by, saw Sasha working hard, and called later to ask the coordinator of the home to tell Sasha to stop by his diner if she needed employment. Sasha was hired on the spot — her first job ever! She has been working there for six months now. [Photo credit: DOL/ETA]

DOL serves America's workers and employers by creating partnerships between the workforce system and business. New approaches are being applied to help business and industry better access the services of the state and local workforce investment system and to educate the public and the workforce system about the jobs in demand with promising career paths. To complement these services, the Foreign Labor Certification program assists employers whose needs cannot be supplied locally.

A competitive economic environment also demands a regulatory structure in which benefits of regulations exceed their costs. DOL conducts periodic reviews to determine if regulations have or will have a significant economic impact. These reviews examine the regulations' compliance costs and whether the regulatory burdens of all employers, large and small, are reduced. In today's economy, the well-being of American workers is increasingly tied to international stability, which is in part a function of broad-based economic prosperity. DOL-supported international technical assistance projects focus on raising living standards through workplace-related interventions, supporting the expansion of free and fair trade, eliminating exploitive child labor, and promoting the basic rights of workers.

Each day for eight and a half years, Melissa worked tirelessly as a sewing machine operator in Harrodsburg, Kentucky. When her company downsized and she was laid-off, she applied for unemployment benefits and learned she was eligible for additional benefits and services through the Trade Adjustment Assistance program. With the assistance of counseling and assessments, Melissa set her sights on a high-demand career in the healthcare field. Through hard work and dedication, she earned her Associates degree in Medical Information Technology from Bluegrass Community and Technical College on May 3, 2008. She is now employed full-time with a regional medical center, and making more than in her previous job. She enjoys her work and the people she works with, and says she is extremely grateful for this opportunity. [Photo credit: DOL/ETA]

Here are a few highlights of FY 2008 performance:

For Workers

• Entered employment rates rose for Employment Service participants but fell for those served by the WIA Adult and Dislocated Worker programs and Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA).²⁹ The Employment Service results show the system provided employment assistance and/or workforce and labor market information to nearly 16 million individuals.
• Retention in employment improved for WIA Adult, Employment Service, and TAA program participants but fell slightly for the WIA Dislocated Worker program.
• Average earnings rose for participants in the WIA Adult, WIA Dislocated Worker, Employment Service, and TAA programs — with three of the programs exceeding their targets by a thousand or nearly a thousand dollars.
• Nearly 70 percent of businesses participating in the Women's Bureau Flex-Options program — 3.5 percent more than in FY 2007 — created or enhanced a flexible workplace practice such as telecommuting, job sharing, and compressed work week schedules.

For Employers

• Ninety-four percent of permanent foreign labor certification applications were processed within six months — up from 74 percent last year.
• Timeliness for all three temporary foreign labor programs also increased. For example, the H-1B Specialty Occupations Program for highly skilled professionals processed 100 percent of applications within the statutory seven-day timeframe.

For the International Community

• DOL-supported projects withdrew or prevented 196,312 children from exploitive labor by providing education and/or training opportunities. This brings to almost 1.3 million the total number of children rescued from exploitive labor around the world through DOL assistance.
• Through technical support and outreach from DOL-funded projects, 44 countries increased their capacity to eliminate the worst forms of child labor — 11 more countries than the target of 33.

For more information, please see the Performance Goal narratives.

The chart below presents FY 2008 achievements as measured by performance goals and indicators. The performance goal number, goal statement, and responsible agency appear on the left axis, the total percentage of indicator targets reached or improved is indicated in the horizontal bars, and the goal result is on the right axis. Corresponding strategic goal and DOL-wide averages are presented at the bottom of the chart. If the goal is achieved, the bar will run all the way across because, by definition, all indicator targets were reached. If the goal is substantially achieved, the total can range from 80 percent to 100 percent and includes indicators for which the target was not reached, but results improved over the previous year.

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DOL achieved or substantially achieved six of nine performance goals (67 percent) in Strategic Goal 2, which is above the Department's average of 50 percent. The WIA Adult program goal was not achieved, but two of the three Federal job training program common measure³⁰ targets were reached. The WIA Dislocated Worker goal was not achieved, either, missing the entered employment and retention targets but reaching the average earnings target. All three targets for the One-Stop employment and workforce information services were reached (goal achieved). The Senior Community Service Employment Program substantially achieved its goal by reaching its employment and retention targets and improving upon the FY 2007 result for average earnings. The TAA program, which did not achieve its goal, reached the average earnings target, missed on entered employment, improved retention but did not reach the target. The Foreign Labor Certification program substantially achieved its goal by reaching three targets and improving results for the fourth indicator. ODEP, the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy and ILAB achieved their goals by reaching all FY 2008 targets.

Five of the ten performance goals in Strategic Goal 2 are for employment and training programs whose results are measured by entered employment rate (percent of participants who obtain jobs subsequent to receipt of services) and by employment retention rate (percent of those who obtained jobs who are still employed six months later). The charts below indicate these programs' current and previous year results.³¹ Earnings results are not included because the programs that measure earnings used different indicators prior to this year. Significant differences in results between programs are generally explained by differences in types of services offered and populations served.

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The following table provides net costs for all performance goals and indicators associated with this strategic goal.³² Those with labels that begin with "07" operate on a Program Year (PY) basis, and are reporting on the period from July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008 due to the forward-funding authorized in the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA).

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Increase the employment, retention, and earnings of individuals registered under the Workforce Investment Act Adult Program.

Performance Goal 07-2A (ETA)

Indicators, Targets and Results

Source(s): Annual State WIA performance reports (ETA-9091).
Legacy Data: Some indicators not shown for PY 2002-05. Complete indicators, targets and results for PY 2002-05 are available in the FY 2006 report at http://www.dol.gov/_sec/media/reports/annual2006/PGD.htm. See Performance Goal 05-4.1A.
Note: Costs for this goal are net costs as defined in a footnote to the Cost of Results discussion in Management's Discussion and Analysis. Costs are not allocated to the indicator level for employment, retention and earnings measures because program activities are not separable into categories associated with one or another.

Program Perspective and Logic

The WIA Adult Program helps adult workers (unemployed and employed) acquire the skills they need to compete in a global economy. Funds are distributed by formula to States, which operate networks of One-Stop Career Centers that provide comprehensive services to workers and employers. Services include assessments of skills needs, individual career planning, occupational skills training, on-the-job training, skills upgrading, entrepreneurial training, and adult literacy activities. States also use the WIA Adult Program to leverage additional Federal and non-Federal resources to increase the quality and variety of assistance. Through collaboration with its program partners, the WIA Adult Program assists individuals in their career goals, reduces welfare dependency, and improves the quality, productivity and competitiveness of the nation's workforce.

DOL measures the success of this program with the Federal job training program common measures. The common measures enable comparisons to be made to government-wide education, employment and job training programs that share similar core purposes. The common measures are entered employment, employment retention, and average earnings. A high entered employment rate indicates success in placing individuals in jobs. A high retention rate indicates employment stability. Increased average earnings indicate that participants are getting better jobs at better wages.

Analysis and Future Plans

The performance goal for the WIA Adult Program was not achieved. DOL reached two of three performance indicator targets. The exception was the entered employment rate of 68 percent, which is three percentage points below the target. The barrier to achieving this target is in large part due to the policies of a number of States, including several large States, to co-enroll a significant number of participants in both the WIA Adult program and Wagner-Peyser employment services (Performance Goal 07-2C). These policies encourage integrated service delivery; however, Wagner-Peyser participants have traditionally had a lower employment rate. Co-enrollment, therefore, appears to pull down performance of the WIA Adult and Dislocated Worker Programs. The Department is working with the States with co-enrollment policies to determine whether action is necessary to ensure the ability to accurately measure the outcomes of these programs in the context of integrated service delivery.

Nancy entered the WIA program at the Pennsylvania (PA) CareerLink Cambria County in January 2006 as a customer in a self-directed job search. She had not worked in 26 years; she had been a stay-at-home mom and had battled cancer. CareerLink staff referred Nancy to New Choices-New Options, a program for displaced homemakers. She began typing tutorials and was referred to the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation for additional services. Her assessment determined math deficiencies and high interest and aptitude in business. She attended Adult Basic Education classes, entered WIA Workfind, and was temporarily placed at the PA CareerLink Cambria County to learn office skills. Nancy now works as an administrative professional at a business located minutes from her home. Photo credit: [Photo credit: Commonwealth Media Services]

Due partly to co-enrollment, in PY 2005-07, the number of people served by the WIA Adult Program grew from approximately 400,000 to over two million — with many of these new participants receiving WIA core services. WIA core services are lower cost interventions such as job search and placement assistance that may be followed by higher cost services such as intensive services and training. While the outcomes appear to be stabilizing, the number of participants served continues to rise as new States adopt co-enrollment practices as a service delivery approach. DOL will continue to gather information from States on the impact of their co-enrollment policies and practices, and is talking to States about actions that would support an optimal co-enrollment policy — a policy that increases leveraged resources and yields positive outcomes.

Other program results remained strong. The employment retention rate of 84 percent surpassed the target by one percentage point; this means that many people who initially gain employment after receiving services maintain their employment after six months. At $13,641, the six-month average earnings result exceeded the target for PY 2007 by more than one thousand dollars. Increasing numbers of WIA Adult Program exiters are entering higher paying positions in managerial, technical, production, repair and other fields. DOL will continue to focus on assisting participants to enter skilled jobs in high growth occupations that pay good wages.

The WIA Adult Program will continue to improve services to WIA participants by strengthening strategic partnerships with business and industry, and the education community. Through strategic planning efforts and grant application requirements, these partnerships develop workforce solutions in the context of state and regional economies. Additionally, the Department continues to encourage entrepreneurship training (by developing and promoting curricula) and lifelong learning as important tools in supporting healthy regional economies. The Department recently announced a new project to assist welfare recipients maintain employment and enter or advance in high-growth careers.

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Costs associated with this goal decreased six percent from PY 2006 to PY 2007. This reflects normal spending fluctuations since States have three years to expend funds. Costs are allocated to the performance goal rather than at the indicator level, as funding supports all the outcomes for the WIA Adult Program.

PART, Program Evaluations and Audits

Originally from Missouri, Chad had spent most of his life in correctional institutions, on parole or on probation. After arriving at the Burlington half-way house, he met with a WIA employment specialist, and he agreed to try making a change. While working two jobs, Chad attended Southeastern Community College and took classes such as trigonometry, physics and Computerized Numerical Control (CNC) programming. His WIA specialist assisted him with applying for a Pell grant, covered the cost of psychiatric treatment for issues related to his past drug abuse, and helped provide a suit and tie for job interviews. Today, Chad has been out of prison for seven-and-a-half years and has been drug-free for over six years. He is a homeowner and has worked at the Winegard Company for the past six years as a machinist. When asked about his experience, Chad replied, "In 2000, I didn't have a chance. If it wouldn't have been for this program, I would've gone back to prison." [Photo credit: DOL/ETA]

Data Quality and Top Management Challenges

Data quality for this performance goal is rated Very Good.³⁵ Refer to the Data Quality and Top Management Challenges section in Performance Goal 1C, which shares the same data collection system, for a discussion of improvement efforts.

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Increase the employment, retention, and earnings of individuals registered under the Workforce Investment Act Dislocated Worker Program.

Performance Goal 07-2B (ETA)

Indicators, Targets and Results

Source(s): Annual State WIA performance reports (ETA-9091).
Legacy Data: Some indicators not shown for PY 2002-05. Complete indicators, targets and results for PY 2002-05 are available in the FY 2006 report at http://www.dol.gov/_sec/media/reports/annual2006/PGD.htm. See Performance Goal 05-4.1C.
Note: Costs for this goal are net costs as defined in a footnote to the Cost of Results discussion in Management's Discussion and Analysis. Costs are not allocated to the indicator level for employment, retention and earnings measures because program activities are not separable into categories associated with one or another.

Program Perspective and Logic

The WIA Dislocated Worker Program aims to quickly reemploy laid-off workers and to enhance their employability and earnings by increasing occupational skills. The Department allocates 80 percent of the funds by formula to the States. The Secretary of Labor may use the remaining 20 percent for discretionary activities specified under WIA, including assistance to localities that suffer plant closings, mass layoffs or job losses due to natural disasters, and military base realignment and closures. Training services available to dislocated workers are occupational skills training, on-the-job training, skills upgrading, entrepreneurial training, job readiness training, adult literacy activities, and customized training for employers who commit to hiring individuals enrolled in the program.

The Department measures the success of this program with the Federal job training program common measures. The common measures enable comparisons to be made to education, employment and job training programs which share similar core purposes. The entered employment rate measures the success of participants finding a job. The retention rate demonstrates if a participant has employment stability, and the average earnings measure is a six-month snapshot of wages after program intervention.

Analysis and Future Plans

The performance goal for the WIA Dislocated Worker program was not achieved. The entered employment rate of 72 percent missed the target by seven percentage points. The employment retention rate missed the target by just two percentage points. As described in the WIA Adult Program (Performance Goal 07-2A) narrative, the primary barrier to achieving these targets is co-enrollment by some States of a significant number of participants in these two WIA programs and the Wagner-Peyser employment services (Performance Goal 07-2C).

The third measure, six-month average earnings, exceeded the target with a result of $15,132. While wages will vary from one participant to another based on skill level and the type of job placement, increasing wages is one indicator of the Department's progress in placing dislocated workers in high-wage, high-growth occupations. The Department continues to encourage States to place a greater focus on providing education and skills training for high-growth occupations. Also, DOL recently announced new projects to help workers who have lost their jobs start small businesses and to raise workers' education and skill levels.

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Costs associated with this goal decreased seven percent from PY 2006 to PY 2007, matching the decrease in appropriation for the same period. Costs are allocated to the performance goal rather than at the indicator level, as funding supports all the outcomes for dislocated workers.

PART, Program Evaluations and Audits

Ron's story is an example of the public workforce system at its best. He's an ex-offender who turned his life around. After earning his General Equivalency Diploma through the WIA Dislocated Worker Program, he went on to successfully complete classroom and workplace training for entry-level machining positions. Ron's employer is so impressed by his enthusiasm and quality work that they recommended him to be a featured speaker at a workshop encouraging dislocated workers to take advantage of available training programs in manufacturing. After one year, 12 of the 15 workers who started the program with Ron are still working in manufacturing. Also, The Workforce Connection Business Services Team and the Boone & Winnebago Counties Workforce Investment Board intend to use this training model to meet the needs of other companies. [Photo credit: DOL/ETA]

Data Quality and Top Management Challenges

Data quality for this performance goal is rated Very Good.³⁶ Refer to the Data Quality and Top Management Challenges section in Performance Goal 1C, which shares the same data collection system, for a discussion of improvement efforts.

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Improve outcomes for job seekers and employers who receive One-Stop employment and workforce information services.

Performance Goal 07-2C (ETA)

Indicators, Targets and Results

Source(s): Quarterly State WIA performance reports (ETA-9090).
Legacy Data: Some indicators not shown for PY 2002-06. Complete indicators, targets and results for PY 2002-06 are available in the FY 2007 report at http://www.dol.gov/_sec/media/reports/annual2007/SG4.htm. See Performance Goal 05-4.1B.
Note: Costs for this goal are net costs as defined in a footnote to the Cost of Results discussion in Management's Discussion and Analysis. Costs for PY 2006 have been restated to correct an allocation of costs between this goal and National Electronic Tools (Goal 06-2E in the FY 2007 report). Costs are not allocated to the indicator level for employment, retention and earnings measures because program activities are not separable into categories associated with one or another.

Program Perspective and Logic

A fundamental underpinning of the nation's One-Stop Career Centers is the delivery of core employment and workforce information services to businesses and job seekers. Core services include job matching, referral, assessments, a wide array of workforce and labor market information, and career guidance. Principally funded through the Wagner-Peyser Act, as amended by the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998, these services are designed to help both employed and unemployed workers obtain jobs and give employers access to skilled workers who will help them compete in the global economy. In addition to core services, the One-Stop Career Centers provide customized services to clients with special needs such as Unemployment Insurance claimants, veterans, and migrant and seasonal farm workers.

Employment and workforce information services that account for unique local and regional labor market conditions and reflect workers' needs are critical to achieving successful outcomes for job seekers and employers. Services are provided in collaboration with a wide array of workforce investment partners and are coordinated with other services available through One-Stop Career Centers, such as training, child care, and transportation. Most services can be accessed through a suite of electronic workforce tools at CareerOneStop.org, but many participants are referred to staff for personalized assistance and co-enrolled in WIA programs. The Employment Service assists nearly 16 million participants a year, a high volume compared to other employment and training programs.

The Department uses the common measures for Federal employment and job training programs to evaluate the effectiveness of its core employment and workforce information services. Common measures, including the entered employment rate, the employment retention rate and average earnings, enable comparisons to be made for employment and job training programs that share similar purposes. Collectively, the three measures help gauge the workforce system's ability to match individuals who are seeking employment with employers who need their skills. Unlike the WIA programs, the Employment Service does not provide training services. This program provides universal access to job search assistance, counseling, job matching, and workforce and labor market information. Therefore, results can be impacted to a higher degree by national unemployment and employment rates as well as general hiring trends.

Analysis and Future Plans

The performance goal for the Wagner-Peyser Act's Employment Service system was achieved. All three indicator results reached targets and improved upon PY 2006 performance. The entered employment rate of 65 percent and employment retention rate of 80 percent both rose above last year's results and were comfortably above the targets set for this year. The system also posted a very positive six-month average earnings result of $12,708. Collectively, the three measures help gauge the workforce investment system's ability to help people find a job and to maintain their employment at good wages. Overall, the results show the system has been successful in matching individuals who are seeking employment with employers who need their skills. Additionally, DOL has observed more Employment Service participants co-enrolled in WIA programs. This partnership has provided more individuals access to the additional core services, and in some cases, access to intensive and training services.

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Costs associated with this performance goal rose by six percent from PY 2004-05, fell by 15 percent between PY 2005-06, then fell by two percent from PY 2006-07, reflecting a nine percent decrease in appropriation from PY 2004-07 and annual fluctuations in the timing of expenditures. States have three years to expend funds. Costs are allocated to the performance goal rather than at the indicator level, as funding supports all measured outcomes for participants.

PART, Program Evaluations and Audits

CareerOneStop.org offers workforce information and career resources to businesses, workforce professionals, job seekers, and students to foster talent development. This website is an important part of the Employment and Training Administration's (ETA) suite of national electronic tools. The new Regional Economic Development (RED) portal supports regional strategic planning and decision making by offering high quality labor market, economic, and workforce information in one convenient location. Content follows ETA's Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) initiative model for talent development that drives regional economic growth and competitiveness. [Photo credit: DOL/ETA]

Data Quality and Top Management Challenges

Data quality for this performance goal is rated Very Good.³⁷ While verification remains an area for improvement, extensive effort has been directed towards improving data quality through the use of ETA's data validation system and monitoring at both the national and regional levels (see the Top Management Challenges section of Management's Discussion and Analysis). The validation initiative for this program is based on a sample. A sample approach continues to provide the most logical, administratively feasible, and cost effective means of validation due to the large number of participants — between 12 and 16 million — who receive core services. Data validation activities for PY 2006 data were completed on time. The deadline for PY 2007 data validation was extended to October 2008 due to software upgrades to the Data

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Increase the employment, retention, and earnings of individuals registered under the Senior Community Service Employment Program

Performance Goal 07-2D (ETA)

Indicators, Targets and Results

Source(s): Quarterly reports from the SCSEP Performance and Results Quarterly (SPARQ) Project Report System.
Note: Costs for this goal are net costs as defined in a footnote to the Cost of Results discussion in Management's Discussion and Analysis. Costs are not allocated to the indicator level for employment, retention and earnings measures because program activities are not separable into categories associated with one or another of them.

Program Perspective and Logic

The aging of the baby boomer generation presents both challenges and opportunities to the workforce investment system. SCSEP's goal is to promote self-sufficiency for older persons by placing them in unsubsidized employment. Formula grants to States and competitively awarded grants to public and private non-profit organizations fund part-time, minimum wage employment and job training services for approximately 90,000 low-income workers age 55 and older. SCSEP grantees and their affiliates deliver placement and training services and coordinate activities in partnership with nearly 3,000 comprehensive and affiliate One-Stop Career Centers nationwide.

DOL measures SCSEP success using the Federal job training program common measures. Common measures (entered employment rate, employment retention rate and average earnings) enable comparisons to be made to education, employment and job training programs that share similar purposes. These indicators measure participants' improved financial opportunity, stability of their new positions in unsubsidized employment, and effectiveness of training services, respectively. Targets for these measures are negotiated with each grantee based on past and projected outcomes, improvements in program design, and external economic factors.

George, retired since 1995, became a widower at age 80, and decided to return to work to help people like himself with limited incomes. He enrolled in the DOL-funded Mature Workers program, was selected for training to become a case manager for other participants, and attended staff development activities conducted by the Urban League. George impressed them with his interpersonal skills and overall proficiency. George was having financial difficulties and pursued unsubsidized employment with higher wages. An Urban League staff member urged him to apply for a position as a Facilitator Instructor for Citigroup's financial literacy program. He is now working for CitiFinancial helping other people like himself and credits the Mature Workers program with helping him find rewarding employment. [Photo credit: DOL/ETA]

Analysis and Future Plans

The performance goal for the SCSEP Program was substantially achieved. Entered employment and employment retention rates exceeded both PY 2007 targets and PY 2006 results. However, the retention rate data demonstrate a slight reduction from PY 2005 data, a benchmark the program intends to exceed in the coming program year. The average earnings result was $6,713, only $62 under the PY 2007 target and nine dollars above the PY 2006 result. The exceptional improvement in the entered employment rate (20 percentage points) is due to the addition to this year's data pool of large numbers of higher performing grantees. Last year, common measures data were available for only 22 percent of program participants.

The Department continues to analyze data to determine appropriate performance target levels. The average earnings measure, adopted last year, will continue to be monitored to determine the extent to which service interventions and the acquisition of new skills can lead older workers to more stable employment in jobs that pay good wages. Additionally, the Department is focused on implementing regulations based on the 2006 amendments to the Older Americans Act, such as adopting a new community service performance measure.

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Costs associated with this goal rose eight percent from PY 2006-07, which relate to a 12 percent increase in appropriation and the minimum wage increase effective July 2007. Costs are allocated to the performance goal rather than at the indicator level, as funding supports all the measured outcomes for older workers.

PART, Program Evaluations and Audits

Data Quality and Top Management Challenges

The data quality for this performance goal is rated Good.³⁸ In PY 2007, SCSEP reported complete data on the common measures from all grantees, restoring its initial rating after a downgrade for PY 2006.³⁸ About two-thirds of SCSEP grantees completed validation of PY 2006 data and made significant modifications. Based on these changes and the lag in performance data availability, the Department requested that grantees continue to modify source documentation and validate PY 2007 data during PY 2008. Grantees will be held accountable for validating reported data beginning in PY 2009. DOL has also implemented edit and logic checks, and has a data quality report and various management reports available to ensure data submitted by the grantees into the SCSEP Performance and Results Quarterly (SPARQ) Project Report System is verifiable. Finally, the Department is pursuing access to unemployment insurance wage records.

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Assist workers impacted by international trade to better compete in the global economy through the Trade Adjustment Assistance Program.

Performance Goal 08-2E (ETA)

Indicators, Targets and Results

Source(s): Trade Act Participant Report (TAPR) included in the Enterprise Business Support System (EBSS).
Legacy Data: Some indicators not shown for PY 2003-06. Complete indicators, targets and results for FY 2003-06 are available in the FY 2006 report at http://www.dol.gov/_sec/media/reports/annual2006/PGD.htm. See Performance Goal 06-4.1B.
Note: Net costs, which are defined in a footnote to the Cost of Results discussion in Management's Discussion and Analysis, are not allocated to the indicator level for employment, retention and earnings measures because program activities are not separable into categories associated with one or another. The goal was reported as not achieved in the FY 2006 report; corrections to data for two of the three indicators changed this result.

Program Perspective and Logic

The Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) Program provides training, income support, and related assistance to workers who lose their jobs due to increased imports or shifts in production to foreign countries. The program's primary goal is to return workers to suitable employment. The TAA Program is one component of integrated products and services available through the nationwide network of One-Stop Career Centers, including those funded under the WIA Adult and Dislocated Worker Programs and the Wagner-Peyser Act. The comprehensive readjustment services and benefits offered by the TAA Program include out-of-area job search and relocation assistance; training that can include occupational, on-the-job and remedial training; income support; and access to Health Coverage Tax Credit benefits. The One-Stop system provides counseling, assessment, and placement services for TAA participants.

The TAA program's success is measured by the extent to which it helps individuals regain economic self-sufficiency by quickly securing and maintaining employment. Economic factors such as the compatibility of skills in the available labor force with needs of new businesses contribute importantly to reemployment. Therefore, TAA continues to pursue a regional workforce investment strategy designed to create more employment opportunities that reach more workers and improve access to training. The federal job training program common measures enable the comparison of the TAA Program's results to those of similar education, employment and job training programs. Also, use of common measures removes a barrier to service integration among programs by ensuring that similar definitions and methodologies are used for measuring performance.

Analysis and Future Plans

The performance goal for the TAA Program was not achieved in FY 2008. While the results for average earnings exceed the target, the target for the percent of participants entering employment was not met. DOL attributes the dip in entered employment to economic conditions; the five states with the largest numbers of participants exiting the TAA program all had unemployment levels above the national average during this reporting period. The 90 percent result for the number of participants retaining employment did not reach the target but indicates improvement over the FY 2007 result. The Department credits the improved earnings with continued high retention levels to increased demand for trained workers.
DOL continues to explore strategies that will help improve the outcomes of the TAA program. In collaboration with the Employment Service and WIA and Unemployment Insurance programs, TAA is hosting a national reemployment summit in January 2009. The agenda will emphasize suitable reemployment of individuals who have lost jobs, including job loss due to foreign trade; it will be attended by state employees that administer the various programs, including TAA Coordinators. The Summit aims to enhance the capability of the Workforce system to improve reemployment outcomes, and to thereby benefit participants in all employment and training programs.

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Costs associated with this performance goal fell six percent between FY 2007-08 due to decreased participation in the Trade Adjustment Assistance/Trade Readjustment Allowance (TRA) program. In addition, the decrease in TRA costs and participation may be related to the 13 weeks of Extended Unemployment Compensation which are now available and replace TRA payments for eligible workers. Costs are allocated to the performance goal rather than at the indicator level, as funding supports all the outcomes for trade affected workers.

PART, Program Evaluations and Audits

Shanna had been working on the washer line at Herrin (IL) Maytag/Whirlpool for eight years when the plant closed, leaving 1,000 workers unemployed. "It was a sad, sad day," she said. "Everyone tried to cope the best they could. After they made the announcement, we were given the rest of the day off with pay. I went and picked my kids up from school and cried." Shanna benefitted from an unprecedented cooperative venture between Man-Tra-Con Corporation and John A. Logan College (JALC). A special Transition Center at the college was created for former Maytag/Whirlpool employees to meet, study, receive tutoring and provide mutual support. With TAA and WIA Dislocated Worker funding and guidance from a Man-Tra-Con career specialist, Shanna entered JALC. She graduated on May 16, 2008 with a dozen other former Maytag/Whirlpool employees, earning an Associate's Degree and a medical assistant's certificate. Since then, she has worked for Southern Illinois OB-GYN and Associates. [Photo credit: DOL/ETA]

Data Quality and Top Management Challenges

Data quality for this performance goal is rated Fair.⁴⁰ An improvement plan has been implemented that includes updating guidance to regional office staff on monitoring TAA data collection, quality control and reporting methods; and continuing to require States to conduct data element validation on Trade Act Participant Report records at the end of each year. Software is used to randomly select records, not to exceed 160 per State; and the information in case files is reviewed to ensure the data collected are complete, accurate and verifiable. In addition, DOL now monitors data elements reported by States; inconsistent responses prompt a request for explanation or correction. Also, as part of its proposed reauthorization of the program, DOL is seeking authority for obtaining more timely and accurate reporting from States.

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Address worker shortages through Foreign Labor Certification Programs.

Performance Goal 08-2F (ETA)

Indicators, Targets and Results

Source(s): Program Electronic Review Management System, Case Management System (CMS), and H-1B Electronic Processing System.
Legacy Data: Some indicators not shown for FY 2005. Complete indicators, targets and results for FY 2005 are available in the FY 2006 report at http://www.dol.gov/_sec/media/reports/annual2006/PGD.htm. See Performance Goal 06-4.1A.
Note: Costs for this goal are net costs as defined in a footnote to the Cost of Results discussion in Management's Discussion and Analysis.

Program Perspective and Logic

Before a foreign worker may obtain employment in the United States, the Immigration and Nationality Act requires that the Secretary of Labor certify to the Secretaries of Homeland Security and State that the employment of the foreign worker will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of U.S. workers who are similarly employed. Employers who wish to hire a foreign worker on a permanent basis, and many employers seeking to hire foreign workers for temporary jobs, must first test the labor market for available U.S. workers. Labor certifications issued by the Department support employers' petitions, filed with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, to authorize employment of foreign workers under temporary visas (like H-2A and H-2B) or under permanent, employment-based visas which may lead to lawful permanent residency.

Performance indicators are tied to statutory, regulatory, or internal processing requirements for Foreign Labor Certification programs. For example, the permanent (PERM) program measures the percent of employer applications for labor certification resolved within six months of filing; this reflects much shorter processing times under the streamlined system than under the previous regulation — which could take years. The other three performance indicators measure responsiveness to employers' time-sensitive demand for permission to hire temporary workers by tracking applications processed with ranges of seven to sixty days. Targets are based on performance information, data analysis, and anticipated application caseloads. In FY 2009, processing times may actually increase due to new procedures designed to strengthen program integrity.

Analysis and Future Plans

The goal was substantially achieved; three targets were reached and results for one indicator did not reach the target but improved from FY 2007. The H-1B Specialty Occupations Program for highly skilled professionals (specialty workers) processed 100 percent of applications — now almost always filed electronically — within the statutory seven-day timeframe.

The target for the PERM program was reached. Ninety-four percent of PERM applications were processed within six months, exceeding the FY 2008 target and the prior year result by about 20 percentage points. PERM performance was aided by a one-time influx of resources that had been committed to eliminating the backlog of applications in the old permanent program. Future PERM processing performance will be impacted by the implementation of integrity actions related to July 2007 fraud rule and the elimination of the program's backlog of cases. The specialized processing of all new PERM applications at the Atlanta National Processing Center, which began June 2, 2008, is expected to increase efficiency and potentially, output. The performance target will be increased for FY 2009 and FY 2010.

Performance of the H-2A Temporary Agricultural Program improved over FY 2007. Progress in meeting the 15-day statutory processing timeframe to accept or request a modification of applications is slow but steady. This year, DOL experienced minor delays in obtaining recruitment reports and housing inspections from employers and State agencies. As of June 2008, all new H-2A applications are being processed at the Chicago National Processing Center — a change that is expected to increase efficiency and potentially output, as well.

The H-2B Program for Non-agricultural Seasonal Workers reached its target for FY 2008; 77 percent of H-2B applications were processed within 60 days of receipt, a 14.6 percent increase from the prior year. In FY 2009, the H-2B program will also benefit from the Department's specialized processing of applications. All new H-2B applications will be processed at the Chicago center, thereby increasing efficiency and potentially output. DOL has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking designed to streamline the H-2B program. The proposed rule will speed processing by moving to an employer attestation process akin to the PERM system that has reduced backlogs in the permanent program. The performance target will be increased for FY 2009 and FY 2010.

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Costs associated with this performance goal dropped 36 percent from FY 2007-08 due to the timing of awards for major staffing contracts and infrastructure and operations, e.g., information technology contracts. Costs for contract awards made in the fourth quarter will be reflected in FY 2009. The fluctuation from FY 2005-07 reflects a temporary drop in staff costs during consolidation of PERM application processing from ten regional offices into two new National Processing Centers, followed by staffing up of those centers and the Backlog Elimination Centers.

PART, Program Evaluations and Audits

Data Quality and Top Management Challenges

Data quality for this performance goal is rated Very Good.⁴¹ Efforts to improve accuracy of reported wages and Employer Identification Numbers include expansion of the data validation checks built into the H-1B application system. See Labor Could Improve its Oversight and Increase Information Sharing with Homeland Security (GAO-06-720) for an explanation of key data quality issues. OFLC regularly assesses data quality, collection methods, and the Web-based case management systems to ensure that data are reliable, appropriate, and useful to management.

Integrity of the foreign labor certification program and the ability to process applications in a timely manner remain among DOL's top management challenges (see Maintaining the Integrity of the Foreign Labor Certification Program in the Top Management Challenges section of Management's Discussion and Analysis). Since 2007, when it eliminated the backlog of permanent applications, OFLC has instituted measures and has now created a separate division to identify, deter, and address fraud in foreign labor certification programs. OFLC resources are continually evaluated to ensure the appropriate balance and allocation among its many activities.

Fraud contributes to inefficiency by tying up resources that could help process the large volume of legitimate applications. Fraud cases involve applications filed on behalf of fictitious companies, the use of legitimate companies without their knowledge, the collection of fees from fraudulent applications filed on behalf of foreign workers, the substitution of aliens for named applicants, and other unscrupulous practices. Employer compliance is improving as a result of actions such as the PERM Fraud Rule, which DOL published in the Federal Register on May 17, 2007. The new rule limits the certification period to 180 days if the certification is not filed in support of a petition with DHS within that period, prohibits substitution and certain improper payments, and provides for debarment of employers for prohibited practices. In addition, the Department took aggressive action to ensure the integrity of the online application process by including filters to identify applications for audit; supervising recruitment for employers, when appropriate; and referring matters to the OIG.

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Build knowledge and advance disability employment policy that affects and promotes systems change.

Performance Goal 08-2G (ODEP)

Indicators, Targets and Results

Source(s): ODEP Division of Policy Planning and Research and Division of Administrative Systems and Financial Services.
Legacy Data: Some indicators not shown for FY 2005. Complete indicators, targets and results for FY 2002-05 are available in the FY 2006 report at http://www.dol.gov/_sec/media/reports/annual2006/PGD.htm. See Performance Goal 06-1.1B.
Note: Costs for this goal are net costs as defined in a footnote to the Cost of Results discussion in Management's Discussion and Analysis. Costs are not allocated to indicators because program activities are not separable into categories associated with one or the other.

Program Perspective and Logic

The Department's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) develops and influences the implementation of policy to reduce barriers to employment for people with disabilities. Increasing workforce participation of people with disabilities requires the removal of barriers experienced by job seekers and employees. ODEP develops policy about and for workforce systems, employers and the workplace, and employment-related supports. Key components of ODEP's employer-focused effort include fostering the implementation of effective policies and practices, conducting research and analysis that validates and identifies effective disability-employment strategies, and providing technical assistance on implementing policy and effective practices.

ODEP's response to traditionally low employment rates among people with disabilities is comprehensive and aggressive. Success requires active involvement and cooperation of stakeholders including Federal, State, and local agencies; non-governmental organizations; and private and public sector employers. Collaboration with these stakeholders results in policy development and implementation that expands access to systems (such as employment and training, education, and vocational rehabilitation), and increases the availability and accessibility of employment-related supports (such as health care, transportation and technology).

ODEP's investments in research and technical assistance activities provide employers with the information they need to increase the recruitment, retention, and promotion of people with disabilities. The results of these activities — policy-related documents, formal agreements, and effective practices — are reflected in the current indicators and targets.

Analysis and Future Plans

ODEP achieved its goal by reaching all three targets. ODEP identified 27 effective practices in FY 2008, reaching the target of 24. Targets for the two new indicators (34 policy related documents and 23 formal agreements) were reached, as well, with results of 44 and 36, respectively.

Gorman P., an equipment operator 2nd Class with the U.S. Navy, was running convoys in Iraq when a sudden sandstorm caused a 90-pound wood plank to hit him in the head, causing a traumatic brain injury. Due to his new disability, he was unable to return to his former civilian job as a truck driver. Although he had some ideas about alternative career options, he recognized the need for additional education. While recuperating from his injury, Gorman enrolled in the Transition Training Academy (TTA), a pilot project for disabled veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan designed to hone their information technology skills and provide them with marketable credentials. After completing the program, Gorman obtained a job with a consulting and training services company teleworking from his home. Gorman is committed to helping other disabled veterans transition to the civilian workforce. "I wouldn't be where I am today without TTA," he said. "I want to pass along the opportunities that were given to me." [Photo credit: DOL/ETA]

In FY 2008, ODEP continued to conduct research and analysis and provide technical assistance, particularly on and about employers and their perspectives. ODEP also continued providing technical assistance to workforce investment systems through cooperative agreements. These agreements, which require ongoing collaboration between ODEP and other entities, fund national technical assistance efforts, disability and employment research, and the dissemination of effective practices. ODEP conducted the second phase of a program evaluation in FY 2008 to develop and pilot test a performance measurement system that supports ODEP's mission. Findings and recommendations regarding the results of the pilot test, use of current annual performance measures, and proposed intermediate outcome measures will be reviewed and analyzed in FY 2009.

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ODEP net costs dropped again in FY 2008 — to $27 million — from $34 million in FY 2007 and from higher levels in FY 2005-06. Net costs include funds awarded in prior fiscal years. Reduced funding has led to a significant reduction in pilot projects. In FY 2009, additional efficiencies are expected to result from staff experts' assumption of work previously performed by grantees, including lower development and operation costs associated with grant projects.

PART, Program Evaluations and Audits

Data Quality and Top Management Challenges

Data quality for this goal is rated Good.⁴² ODEP relies on contracted external independent evaluators to validate the data collection systems that support ODEP's performance measures. As ODEP continues to implement its strategic and performance plan, data quality will be improved to ensure uniform guidelines for collecting and reporting data as well as increasing their validity in measuring program performance.

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Maximize regulatory flexibility and benefits and promote flexible workplace programs.

Performance Goal 08-2H (OASP)

Indicators, Targets and Results

Source(s): DOL's Spring 2007 Regulatory Agenda (initiatives supplied by DOL agencies) and Women's Bureau Best Practice intake forms.
Legacy Data: Some indicators not shown for FY 2004-06. Complete indicators, targets and results for FY 2004-06 are available in the FY 2006 report at http://www.dol.gov/_sec/media/reports/annual2006/PGD.htm. See Performance Goal 06-4.2A.
Note: Costs of achieving DOL's results in maximizing regulatory flexibility are distributed throughout the department's regulatory agencies, as it is part of their costs of operations.

Program Perspective and Logic

The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy (OASP) coordinates and tracks DOL's achievement of this goal in part through its role in directing the compilation and publication of the Department's Annual Regulatory Plan and Semi-Annual Regulatory Agenda. The Agenda delineates all the regulations DOL expects to have under consideration for publication, proposal, or review during the coming one-year period. The focus of Departmental regulatory activity will be on the development of effective rules that advance the Department's goals and that are understandable and usable to the employers and employees in all affected workplaces.

With OASP's assistance, DOL regulatory agencies establish plans and procedures to prioritize regulatory initiatives that support this goal. Most of the items on the Agenda are required to implement new statutory requirements, court decisions, or policy and program priorities related to the Department's other strategic goals. OASP is responsible for establishing the guiding principles DOL agencies must follow when developing regulations, including encouraging the use of cost-benefit analysis, risk assessment, and performance-based regulatory standards, as well as reviewing DOL regulations to ensure they do not impose any unnecessary barriers.

The "Flex-Options" project, sponsored by DOL's Women's Bureau, encourages business owners to develop workplace flexibility policies and procedures for all of their employees, such as telecommuting, job sharing, and compressed work week schedules. Employers learn about effective workplace flexibility through one-to-one mentoring relationships with corporate executives who have had positive experiences with such practices and from others who have years of experience in designing workplace flexibility practices.

Each indicator for this performance goal measures DOL's progress in promoting flexibility in ways that are crucial to a competitive workforce: regulatory and workplace flexibility. The regulatory flexibility indicators ensure that DOL's regulation review plan emphasizes flexibility. It is based on meaningful criteria that, where feasible, reflect public input and correct existing regulatory practices that are duplicative, obsolete, or not cost-effective. All interested members of the public are invited and encouraged to let Departmental officials know how regulatory efforts can be improved, and to comment on the regulations listed on the agenda. Wherever appropriate, DOL will follow up with changes to reduce regulatory burden to improve productivity and competitiveness, while simultaneously protecting worker rights, benefits and safety. The workplace flexibility indicators ensure that DOL highlights and publicizes best practices of flexible workplaces and model flexibility practices.

External factors impacting performance for this goal include court decisions and legislation that mandate regulatory changes or that require drafting new regulations within certain time frames. These unexpected regulatory projects must be given priority and, therefore, can disrupt the progress of other regulatory projects already underway. The Pension Protection Act of 2006 and the MINER Act are examples of legislation that required regulatory actions be completed in a timely manner in response to statutory requirements.

Analysis and Future Plans

During FY 2008, the Department had 40 items on its regulatory agenda that were relevant to this performance goal and took action on 38 of them (95 percent), exceeding the target of 94 percent. Actions included publishing notices of proposed rulemaking, final rules, interim final rules, etc. In each case, DOL agencies pursued actions that maximized net benefits, promoted regulatory flexibility, and/or replaced obsolete provisions with regulations that reflect current technology and market conditions and address present-day business practices. In addition, this initiative focuses on acting on economically significant regulations that maximize net benefits. In FY 2008, the Department acted on 100 percent of these regulations. In FY 2008, the "Flex-Options" project reached its target with 68.8 percent of participating employers creating or enhancing their workplace practices.

Progress on this goal requires continuous adaptation of the Department's existing and proposed regulations to changing work environments, technology and market conditions. This includes ensuring that employment-related laws, regulations, and regulatory practices and variances that form the regulatory environment do not inhibit non-traditional work arrangements (e.g., telecommuting, job sharing, and flexible schedules). OASP and the Department's regulatory agencies, including the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Mine Safety and Health Administration, Employment Standards Administration, and the Employee Benefits Security Administration, will continue to conduct comprehensive reviews of key laws, regulations and other instruments to determine their effectiveness and applicability to the new workplace, and to respond to outside recommendations for regulatory reform such as those of the Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy.

PART, Program Evaluations and Audits

OASP has not been subject to a PART review.

Data Quality and Top Management Challenges

Data quality for this performance goal is rated Good.⁴³ Data and results are not estimated, but are based on reporting from public actions taken as part of the rulemaking process. Regulatory data are taken directly from the Department of Labor's Semi-Annual Regulatory Agenda. Items are added to the Regulatory Agenda through a transparent process that begins with the agency identifying provisions on which they propose to focus. After a rigorous Departmental review and clearance process, the approved items are added to the Department's Regulatory Agenda, which is published in the Federal Register each Spring and Fall. Data for the flexible workplace measure are reported by the regions based on the number of programs or policies created or enhanced by participant companies. Data are cross checked and verified at the regional and national level.

To identify performance data that better represent the desired outcomes, particularly with respect to the Department's regulatory agenda, OASP undertook a review of all agency data collection efforts. The review enhanced working relationships with all program agencies and led to more uniform and consistent data reporting. OASP plans to routinely conduct such a review to maintain improvements in data quality and working relationships with the various program agencies.

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Contribute to the elimination of the worst forms of child labor internationally.

Performance Goal 08-2I (ILAB)

Indicators, Targets and Results

Source(s): Grantee progress reports and other project monitoring sources.
Note: Costs for this goal are net costs as defined in a footnote to the Cost of Results discussion in Management's Discussion and Analysis. Costs are not allocated to indicators because program activities are not separable into categories associated with one or the other.

Program Perspective and Logic

The Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) contributes to the elimination of the worst forms of child labor internationally through its Congressionally-mandated research on child labor, efforts to increase public awareness of the issue, and support of projects to eliminate exploitive child labor and increase access to quality basic education around the world. DOL-funded international child labor projects provide educational and other services to child laborers, at-risk children, and their families; assist in strengthening national labor and education infrastructures, resources, and policies relating to child labor; and undertake research initiatives to better understand the issue and inform ongoing and future efforts to address it. ILAB currently provides funding to 40 grantees working in 61 countries worldwide.

These children live in a fishing community in the Ga District of Ghana and are at high risk of being trafficked. As beneficiaries of a DOL-supported anti-trafficking project, these children were provided educational stipends so that they could attend formal schools, and their parents participated in skills training and livelihood activities to increase household income. [Photo credit: ILO/IPEC]

ILAB measures its success towards meeting this performance goal through two indicators. "Children withdrawn" refers to those who have been removed from exploitive labor and enrolled in educational programs; "children prevented" are at-risk children who have been provided education services to keep them from entering exploitive labor. The second measure captures ILAB's success in promoting national-level actions such as legislation aimed at eliminating exploitive child labor and the integration of child labor concerns in governments' anti-poverty and economic development programs. ILAB establishes annual targets for its two indicators through analysis of baseline information, individual project targets, past performance, and external factors. ILAB's FY 2008 target for the withdrawal and prevention indicator is lower than its FY 2007 result due to the dollar's devaluation, and, in some cases, the targeting of difficult-to-reach children needing more costly interventions, such as child victims of trafficking.

In FY 2008, 90 percent of the funding for DOL's child labor program directly contributed to ILAB's two performance indicators; remaining funds contributed indirectly through administrative, oversight, and research functions. Various external factors influence ILAB's targeted outcomes, many of which are inherent to implementing programs in developing countries. Civil unrest, natural disasters, economic shocks, exchange rate fluctuations, frequent changes in governments, and poor infrastructure can impact the progress of project implementation.

Analysis and Future Plans

This goal was achieved. During FY 2008, DOL-supported projects withdrew or prevented 161,047 children from exploitive labor by providing education and/or training opportunities. This brought to more than 1.2 million the total number of children rescued from exploitive labor around the world as a result of DOL assistance since 1995. Children served by these projects were working or at risk of working in mines, plantations, manufacturing workshops, garbage dumps, brick kilns, and other hazardous types of work. Others had been exploited or were at risk of exploitation in the worst forms of child labor such as trafficking, debt bondage, forced labor, and commercial sexual exploitation.

Before being enrolled at the age of 11 in a DOL-supported project in El Salvador, Miguel would wake up at dawn to spend a long day harvesting shellfish with his father. He worked long hours, digging deep with his bare hands into the mud of mangrove swamps to extract the shellfish. To repel the mosquitoes and other insects, Miguel smoked cigars. In addition — like the other children working in the swamps — he took pills to stave off exhaustion from the arduous work. Today, thanks to funding provided by DOL, Miguel and over 35,000 other Salvadoran children have been given another chance in life. In addition to removing children from the worst forms of labor or reducing the risk of their involvement in these types of labor, the project helps transform the education system and attitudes towards education in the communities it serves. Teaching materials from this project were so popular among teachers that the Ministry of Education used them as a model for social studies curricula through the third grade. The Ministry also assumed responsibility for 90 after-school centers established by the project after it ended. [Photo credit: ILO/IPEC]

During FY 2008, through technical support and outreach from DOL-funded projects, 45 countries increased their capacity to eliminate the worst forms of child labor. For example, in Cambodia, using technical input from a DOL-funded project, employers' organizations adopted a Code of Conduct for Employers Against Child Labor. In Rwanda, DOL-funded projects helped the government incorporate the issue of child labor into its national poverty reduction strategy framework as a matter of priority. The Department is funding a national child labor survey that will serve as a basis for developing and implementing a Rwandan child labor policy. Finally, in Guatemala, a DOL project facilitated the government's approval of the United Nations Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others.

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In FY 2009, ILAB will strengthen its project evaluation process, focusing on two main areas. First, ILAB will develop a methodology to test the impact of various direct interventions to gain a better understanding of what approaches are most effective in removing children from hazardous work and retaining them in education programs. Second, ILAB will intensify efforts to use evaluation findings to improve the design, implementation, and sustainability of new and ongoing projects.

The fluctuation in costs associated with this performance goal reflect changes in ILAB's appropriations for international child labor elimination projects from FY 2002-08 and typical lags between funding and expenditures. Annual appropriations for ILAB peaked in FY 2002-04 at approximately $82 million per year before declining slightly in FY 2005 and over 25 percent in FY 2006. This reduced level continued through 2008. In keeping with this trend, ILAB experienced an increase in expenditures from FY 2005-06 and a 22 percent decrease in expenditures from FY 2007-08.

PART, Program Evaluations and Audits

Data Quality and Top Management Challenges

Data quality for this performance goal is rated Excellent.⁴⁴ ILAB, which does not have an overseas presence, has developed a multi-pronged strategy for monitoring data quality and project performance. This includes semi-annual project-level financial and technical progress reports, performance monitoring plans, and mid-term and final project evaluations. In addition, financial and performance-related attestation engagements are being conducted by a private certified public accounting firm on many DOL-funded child labor projects. These attestation engagements review data to ensure that grantees are reporting results based on ILAB-established definitions, and that the data are supported by adequate records and observation. When issues in reporting are identified, grantees are required to provide a corrective action plan to revise the data as necessary.

To strengthen project oversight, ILAB introduced a new internal monitoring tool in FY 2008 through pilot accountability reviews. These reviews include assessments of reliability and validity of performance data as well as compliance with OMB circulars, DOL policies, ILAB Management Procedures and Guidelines, and the terms of grantees' Cooperative Agreements.

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²⁹These results — plus the retention results summarized in the next bullet — are displayed in charts on the second page following this one.
³⁰Several Federal agencies, including the Departments of Labor, Education, Health and Human Services, Interior and Veterans Affairs, administer programs that share the goal of helping people find jobs. To inform comparative evaluations of effectiveness, the Administration worked with these agencies to develop outcome measures that apply to their diverse methods and target populations. While these measures have evolved over the last several years, they have consistently focused on participants' entered employment and employment retention rates, and earnings.
³¹Results for the Apprenticeship program (Performance Goal 08-1D in Strategic Goal 1) are included in the retention chart. That program does not measure entered employment because apprentices are by definition already employed.
³²Rows labeled "Dollars not associated with indicators" indicate costs that cannot be associated with the current set of performance indicators. For some goals, indicator costs are intentionally combined by merging cells because program activities are not separable into categories associated with one or another of them (e.g., job training program common measures — entered employment, employment retention and average earnings).
³³Net cost as defined in a footnote to the Cost of Results discussion in Management's Discussion and Analysis.
³⁴Costs associated with Performance Goal 07-2H (OASP) are included in costs allocated to other performance goals.
³⁵Information on DOL's Data Quality Assessments, conducted annually for each performance goal, can be found in the Introduction to the Performance Section.
³⁶Information on DOL's Data Quality Assessments, conducted annually for each performance goal, can be found in the Introduction to the Performance Section.
³⁷Information on DOL's Data Quality Assessments, conducted annually for each performance goal, can be found in the Introduction to the Performance Section.
³⁸Information on DOL's Data Quality Assessments, conducted annually for each performance goal, can be found in the Introduction to the Performance Section.
³⁹In PY 2006, State grantees (serving 22 percent of program participants) but not national grantees reported on these measures.
⁴⁰Information on DOL's Data Quality Assessments, conducted annually for each performance goal, can be found in the Introduction to the Performance Section.
⁴¹Information on DOL's Data Quality Assessments, conducted annually for each performance goal, can be found in the Introduction to the Performance Section.
⁴²Information on DOL's Data Quality Assessments, conducted annually for each performance goal, can be found in the Introduction to the Performance Section.
⁴³Information on DOL's Data Quality Assessments, conducted annually for each performance goal, can be found in the Introduction to the Performance Section.
⁴⁴Information on DOL's Data Quality Assessments, conducted annually for each performance goal, can be found in the Introduction to the Performance Section.