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Transitional Jobs
Why Municipal Leaders Develop Transitional Jobs Programs
Even in a strong economy, some individuals have difficulty finding employment: residents moving from welfare to work, high school dropouts, homeless individuals, or ex-offenders re-entering the community. Communities that help hard-to-employ residents overcome barriers to work reap benefits in terms of increased family economic security, higher tax revenue, reduced dependence on emergency services, and lower rates of crime and incarceration.
What Municipal Leaders Can Do to Help Residents Overcome Barriers to Work
City leaders can promote self-sufficiency by providing time-limited, publicly-funded, wage-based transitional jobs in public, nonprofit or (in some cases) for-profit settings, as well as varying levels of training and support, to help those with barriers to employment develop the skills and experience needed to attain and sustain unsubsidized jobs.
This model provides an alternative for those unable to meet the "work first" requirements of state welfare programs, and allows participants to provide services that benefit the community, pay into Social Security, and qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit.
Goals of the YEF Institute's Family Economic Success Programs
The goal of the YEF Institute's family economic success program is to strengthen municipal leaders capacity to help low- and moderate-income families achieve financial stability. The Institute supports city leaders' efforts by helping them:
- Learn how other cities have conducted Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) outreach campaigns and volunteer income tax assistance (VITA) sites;
- Connect families with other public benefits by screening their eligibility for food stamps and state children's health insurance;
- Link efforts to help families access public benefits to broader asset-building initiatives that help families save for the futures; and
- Developing transitional jobs programs that help residents overcome barriers to employment through temporary, publicly-subsidized jobs that facilitate the transition into the private workforce.
Family Economic Success Staff Contacts
Heidi Goldberg, Program Director: 202-626-3069 or goldberg@nlc.org
Sarah Bainton Kahn, Senior Program Associate, 202-626-3044 or bainton@nlc.org
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