Today there are many efforts underway nationally to consciously reconnect customers of the Unemployment Insurance (UI) program to re-employment services in One-Stop Career Centers. This presentation provides details of how states are trying to re-connect claimants through technology, eligibility assessments, re-employment services, and social media.  

Since the 1930’s, the United States had a national labor exchange system known as the Public Employment Service, Job Service, or the Unemployment Office.  The Wagner-Peyser Act of 1933 established nationwide offices with the purpose of connecting workers to industry job vacancies.  In the 1990’s states began to co-locate employment offices with other employment and training programs to create one-stop centers for workers.  Initially, Unemployment Insurance was an important partner.  However, with the advent of the internet and more advanced technology and desperate for more efficient ways to pay people timely and accurately, UI began moving to call centers where applicants could file their claim on the phone or over the internet. The long term consequence of these events is that individuals no longer had immediate access to re-employment services.  Learn how Unemployment Insurance unintentionally became disconnected to the Employment system in the United States and what the country is doing about it.