Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

The Michigan Works! Reemployment and Eligibility Assessment (REA) pilot program operated in selected areas of the state from January to September 2015 and sought to help Unemployment Insurance (UI) claimants return to work sooner than the average period of 14 weeks. Claimants selected to participate were called in for mandatory, in-person REA sessions one-on-one with a workforce agency representative. During this first REA session, the claimants received an orientation to available reemployment assistance services and labor market information, and had their eligibility for UI benefits reviewed. Staff also reviewed the claimant’s recent job search activities and created an individualized reemployment plan, which could include referrals to training or other reemployment services. If claimants continued to receive UI benefits in subsequent weeks, they were called in for up to two additional, mandatory sessions.

As part of this program, the Michigan UI Agency generated weekly lists of claimants and sent them letters explaining that they must schedule their first REA session within 14 days. These individuals were also informed that, if they failed to schedule and attend an REA session within 14 days, their UI benefit payments would be suspended. Despite this warning, in the first three months of the program, 43 percent of the called-in claimants failed to schedule their initial session and 19 percent did not attend their first scheduled appointment. Low participation in the REA program concerned staff and administrators because prior research suggests that the program is effective (Michaelides, Poe-Yamagata, Benus, and Tirumalasetti, 2012).

Michigan Works! agencies and the W.E. Upjohn Institute partnered with a team of behavioral science and research experts to determine if behavioral “nudges” could help. The research team identified a number of behavioral factors that might inhibit participants’ engagement in the REA program and job search behavior, and recommended a collection of email messages to supplement the initial letter sent out by the Michigan UI Agency. The messages leveraged four key behavioral principles: (1) personalizing interactions and using an empathetic tone, (2) making the benefits of participating in the REA program clear (3) providing clear, concise steps for scheduling and preparing for the REA sessions, and (4) providing timely reminders for the scheduled sessions.

This paper and presentation will share the design and findings of a randomized controlled trial testing whether this email intervention influenced REA participation among UI claimants. The trial began in March 2015, with emails sent to 357 individuals who had valid email addresses and had been called in to receive REA services. A control group of 374 claimants received no additional messages. Key findings include that: (1) email messages can increase program attendance, and (2) continued reminders can increase completion of a multi-visit service strategy.