Panel:
Providing Public Workforce Services to Job Seekers: The Wia Adult and Dislocated Worker Program Gold Standard Evaluation
(Employment and Training Programs)
Thursday, November 8, 2018: 10:15 AM-11:45 AM
Madison A - Mezz Level (Marriott Wardman Park)
*Names in bold indicate Presenter
Panel Chairs: Sheena McConnell, Mathematica Policy Research
Discussants: Yvette Chocolaad, National Association of State Workforce Agencies and Demetra Nightingale, Urban Institute
This panel discusses final findings from a nationally representative evaluation of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Adult and Dislocated Worker Programs. The Adult and Dislocated Worker programs are two of the largest initiatives seeking to provide these services in the United States. The programs provide information on job search and high-demand occupations (core services), assistance from employment counselors (intensive services), and funding for training. Despite their importance, the Adult and Dislocated Worker programs had not been previously evaluated using the most rigorous methods. The proposed panel begins with an overview of the programs as they operated under WIA and changes introduced when the programs were reauthorized under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act beginning in 2015. The panel will then present estimated impacts on employment, earnings, and other key outcomes based on surveys conducted 30 months after random assignment. Lastly, the panel will present estimated impacts using administrative tax records from the Internal Revenue Service, consider relative advantages of each of the data sources, and reconcile the different sets of findings to draw broader conclusions about the impacts of services provided through the Adult and Dislocated Worker programs.
