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Summary

The Palm Beach County Transitional Employment Program (PBC TEP) was designed as an enhanced voluntary reentry intervention for adults at higher risk of re-offending that added 8-12 weeks of subsidized transitional employment, structured cognitive behavioral interventions, and job readiness/life skills workshops to standard reentry services.

The Palm Beach County Transitional Employment Program (PBC TEP) was designed as an enhanced voluntary reentry intervention for adults at higher risk of re-offending that added 8-12 weeks of subsidized transitional employment, structured cognitive behavioral interventions, and job readiness/life skills workshops to standard reentry services.Subsidized transitional employment was in one of three industries: construction, kitchen, or warehouse/retail. The structured cognitive behavioral interventions included CBI-Employment Adult and Moral Reconation Therapy.

The three TEPs varied in their intensity and duration:

  • Construction TEP: 10-week, 28-hour per week program with 24 hours of work experience and 4 hours of Moral Reconation Therapy per week.
  • Kitchen TEP: 8-week, 16-hour per week program with 2 days of work per week and 4 hours of CBI-Employment per week.
  • Warehouse/retail TEP: 12-week, 20-hour per week program with 16 hours of work per week and 4 hours of Moral Reconation Therapy plus attending an employment readiness workshop one day per week.

Eligibility assessments for PBC TEP included completing the LSI-R for risk of re-offending and the Employment Readiness Checklist (ERC) to assess employment readiness. Individuals had to have at least a low/moderate score on the LSI-R (14 or above) and be less job ready (ERC score of 35 or under) to be eligible for PBC TEP. The study was conducted in Palm Beach County, FL.

101019.01-Study of Palm Beach
Populations and employment barriers: Public benefits recipients, Unemployed, Justice involvement
101019.02-Study of Palm Beach
Populations and employment barriers: Public benefits recipients, Unemployed, Justice involvement

Effectiveness rating and effect by outcome domain

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Outcome domain Term Effectiveness rating Effect in 2024 dollars and percentages Effect in standard deviations Sample size
Increase earnings Short-term No evidence to assess support
Long-term No evidence to assess support
Very long-term No evidence to assess support
Increase employment Short-term Supported favorable 14% (in percentage points) 0.331 230
Long-term No evidence to assess support
Very long-term No evidence to assess support
Decrease benefit receipt Short-term No evidence to assess support
Long-term No evidence to assess support
Very long-term No evidence to assess support
Increase education and training All measurement periods No evidence to assess support
* This intervention was assessed as supported for this domain, meaning it achieved one or more statistically significant, favorable effects. However, the intervention has an average effect size that is unfavorable because the average includes all effects in this domain - both statistically significant and favorable effects and statistically insignificant but unfavorable effects.

Effectiveness rating key:

  • Well-supported Well-supported   
  • Supported  Supported   
  • Not supported  Not supported   
  • Mixed support  Mixed support   
  • Insufficient evidence  Insufficient evidence   
  • No evidence  No evidence
Effectiveness rating terms?

Studies of this intervention

Study quality rating Study counts per rating
High High 2
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Implementation details

Dates covered by study

Palm Beach County has provided comprehensive reentry services since 2011. The TEP program began in 2017 from a Bureau of Justice Assistance grant. The randomization period spanned November 2018 to March 2021, with data collection occurring through September 2022.

Organizations implementing intervention

PBC TEP was provided through three service providers in Palm Beach County, each specializing in a different industry. 

Populations served

PBC TEP was designed to serve individuals in state prisons or jails reentering the community who volunteered for reentry services, were at higher risk of re-offending, and were assessed as not being job-ready. The average participant was a Black, non-Hispanic male with at least a high school diploma or GED with extensive prior involvement in the justice system and frequent unemployment in the year prior to incarceration.

Description of services implemented

All three TEP providers provided case management and offered individualized services based on risk and need, including education, substance use and mental health treatment, family reunification, and employment assistance, and assistance with basic needs. The three TEPs varied in their intensity and duration, ranging from 8 to 12 weeks. 

Service intensity

The three TEPs varied in their intensity and duration:

  • Construction TEP: 10-week, 28-hour per week program with 24 hours of work experience and 4 hours of Moral Reconation Therapy per week and attendance at employment readiness and life skills trainings on days not scheduled to work.
  • Kitchen TEP: 8-week, 16-hour per week program with 2 days of work per week and 4 hours of CBI-Employment per week.
  • Warehouse/retail TEP: 12-week, 20-hour per week program with 16 hours of work per week and 4 hours of Moral Reconation Therapy plus attending an employment readiness workshop one day per week.

Comparison conditions

The comparison group was offered standard comprehensive reentry services provided on a voluntary basis. Interested participants were assigned to one of a set of community-based providers on a rotating basis. Participants were assigned to a case manager at the provider who provided support navigating the reentry process and made referrals to services. Services can include education, substance use or mental health treatment, family reunification, employment assistance, and assistance with basic needs.

Partnerships

No partners were indicated for delivering PBC TEP.

Staffing

All participants were assigned to a case manager at their provider. The study did not describe the staff providing the TEP services.

Fidelity measures

The study did not discuss any tools to measure fidelity to the intervention model.

Funding source

The enhanced PBC TEP program was funded through an Innovations in Reentry Initiative grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance. Palm Beach County delivers its standard reentry services through local and state funds supplemented with federal grants.

The information contained here reflects how the intervention was implemented at the time of the evaluation.

Local context

The PBC Reentry Task Force oversees reentry programs for Palm Beach County, which is a collaboration between the county Public Safety Department, state Department of Corrections, local Sherrif’s Office, and local community-based service providers. The local community-based service providers deliver the program services. The study took place in Palm Beach County, FL.

Characteristics of research participants
Black or African American
75%
White
23%
Another race
2%
Hispanic or Latino of any race
6%

The race and ethnicity categories may sum to more than 100 percent if the authors reported race and ethnicity separately; in these cases, we report the category White, rather than White, not Hispanic.

State(s) where implemented

AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE DC FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY Canada

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