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WorkAdvance focused on recruiting individuals ages 18 or older who were legally allowed to work in the United States, had a monthly family income less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level, and earned less than $15 per hour, if employed. Individuals were enrolled in the study after completing an intensive screening process lasting up to seven days, with requirements varying at each site. After being deemed eligible for WorkAdvance, individuals completed consent forms, provided baseline information, and were randomly assigned to the WorkAdvance group or the comparison group. Random assignment occurred from June 2011 to June 2013. This study considers the effect of the Madison Strategies Group WorkAdvance Program, one of four programs implementing the WorkAdvance model within the WorkAdvance Demonstration. Other studies reported separately in the Pathways Clearinghouse consider the effects of the other three programs. The study authors also reported on the effects of WorkAdvance using a pooled sample of participants from across all four programs. The Pathways Clearinghouse did not consider results for the pooled sample because the study authors indicated these results were exploratory.
Individuals were randomly assigned from June 2011 to June 2013 and followed through the end of 2018.
The Social Innovation Fund, Corporation for National and Community Service, funded the study.
The majority of study participants were male (84 percent) and single (71 percent), and the average age was 35. Twenty-eight percent of participants were Black or African American, 6 percent were Hispanic, and 39 percent were White. Almost all participants had a GED certificate/high school diploma or some postsecondary education (36 percent and 58 percent, respectively). About 40 percent of participants had been previously convicted of a crime. Twenty-seven percent were currently employed, 35 percent received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, and 8 percent received unemployment insurance benefits.
Madison Strategies Group, a nonprofit provider in Tulsa, OK.
WorkAdvance was launched in 2011 and did not exist before this study.
The WorkAdvance program uses a dual-customer approach to provide training and employment services meeting the needs of low-skilled workers and local employers. The WorkAdvance model includes five key elements: (1) intensive screening before enrollment; (2) pre-employment and work-readiness services, including career coaching, supportive services, and labor market information, all tailored to a specific vocational sector; (3) occupational skills training focused on current job openings; (4) job development and placement; and (5) provision of follow-up retention services in collaboration with employers. Four sites implemented the WorkAdvance model for this demonstration, with each choosing one or more occupations of focus and implementing the model in a different way. In particular, the length, breadth, and depth of many services differed. This review focuses on the Madison Strategies Group site, a nonprofit provider in Tulsa, OK, that implemented the WorkAdvance model with an emphasis on the transportation and manufacturing sector. Madison Strategies Group began the WorkAdvance demonstration by offering a placement-first approach, in which some participants skipped occupational skills training to seek immediate employment, until fall 2012 when it switched to a mostly training-first approach. Pre-employment services were delivered in 5 sessions of 6 hours each, and occupational skills training lasted 4 to 32 weeks.
Individuals in the comparison group completed the WorkAdvance screening but could not receive other WorkAdvance services. They also remained eligible for other services in their communities.
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Pre-employment services were delivered in 5 sessions of 6 hours each, and the occupational skills training lasted 4 to 32 weeks. Follow-up services were provided within the first week of a participant's employment, and coaches followed up with participants monthly after that, with no duration specified.
A Social Innovation Fund grant to the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City and the Center for Economic Opportunity funded WorkAdvance. Matching funds for WorkAdvance were provided by Bloomberg Philanthropies, Open Society Foundations, The Rockefeller Foundation, Altman Foundation, Common Bond Foundation, Ford Foundation, The Fund for Our Economic Future, George Kaiser Family Foundation, The Ira W. DeCamp Foundation, JPMorgan Chase Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, Robin Hood Foundation, Surdna Foundation, Tiger Foundation, Tulsa Area United Way, Tulsa Community Foundation, and The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Inc.
The study took place at Madison Strategies Group, a nonprofit provider in Tulsa, OK.
Job characteristics; life satisfaction; financial hardship; family formation; health insurance; housing