Participants of LA:RISE were co-enrolled in programs funded by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and received a minimum of 300 hours of subsidized, transitional employment at a social enterprise or workforce development system partner. These programs also provided on-the-job training, specialized training, or both. Other provided services varied by placement and included soft-skills training, work-readiness training and assessments, supportive services, case management, education, and permanent job search and placement services.

TWE, part of the VA’s Compensated Work Therapy Program, helped participants develop work restoration plans and provided a rehabilitative work setting within the VA, other federal agencies, or private businesses in the community. TWE participants received at least 30 hours per week of structured vocational rehabilitation activities and were assigned to therapeutic work placements for six months to one year. Participants also received case management to help them gain and enhance their employment skills and find and maintain competitive employment.

TWE, part of the VA’s Compensated Work Therapy Program, helped participants develop work restoration plans and provided a rehabilitative work setting within the VA, other federal agencies, or private businesses in the community. After their participation in TWE, participants moved into CE, during which they could receive standard VA services (including VA health care, education benefits, home loan assistance, disability compensation, and vocational rehabilitation and employment assistance).

At the time this evaluation occurred, two Transitional Subsidized Employment programs were active in Los Angeles County: OJT and a paid work experience (PWE) program. OJT placed participants in a partially subsidized, six-month position at a for-profit, private-sector organization, where they were paid $8 an hour by the local Workforce Investment Board (WIB) for the first two months.

Florida Back to Work was a subsidized employment program that reimbursed employers who hired program participants. Employers were required to put the individuals on their payroll and were then reimbursed for 80 to 95 percent of the costs associated with employing the program participant. Employers included nonprofits, for-profits, and public agencies. For-profit organizations were required to commit to keeping an employee on their payroll for the duration of the program, whereas nonprofits were encouraged to do so.

The Bridges program offered a multi-phase program focused on four main service areas: academic enrichment, socio-emotional learning (SEL), workforce readiness training, and mentorship and case management services. Participants began the program by attending a group orientation session and taking the Test of Adult Basic Education and an online financial training. Following the financial training, participants began the first of three phases of Bridges services.

In addition to MFIP employment services, MSTED participants received job-readiness assessments, one-on-one training to support job readiness, and assistance finding subsidized employment. Subsidized employment under the MSTED model took two forms. The first form, which aimed to improve participant workplace skills, was a paid work experience at a public agency or nonprofit organization for up to 24 hours per week for up to 8 weeks. Participants earned a fully subsidized wage of $9 per hour under this option.

Six months before justice-involved adults were scheduled for release from prison, individuals were transferred to one of two facilities in Racine, WI. In these facilities, social workers would provide case management workups, which included an assessment of needs; risks; child support; credit; and personal documentation issues, such as a lack of driver’s license or Social Security number.