December 2021
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Communication Update
We are in the process of revising our communication strategies and you will begin to see some differences in our newsletter and websites. Our goals are to transition with as few disruptions as possible and to provide resources that are consistent and easy to use. Please watch for surveys that may come to you. Your voice is important to our plans!
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Dislocated Worker and Federal Adult Programs
Please email all requests, reports, technical assistance questions, etc. to the Dislocated Worker Federal Adult Programs general email at DWFAPrograms.DEED@state.mn.us
New Dislocated Worker General Email Address!
We have begun using a central email address, DWFAPrograms.DEED@state.mn.us, to collect all reports, modification requests, requests for technical assistance, etc. Please use this email address instead of emailing questions or documents to the personal account of your grant administrator for WIOA DW, WIOA Adult, and Minnesota State Dislocated Worker projects. This change in procedure will help us to more efficiently manage our internal business practices.
Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) & Legacy Program
For any SCSEP related questions, please contact Heather Moore, Grants Specialist Coordinator, at heather.moore@state.mn.us or 651-259-7560
- Updated guidance for the COVID-19 pandemic was sent to providers on 11/29/2021. Related documents include MN SCSEP _ At-Home Training Program _ Updated November 2021 and MN SCSEP _ In-Person Training and Safety Risks _ Updated November 2021. Key points include:
- Emergency paid sick leave (EPSL) is now available to participants who have been exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 and are awaiting test results, tested positive for COVID-19, or are caring for someone who tested positive for COVID-19.
- The at-home training program is available for participants who have an open host agency but may not be comfortable training in person until cases decrease again. Please check in with your participants and see if they'd prefer to train from home. Another option is to work with host agencies to see if they could offer training virtually.
- Reminders:
- Telework guidance for participants who are training virtually with a host agency or using DEED's at-home program was sent to providers on 10/14/2021.
- Host Agency Monitoring Review Form was updated and sent to providers on 10/14/2021.
- Updates to SCSEP policies and procedures are forthcoming.
- Legacy Program
- Regarding final reporting requirements and key performance goals, Heather will provide an update to providers soon.Legacy closed on 10/22/21. All participants have been/will soon be exited or transitioned to other appropriate grant programs.
- The final financial and narrative report to the USDOL are due on 2/15/22
- All final RPRs have been received. If there are any questions or concerns, Heather will reach out to the provider directly.
- Regarding final reporting requirements and key performance goals, Heather will provide an update to providers soon.
- The final financial and narrative report to the USDOL are due on 2/15/2022.
RFP to Provide Employment and Training Services Now Available for Retaining Employment and Talent after Injury/Illness Network (RETAIN)
- RETAIN demonstration project tests the impact of early intervention strategies on the stay at work/return to work outcomes of workers who have recently incurred a new injury or illness, or who recently experienced an exacerbation of an existing injury/illness that affects their ability to
- Phase 2 RFP to provide employment and training services is now available through WDI: RETAIN Program - Work Force (workforcedevelopmentinc.org)
- RETAIN program is now open for enrollment. Learn more at https://www.careerforcemn.com/RETAIN
Program Performance
- Should you have any performance or data entry questions, please contact the Federal Adult Programs Performance Coordinator, Amy Carlson, at carlson@state.mn.us.
Adult Career Pathways (ACP)
Please contact your Grant Coordinator directly with any questions!
Legislative Direct Appropriation Grants/ Competitive Grants
SFY 2020-2021 Contracts
- Be sure to review your project budget and measurable outcomes to be sure all funds are expended by the end of your contract and all data has been entered in to WF1 to accurately reflect all the great work happening at your organization.
- All SFY20-21 participants MUST exit from WF1 within 30 days of the end of your contract.
SFY 2022-2023 Contracts
- Thank you for all the great submissions for the Southeast Asian Economic Relief Grant, African Immigrant Community Economic Relief Grant, On-Ramp to Career Pathways, Bridge to Career Pathways, Individual Training Pathway, WESA, Adult Support Services, Getting to Work, and Internationally Trained Professionals RFPs. All are now closed, and we expect notification to applicants as soon as possible.
- The Targeted Community Capital Project RFP was released on Friday October 22nd. This grant will award $18 million to non-profits organizations and government entities within Minnesota for capital projects. Projects utilizing these funds must result in providing, increasing, and/or expanding access to economic development, education or workforce development programs or services to underserved communities or economically disadvantaged persons or groups.
SNAP E&T 50/50
The ACP team’s, through the partnership with DHS, SNAP 50% Reimbursement program has provided over $90,000 in additional funds to ACP Grantees in SFY21! We hope to recruit more Grantees in SFY22 to take advantage of the 50% reimbursement on expenses already incurred through ACP’s programs.
If your proposal Grant Information Summary page indicated interest in the SNAP E&T, an ACP Coordinator will be in touch in early January inviting you to an informational webinar.
MN Family Resiliency Partnership (formerly known as Displaced Homemaker Program)
Information about the Minnesota Family Resiliency Partnership program can be found on DEED’s ACP webpage at https://mn.gov/deed/job-seekers/find-a-job/targeted-services/homemakers/.
ACP Guides
ACP’s Operations Guide is now available from the ACP home page. The Guide documents current practices for ACP. The ACP Team meets monthly to discuss suggested additions, modifications, and other changes to the guide and update as necessary. It does NOT include measures implemented in response to COVID-19, which are listed separately.
Adult Career Pathways Workforce One
Entering case notes within WF1 is an important part of case management. To demonstrate on-going case management and progress, service providers must enter activities and case notes into Workforce One (WF1).
A reminder to enter Enrollment/Preliminary/Intake case note when participants begin to receive services, each time the participant’s IEP is updated, and after each interaction (or attempted interaction) with the participant throughout the duration of their participation in your program.
The required enrollment/preliminary/intake case note must include:
Participant current situation: including skills, barriers to gaining employment (i.e. lack of certification/training, unstable housing, dependent care, transportation), work 12 October 2021 history, current work situation (employer name, title, wage, number of hours worked per week), family status, justification for enrollment,
Participant goals: including goals from IEP, steps participant will work towards to achieve those goals, and how training program will assist in meeting those goals
Support Services and/or Referrals that program will provide to participants to assist in achieving employment goals
Developing a participant’s Individual Employment Plan
During this time of COVID, please be sure to follow the steps outlined within the measures implemented in response to COVID-19 when developing an IEP with participants:
- Document that the applicant has agreed to the IEP
- Note on the IEP that the participant has verbally agreed to the IEP, include the date the participant agreed, and the initials of the staff writing the case note.
- “Activate” the IEP in Workforce One by entering the date it was signed,
- Enter a detailed case note of the onboarding process sin Workforce One.
REMINDER: Be sure to deactivate all Workforce One access for staff that are no longer working within your programs. To do so, simply send the Workforce One team an email (workforceone.deed@state.mn.us ) informing them of the update.
ACP webpage: https://mn.gov/deed/programs-services/adult-career-pathways/ .
Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA)
TAA Petitions
Here’s the link to check the status of petitions with U.S. Department of Labor https://www.doleta.gov/tradeact/petitioners/taa_search_form.cfm
- Recently certified
- 96977 – Rest Assured Mattress Co. Inc., Rochester
- Pending DOL’s investigation
- 98076 – Emerson Process Management LLLP, Eden Prairie
- 98111 – Medtronic, Minneapolis
- 98104 – Baxter Healthcare, Brooklyn Park
ETPL
If you have a client interested in postsecondary training, including many college degrees, and your client is eligible for WIOA Title I, check out Minnesota’s Eligible Training Provider List (ETPL) to support their informed choice of training.
Information about how the ETPL works is here: https://mn.gov/deed/newscenter/publications/trends/september-2020/minnesota-etpl.jsp
The ETPL to look up trainings with your client is here: https://apps.deed.state.mn.us/lmi/cpt/EducationSearch
Remember, ‘WIOA certified’ means the training includes a credential (following WIOA’s federal definition of a credential), and approvals happen at the program (or course) level.
If you have questions about the ETPL, please connect with ETPL Administration at etpl.deed@state.mn.us.
BY THE NUMBERS
As the pandemic spread and many thousands of Minnesotan workers were laid off, an even larger share of workers were sent home but continued to work in some fashion. The surge of teleworking in 2020-2021 represented an acceleration of what has been a more gradual long-term increase of working from home. In 2010 only 5% (134,000) of Minnesota's workforce worked from home, which was a larger share than the national share of 4.1%1. The Minnesotan work-from-home share grew slightly to 5.9% (172,000) in 2019, yet the national work-from-home share expanded at an even faster rate to 5.2%.
Working from home is not an option that is equally available to all workers. Educational attainment, income, occupation, and even health appears to determine whether a worker is more or less likely to be able to telework. The U.S. Census Bureau conducted analysis of their Household Pulse data earlier this year and found that households with members that teleworked more often were also more likely to have higher levels of educational attainment, higher incomes, and better health statuses. Read more about teleworking trends in Minnesota here: https://mn.gov/deed/newscenter/publications/review/september-2021/insights.jsp
We want this e-Newsletter to meet your needs! We encourage you to send your comments, suggestions and subscription requests to deed.taa@state.mn.us. Find past issues of Partner Express.
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