People who are unemployed can face unique challenges and opportunities as they seek jobs or prepare for new types of work. This Population in Focus page summarizes what we know about programs that can improve key outcomes of unemployed individuals with low incomes.
The Pathways to Work Evidence Clearinghouse has reliable evidence for 80 programs that served unemployed individuals, based on 88 studies rated as moderate or high quality. The results below focus on programs with the largest reported effects for long-term earnings, employment, public benefit receipt, and attainment of education and training.
For each outcome, we present results from programs with favorable effectiveness ratings for that outcome. These results show what’s possible but may not always happen again if the program is implemented under different conditions. The results can partly reflect how a program was tested. Future success may depend on factors like staffing, resources, and features of a community.
For more information about the programs covered in this summary, use the hyperlinks in Exhibit 1 below.
Earnings
Per Scholas Sectoral Employment Program had the largest reported effects on long-term annual earnings (an average of $10,972 per year). Per Scholas Sectoral Employment Program (Per Scholas) provided a computer technician training program, internships, soft skills training, and supportive services to participants with low incomes. The program aimed to help participants obtain computer certification and find jobs in the information technology sector.
Employment
TransitionsSF had the largest reported effects on long-term employment (an average of 7 percentage points). TransitionsSF supported unemployed noncustodial parents in finding and maintaining work with the goal of improving participants’ employment outcomes and ability to pay for child support.
Public benefit receipt
Portland Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program (JOBS) had the largest reported effects on long-term benefit receipt (decreasing the amount of public benefits received by $653 per year). The Portland version of Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program (JOBS), a national program model enacted through the Family Support Act of 1988 to support recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) in finding a job, focused on quickly moving participants into any employment, while also encouraging them to search for higher paying jobs with benefits.
Education and training
Per Scholas Sectoral Employment Program had the largest reported effects on education and training (increasing the attainment of a degree or credential by an average of 39 percentage points). Per Scholas Sectoral Employment Program (Per Scholas) provided a computer technician training program, internships, soft skills training, and supportive services to participants with low incomes. The program aimed to help participants obtain computer certification and find jobs in the information technology sector.
Programs serving unemployed individuals: implementation and outcomes
Exhibit 1 lists 80 programs for unemployed individuals included in Pathways to Work. It includes information about key program features like the services offered, the settings in which it was studied, and populations included in the studies. These program features may have shaped the studies’ results.
The exhibit also shows effectiveness ratings and reported effects by outcome for each program, based on Pathways to Work study reviews. An effectiveness rating tells us whether a program is likely to produce favorable results, if it is implemented under similar conditions.
You can use the exhibit to identify programs with a supported rating and consider their relevance for your community. Links to the program pages also allow you to learn about other factors that may affect success like staffing and resources.
| Program | Services | Settings | Population(s) | State(s) | Term | Increase earnings | Increase employment | Decrease public benefit receipt | Increase education and training |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult Connections Team |
additional services: Case management, Peer mentoring, Soft skills training, Unpaid work experience/internships
|
Tested in multiple settings | Unemployed, Young adults (age 16-24) |
Illinois |
Short-term |
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| Long-term | |||||||||
| Atlanta Human Capital Development (HCD) Program |
additional services: Case management, Job search assistance, On-the-job training, Paid work experience/internships, Transportation assistance, Unpaid work experience/internships
|
Urban only | Cash assistance recipients, Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
Georgia |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Atlanta Human Capital Development [HCD] Program (as compared with Atlanta Labor Force Attachment [LFA] Program) |
additional services: Case management, Job search assistance, On-the-job training, Paid work experience/internships, Transportation assistance, Unpaid work experience/internships
|
Urban only | Cash assistance recipients, Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
Georgia |
Short-term | ||||
| Long-term |
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| Atlanta Labor Force Attachment (LFA) |
additional services: Case management, On-the-job training, Paid work experience/internships, Transportation assistance, Unpaid work experience/internships
|
Urban only | Cash assistance recipients, Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
Georgia |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Atlanta Labor Force Attachment (LFA) Program (as compared with Atlanta Human Capital Development [HCD] Program) |
additional services: Case management, On-the-job training, Paid work experience/internships, Transportation assistance, Unpaid work experience/internships
|
Urban only | Cash assistance recipients, Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
Georgia |
Short-term | ||||
| Long-term |
|
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| Back to Work (B2W) [as compared with Independent Job Search (IJS)] |
additional services: Case management, Job placement, Soft skills training
|
Urban only | Cash assistance recipients, Public Benefits Recipients |
New York |
Short-term |
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| Long-term | |||||||||
| Building Nebraska Families (BNF) |
additional services: Basic skills/bridge programs, Counseling/emotional support and relationship building, Financial education, Goal setting, Legal assistance, Ongoing support, Soft skills training
|
Rural only | Public Benefits Recipients |
Nebraska |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Career Builders |
additional services: Ongoing support, Assessment, Career planning, Counseling/emotional support and relationship building, Job readiness, Mental health services, Peer mentoring
|
Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
Oregon |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Community Connections Individual Placement and Support (IPS) (as compared to Enhanced Vocational Rehabilitation [EVR]) |
additional services: Case management, Job search assistance, Mental health services, Post-employment participant follow-up, Transportation assistance
|
Urban only | Unemployed, Mental health condition |
District of Columbia |
Short-term |
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| Long-term | |||||||||
| Employment Opportunities, Personalized Services, Individualized Training, and Career Planning |
additional services: Basic skills/bridge programs, Employer-focused retention strategies, Financial education, Integrated education and training, Job development, Job placement, Job readiness, Job search assistance, On-the-job training, Paid work experience/internships, Subsidized employment/transitional jobs, Transportation assistance, Work supports
|
Tested in multiple settings | Unemployed, Public Benefits Recipients |
Illinois |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Enhanced Vocational Rehabilitation [EVR] (as compared to Community Connections Individual Placement and Support (IPS)) |
additional services: Case management, Mental health services
|
Urban only | Unemployed |
District of Columbia |
Short-term |
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| Long-term | |||||||||
| Ethics, Discipline, Goals, Employment - Enhanced Community College Services |
additional services: Case management, Financial education, Soft skills training, Subsidized employment/transitional jobs, Transportation assistance, Unpaid work experience/internships, Work supports
|
Tested in multiple settings | Unemployed, Public Benefits Recipients |
Mississippi |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Families Achieving Success Today (FAST) |
additional services: Assessment, Benefit navigation/access, Career planning, Counseling/emotional support and relationship building, Goal setting, Job development, Job placement, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Mental health services, Ongoing support, Physical health services
|
Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients |
Minnesota |
Short-term |
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| Long-term | |||||||||
| Future Steps |
additional services: Assessment, Career planning, Employment coaching, Job placement, Job search assistance, Ongoing support, Post-employment participant follow-up, Stipends
|
Rural only | Unemployed |
Illinois |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Generating Opportunities to Attain Lifelong Success |
additional services: Basic skills/bridge programs, Case management, Employer-focused retention strategies, Job development, Job placement, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Soft skills training, Transportation assistance, Tuition assistance/financial aid, Work supports
|
Tested in multiple settings | Public Benefits Recipients |
Kansas |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Grand Rapids Human Capital Development (HCD) Program |
additional services: Case management, Job search assistance, On-the-job training, Paid work experience/internships, Transportation assistance, Unpaid work experience/internships
|
Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
Michigan |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Grand Rapids Human Capital Development [HCD] Program (as compared with Grand Rapids Labor Force Attachment [LFA] Program) |
additional services: Case management, Job search assistance, On-the-job training, Paid work experience/internships, Transportation assistance, Unpaid work experience/internships
|
Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
Michigan |
Short-term | ||||
| Long-term |
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| Grand Rapids Labor Force Attachment (LFA) Program |
additional services: Case management, On-the-job training, Paid work experience/internships, Transportation assistance, Unpaid work experience/internships
|
Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
Michigan |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Grand Rapids Labor Force Attachment (LFA) Program (as compared with Grand Rapids Human Capital Development [HCD] Program) |
additional services: Case management, On-the-job training, Paid work experience/internships, Transportation assistance, Unpaid work experience/internships
|
Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
Michigan |
Short-term | ||||
| Long-term |
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| Greater Avenues for Independence (GAIN) |
additional services: Basic skills/bridge programs, Case management, Job development, Job readiness, Transportation assistance, Unpaid work experience/internships
|
Tested in multiple settings, Urban only | Cash assistance recipients, Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
California |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Guided Customer Choice (as compared with Maximum Customer Choice) |
additional services: Employment coaching, Job readiness
|
Tested in multiple settings | Unemployed, At least a high school diploma or equivalent |
Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina |
Short-term |
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| Long-term | |||||||||
| Guided Customer Choice (as compared with Structured Customer Choice) |
additional services: Employment coaching, Job readiness
|
Tested in multiple settings | Unemployed, At least a high school diploma or equivalent |
Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |