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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riverside Labor Force Attachment (LFA) |
additional services: Basic skills/bridge programs, Case management, Job search assistance, Paid work experience/internships, Transportation assistance
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Urban only | Cash assistance recipients, Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
California |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Riverside Labor Force Attachment (LFA) Program (as compared with Riverside Human Capital Development [HCD] Program) |
additional services: Basic skills/bridge programs, Case management, Job search assistance, Paid work experience/internships, Transportation assistance
|
Urban only | Cash assistance recipients, Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
California |
Short-term | ||||
| Long-term |
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| SNAP Works 2.0 |
additional services: Job readiness, Job search assistance, Performance- or behavior-based financial incentives, Transportation assistance
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Tested in multiple settings | Unemployed, Public Benefits Recipients |
Georgia |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| St. Nicks Alliance WorkAdvance Program |
additional services: Assessment, Career planning, Counseling/emotional support and relationship building, Employment coaching, Employment skills development, Goal setting, Job development, Job placement, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Ongoing support, Post-employment participant follow-up, Soft skills training
|
Urban only | At least a high school diploma or equivalent |
New York |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Standard Job Club (as compared with Fast Track Job Club) |
additional services: Post-employment participant follow-up, Child support assistance, Financial education, Job placement, Job readiness, Soft skills training, Transportation assistance
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Tested in multiple settings | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
California |
Short-term |
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| Long-term | |||||||||
| STEP Forward |
additional services: Assessment, Career planning, Case management, Childcare and/or early education, Counseling/emotional support and relationship building, Employment coaching, Employment experiences, Employment skills development, Job development, Job placement, Job readiness, Mental health services, Ongoing support, Soft skills training, Subsidized employment/transitional jobs, Transportation assistance
|
Urban only | Unemployed, Adults (age 25+) |
California |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Structured Customer Choice (as compared with Guided Customer Choice) |
additional services: Employment coaching, Job readiness
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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 | |||||||||
| Structured 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 | |||||||||
| Structured Job Search Assistance (SJSA) |
additional services: Job readiness
|
Tested in multiple settings, Urban only | At least a high school diploma or equivalent, Cash assistance recipients, Public Benefits Recipients |
District of Columbia, Florida |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Success Through Employment Preparation (STEP) |
additional services: Assessment, Basic skills/bridge programs, Counseling/emotional support and relationship building, Job placement, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Ongoing support, Performance- or behavior-based financial incentives, Soft skills training, Transportation assistance
|
Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients |
Pennsylvania |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Success Through Employment Preparation (STEP) (as compared to Transitional Jobs Program at the Transitional Work Corporation (TWC)) |
additional services: Assessment, Basic skills/bridge programs, Counseling/emotional support and relationship building, Job placement, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Ongoing support, Performance- or behavior-based financial incentives, Soft skills training, Transportation assistance
|
Urban only | Parents |
Pennsylvania |
Short-term |
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| Long-term | |||||||||
| Supporting Families Through Work (SFTW) |
additional services: Action step development, Assessment, Career planning, Child support assistance, Counseling/emotional support and relationship building, Employment coaching, Employment experiences, Employment skills development, Goal setting, Job development, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Legal assistance, Ongoing support, Performance- or behavior-based financial incentives, Post-employment participant follow-up, Soft skills training, Transportation assistance, Work supports
|
Urban only | Noncustodial parents, Parents, Public Benefits Recipients |
Wisconsin |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Texas Employment Retention and Advancement (ERA) |
additional services: Case management, Childcare and/or early education, Earned income disregards, Employer-focused retention strategies, Employment coaching, Job placement, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Post-employment participant follow-up, Stipends, Transportation assistance
|
Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
Texas |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| The San Diego Saturation Work Initiative Model (SWIM) |
additional services: Job readiness, Unpaid work experience/internships
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Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients, Single parents |
California |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Transition WORKS |
additional services: Post-employment participant follow-up, Case management, Employment coaching, Job development, Job placement, Job search assistance, Paid work experience/internships, Unpaid work experience/internships
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Tested in multiple settings | Public Benefits Recipients, Young adults (age 16-24) |
New York |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Transitional Employment Training |
additional services: Employer-focused retention strategies, Earned income disregards, Employment coaching, Job development, Job placement, Soft skills training, Transportation assistance
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Tested in multiple settings | Public Benefits Recipients |
New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington, Wisconsin |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Transitional Jobs Program at the Transitional Work Corporation (TWC) |
additional services: Assessment, Basic skills/bridge programs, Benefit navigation/access, Case management, Employment experiences, Job placement, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Ongoing support, Performance- or behavior-based financial incentives, Post-employment participant follow-up, Soft skills training
|
Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients |
Pennsylvania |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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| Transitional Jobs Program at the Transitional Work Corporation (TWC) [as compared to Success Through Employment Preparation (STEP)] |
additional services: Basic skills/bridge programs, Case management, Job placement, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Performance- or behavior-based financial incentives, Post-employment participant follow-up, Soft skills training
|
Urban only | Parents, Public Benefits Recipients |
Pennsylvania |
Short-term |
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| Long-term | |||||||||
| TransitionsSF |
additional services: Assessment, Career planning, Case management, Child support assistance, Employment experiences, Employment skills development, Job development, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Ongoing support, Performance- or behavior-based financial incentives, Post-employment participant follow-up, Soft skills training
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Urban only | Noncustodial parents, Parents |
California |
Short-term |
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| Long-term |
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