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Summary

B2W provided job search assistance to cash assistance applicants who were deemed job ready by B2W staff. Participants received soft-skills development, job search support, and interview support. This evaluation directly compared B2W to a separate intervention, IJS, in order to better understand which of the two interventions might be more effective; the distinctive features of B2W are mandatory, in-person services; one-on-one classes; soft-skills training; and job interview attendance.  

B2W provided participants with 35 hours per week of mandatory, in-person services that included group and individual job search classes, case management, job development and job search support, job interview support, and soft-skills training. B2W also provided supportive services that included transportation and work clothes. Participants typically received services for 6 to 8 weeks, and job search support activities were limited to 12 weeks. After attaining employment, participants were offered monthly contact with program staff for six months. B2W participants were people who applied for but had not yet received cash assistance and who were deemed job ready by program staff after attending two B2W orientation sessions. B2W was delivered in New York City, NY. 

Comparing the effectiveness of B2W to the effectiveness of IJS indicates the effect of being referred to a set of services that includes those unique to B2W; the comparison indicates how much better the offer of B2W meets participants’ needs than the offer of IJS. Services provided by B2W were mandatory and delivered in person for 35 hours per week. Services unique to B2W included one-on-one job search classes, soft-skills training, and job interview support. IJS required participants to search for employment independently for 35 hours per week, and additional in-person services were optional.  

24961-Back to Work (B2W) v
Populations and employment barriers:

Effectiveness rating and effect by outcome domain

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Outcome domain Term Effectiveness rating Effect in 2018 dollars and percentages Effect in standard deviations Sample size
Increase earnings Short-term Little evidence to assess support $0 per year 0.000 0
Long-term No evidence to assess support
Very long-term No evidence to assess support
Increase employment Short-term Little evidence to assess support unfavorable -1% (in percentage points) -0.036 2686
Long-term No evidence to assess support
Very long-term No evidence to assess support
Decrease benefit receipt Short-term Supported favorable $-223 per year -0.081 2684
Long-term No evidence to assess support
Very long-term No evidence to assess support
Increase education and training All measurement periods No evidence to assess support
* This intervention was assessed as supported for this domain, meaning it achieved one or more statistically significant, favorable effects. However, the intervention has an average effect size that is unfavorable because the average includes all effects in this domain - both statistically significant and favorable effects and statistically insignificant but unfavorable effects.

Effectiveness rating key:

  • Well-supported Well-supported   
  • Supported  Supported   
  • Not supported  Not supported   
  • Mixed support  Mixed support   
  • Insufficient evidence  Insufficient evidence   
  • No evidence  No evidence
Effectiveness rating terms?

Studies of this intervention

Study quality rating Study counts per rating
High High 1
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Implementation details

Dates covered by study

The Job Search Assistance Strategies (JSA) evaluation covered service delivery at four program sites from October 2015 to October 2016. The study follow-up period measured outcomes of interest six months after program entry. The B2W intervention was established in 2013 and stopped operation in early 2017. The IJS program started in 2015 and ended in early 2017.

Organizations implementing intervention

The New York City Human Resources Administration (HRA)/Department of Social Services oversaw the B2W and IJS interventions and contracted out the delivery of employment services to vendors in the New York City area. HRA administers and oversees the federally funded Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) cash assistance program that is called “Family Assistance” in New York. New York State also administers a separate state-funded cash assistance program called “Safety Net Assistance” for those individuals and families not eligible for Family Assistance or other assistance programs. In coordination with federal and state laws, HRA develops program rules, policies, and regulations; screens applicants for eligibility; makes determinations for each cash assistance program; and oversees the provision of employment services in New York City. Of the seven vendors who were operating the B2W program at the time of the evaluation, two participated in the study—America Works and Goodwill Industries—and both operated two B2W sites. B2W and IJS participants received all intervention services from the same vendor office throughout their time in the program.

Populations served

B2W and IJS served job-ready cash assistance applicants while their application for assistance was pending. The programs served families with children and single, childless adults who met preliminary eligibility requirements for receiving Family Assistance and/or Safety Net Assistance and were determined to be “job ready.” HRA defined “job ready” as applicants determined to be able to work and who might need less job search assistance than other cash assistance applicants. Case managers determined individuals to be job ready if they had an associate’s degree, had a job or had worked in the past three months, and showed an interest in and were ready to start a job. People were not eligible for B2W or IJS if they were exempted from the federal work requirement for either cash assistance program. For both programs, participation was mandatory, and applicants who failed to participate had their applications for cash assistance denied.

The study population was mostly female (57 percent). Seventy-four percent were Black or African American, not Hispanic, and 15 percent were Hispanic or Latino of any race. The average age was 35. More than two-thirds were never married (69 percent). More than half (54 percent) of study participants had children in the household. About 20 percent had less than a high school diploma. About 10 percent of participants reported they were working at the time of application, and 67 percent of participants reported not working at the time of application but had worked in the prior 12 months. About 40 percent had received cash assistance in the prior two years, and 74 percent had received Supplementation Nutrition Assistance Program benefits in the prior two years.

Description of services implemented

B2W aimed to help job-ready cash assistance applicants become employed quickly and avoid the need for income support from the Family Assistance or Safety Net programs during their application period. The B2W strategies relied on assistance mechanisms (that is, group and one-on-one job search assistance designed to facilitate reemployment) and enforcement mechanisms of requiring attendance and completion of job search activities for the participant to keep their application eligible for cash assistance.

The B2W intervention consisted of 35 hours of mandatory job search assistance services that required daily attendance at the office. B2W provided services to cash assistance applicants until their application was approved (typically four to six weeks). Job search assistance services provided by America Works and Goodwill included group and individual activities intended to improve cash assistance applicants’ job search skills and lead to employment. In their first meeting, applicants worked with their case manager to build individual employment plans covering their employment goals and B2W-required job search activities based on their experience, needs, preferences, and guidance from case managers. Case managers provided applicants with weekly job search activities, focusing on services that could be completed through daily attendance at the B2W office. Participants had the option to choose to participate in activities other than the ones recommended to them. These could include:: (1) developing basic job search skills (identifying job openings online, contacting employers, and filling out applications), (2) building workplace behaviors and soft skills (work ethic and workplace communication), and (3) connecting with employers (interviews and networking).

B2W provided supportive services to cash assistance applicants that included transportation and work supports (clothing and haircuts for interviews); they also provided referrals for housing assistance, substance abuse, medical, and mental health services. After attaining employment, participants were offered monthly contact with program staff for six months.

Individuals in the B2W program were required to provide documentation of their job search activities. Participants who did not meet B2W’s attendance requirement were denied cash assistance. Individuals could reapply but would be required to participate and comply with all B2W attendance requirements before their cash assistance application could be approved.

Study authors noted that B2W was implemented as planned in the evaluation period.

Service intensity

B2W required 35 hours of participation in approved job search activities per week. Activities occurred Monday to Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. each day over a 6-to-8-week period. Most study participants in the B2W group (89 percent) participated in some job search assistance services (group and individual).

Comparison conditions

The comparison condition for the study was a separate job search assistance program called IJS that HRA began as a pilot in summer 2015. The IJS intervention similarly required cash assistance applicants to complete 35 hours of job search activities, but done independently from the program office. Applicants assigned to IJS were required to meet with staff at the program office only once a week for six weeks, including an initial meeting to develop an individual employment plan during their application period. IJS participants were expected to conduct independent job searches but were also allowed (but not required) to participate in the services and workshops and get advice from job developers offered through the B2W program. IJS also offered the same supportive services as B2W, such as child care and transportation. After finding employment, IJS participants were offered monthly contact with office staff for six months. As with B2W, HRA denied IJS participants’ applications for cash assistance if they did not comply with their weekly attendance and job search requirements. The primary distinction between the two programs was B2W’s daily attendance requirements and more structured schedule of classes and activities versus IJS’s once-a-week attendance requirement and self-directed job search.

Partnerships

America Works and Goodwill staff referred B2W participants to other supports available in New York City. Commonly provided support included referrals to food pantries, mental health providers, and substance abuse and domestic violence support.

Staffing

A site director at America Works and Goodwill managed service delivery and oversaw the B2W and IJS interventions as well as a range of other HRA-funded services. At the time of the evaluation, America Works had 47 staff assigned to B2W and IJS, and Goodwill had 55 staff assigned to both programs across the four sites included in the study. The primary staff involved in providing B2W included (1) case managers, (2) timekeepers (who recorded applicant hours and participation in B2W services to ensure compliance with the intervention’s requirements), (3) job developers, (4) instructors, and (5) retention staff. The study authors did not include information on staff training, degrees, or certifications.

Fidelity measures

The study did not discuss any tools to measure fidelity to the intervention model.

Funding source

Funding for B2W came from a mix of federal and state funds administered by HRA. The federal funds came from New York State’s TANF block grant for the Family Assistance cash assistance program and New York State general revenue funds for the Safety Net program.

Cost information

The study did not discuss a cost per participant or a comparison of costs and benefits.

The information contained here reflects how the intervention was implemented at the time of the evaluation.

Local context

The B2W intervention took place in New York City, NY, in the Brooklyn and Queens boroughs. The intervention occurred in a densely populated urban setting. Brooklyn and Queens include a significant number of residents and families that have incomes below the U.S. median. They also include a higher percentage of families with children living in poverty relative to the national average.

Characteristics of research participants
Black or African American
74%
White, not Hispanic
7%
Another race
4%
Hispanic or Latino of any race
15%

The race and ethnicity categories may sum to more than 100 percent if the authors reported race and ethnicity separately; in these cases, we report the category White, rather than White, not Hispanic.

State(s) where implemented

AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE DC FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY Canada

The Pathways Clearinghouse refers to interventions by the names used in study reports or manuscripts. Some intervention names may use language that is not consistent with our style guide, preferences, or the terminology we use to describe populations.

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