Study Details | Pathways to Work

3094.07-Fort Worth, Texas Em

Study quality: High

High

Reason for the rating: This study received a high study quality rating because it is a low-attrition randomized controlled trial with no known issues that suggest the findings cannot be attributed to the intervention.

Intervention: Texas Employment Retention and Advancement (ERA)

Population and employment barriers:

Parents (Single parents)

Services provided:

Case management, Employment retention services, Financial incentives

Setting: Urban only

Study design

Design:

Randomized controlled trial

Study group formation:

From October 2000 through December 2002, 1,572 single-parent participants in Fort Worth, TX, were randomly assigned to the ERA program or Choices program (comparison group) after Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) eligibility had been confirmed but before they received cash assistance. Participants assigned to the ERA program attended a TANF orientation. They then received cash assistance and began to participate in ERA activities. Participation in the ERA and Choices conditions was mandatory for 75 percent of those randomly assigned. Participants from two-parent families were also randomly assigned, but, with too few two-parent families to report separately on their outcomes, the authors excluded them from the analysis. The study authors attempted to survey all single parents, age 18 or older, who spoke English or Spanish, and who were randomly assigned between September and December 2002, about 12 months after study enrollment.

Time period of study:

Random assignment began in November 2000 and continued through December 2002. Evaluators followed up with participants for four years after random assignment.

Primary outcome domains examined:

Increase short-term earnings, Increase long-term earnings, Increase short-term employment, Increase long-term employment, Decrease short-term benefit receipt, Decrease long-term benefit receipt

Other outcome domains examined:

Physical health, Family formation, Child well-being

Study funded by:

The Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation in ACF at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services funded the study, with support from the U.S. Department of Labor.

Results

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Outcome domain	Measure	Timing	Study quality by finding	Comparison group mean	Intervention group mean	Impact	Units	Sample size
Increase short-term earnings	Annual earnings	Year 1	High	4,289.00	4,235.00	-54.00	2002 dollars	1,572
Increase short-term earnings	Weekly earnings	Month 12	High	101.00	131.00	30.00	2003 dollars	188
Increase long-term earnings	Annual earnings	Year 4	High	6,245.00	6,715.00	470.00	2005 dollars	1,572
Increase short-term employment	Currently employed	Month 12	High	38.90	43.10	4.20	percentage points	188
Increase short-term employment	Employed for four consecutive quarters	Year 1	High	25.50	23.60	-1.90	percentage points	1,572
Increase short-term employment	Ever employed, annual	Year 1	High	68.50	68.40	-0.10	percentage points	1,572
Increase long-term employment	Employed for four consecutive quarters	Year 4	High	33.70	32.20	-1.50	percentage points	1,572
Increase long-term employment	Ever employed, annual	Year 4	High	62.20	63.80	1.60	percentage points	1,572
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Amount of AFDC/TANF benefits, follow-up period	Quarters 1–6	High	1,579.00	1,555.00	-24.00	2002 dollars	1,164
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Amount of Food Stamp/SNAP benefits, follow-up period	Quarters 1–6	High	3,863.00	3,984.00	121.00	2002 dollars	1,164
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Received AFDC/TANF, annual	Year 1	High	79.90	80.20	0.30	percentage points	1,572
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Received Food Stamps/SNAP, annual	Year 1	High	91.30	92.30	1.00	percentage points	1,572
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Average annual AFDC/TANF received, follow-up period	Years 1–4	High	621.00	606.00	-15.00	2003 dollars	1,572
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Average annual Food Stamp/SNAP benefits received, follow-up period	Years 1–4	High	2,528.00	2,690.00	162.00	2003 dollars	1,572
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Received AFDC/TANF, annual	Year 4	High	23.50	21.80	-1.70	percentage points	1,572
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Received Food Stamps/SNAP, annual	Year 4	High	72.10	70.20	-1.90	percentage points	1,572

Short-term outcomes are those measured 18 months or fewer after participants are first offered services. Long-term outcomes are those measured between 18 months and 5 years after participants are first offered services. Very long-term outcomes are those measured 5 years or more after participants are first offered services.

Findings quality key:

High
Moderate

Study quality terms?

The findings quality describe our confidence that a given study’s finding is because of the intervention. We do not display findings that rate low.

Findings key:

A moderate-to-large favorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A moderate-to-large favorable finding that might to be due to chance
A small favorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A small favorable finding that might be due to chance
A favorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
A favorable finding that might be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
A moderate-to-large unfavorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A moderate-to-large unfavorable finding that might to be due to chance
A small unfavorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A small unfavorable finding that might be due to chance
An unfavorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
An unfavorable finding that might be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
A finding that is unlikely to be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size or direction
A finding of no effect that might be due to chance

Favorable findings are impacts in a direction that is socially desirable. Statistical significance indicates the likelihood that a study finding is due to the intervention, rather than due to chance. Findings are described as moderate-to-large if the intervention produced a sufficiently large change in the outcome. An impact receives this designation if the standardized effect size is equal to or greater than 0.25 or equal to or less than -0.25.

Sample characteristics

Study participants were single parents who had applied for TANF. (Some, though not all, were approved.) Based on the sample randomly assigned from November 2000 through December 2002, at baseline, almost all individuals were not employed (96 percent) and female (96 percent), with an average age between 28 and 29 years old. Most (67 percent) were Black; 22 percent were White, and 11 percent were Hispanic. Forty-five percent did not have a high school diploma or equivalent certificate. Thirty-six percent had not received TANF before the study.

Age

Mean age

29 years

Sex

Female	96%
Male	4%

Participant race and ethnicity

Black or African American	67%
White, not Hispanic	22%
Another race	1%
Hispanic or Latino of any race	11%

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.

Family status

Parents	100%
Single parents	100%

Participant employment and public benefit status

Were employed

Participant education

Had some postsecondary education	3%
Had a high school diploma or GED	55%
Did not have a high school diploma or GED	45%

Intervention implementation

Implementing organization:

Two nonprofit organizations provided services: a women's advocacy organization and an employment services agency.

Program history:

The Texas Department of Human Services and Texas Workforce Commission developed the program in 1999 for use in the ERA study.

Intervention services:

TANF recipients assigned to the Texas ERA program attended an initial orientation and then a four-day job search workshop. They then spent four to six weeks searching for jobs. The program assigned those who were not able to secure employment to community service or volunteer positions. People who found jobs were eligible for a $200 monthly stipend for up to 12 months if they were employed for at least 30 hours per week, participated in a post-employment advancement activity, or left TANF; they could also be eligible for the stipend if they worked 15 hours per week and participated in an education and training activity. The first four months of earnings for people in the program were disregarded when calculating their eligibility for TANF. Texas ERA staff also helped clients address job-related problems and provided reemployment assistance and support in meeting stipend requirements. Program staff made regular employer site visits. Participants were eligible for these services as long as they were eligible for the monthly stipend. Program staff coordinated case management services (including employment assessment, goal setting and career planning, support services, barrier resolution, and job search assistance) across several partner agencies.

Mandatory services:

Participation in ERA was mandatory for all individuals, except those who had a child younger than 1, were ill or disabled, or were caring for a disabled family member.

Comparison services:

TANF recipients assigned to Texas's standard welfare-to-work program (called Choices) received job search assistance, case management services, and support services after attending an orientation session. They spent four to six weeks searching for jobs, after which those who did not find employment were assigned to community service or volunteer positions. Clients could have four months of earnings disregarded when calculating their TANF benefit amount and could receive post-employment services during those four months. Case management services included employment assessment, goal setting and career planning, support services, barrier resolution, and job search assistance, but the services were not as intensive or coordinated across agencies as they were in the Texas ERA program.

Service receipt duration:

Preemployment services lasted up to 7 weeks, and financial incentives for job retention lasted up to 12 months.

Intervention funding:

Texas TANF agency (primary); ACF, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Study publications

Redcross, Cindy, Victoria Deitch, and Mary Farrell (2010). Benefit-cost findings for three programs in the Employment Retention and Advancement (ERA) project, New York: MDRC. Available at https://www.mdrc.org/publication/benefit-cost-findings-three-programs-employment-retention-and-advancement-era-project.

Bloom, Dan, Richard Hendra, Karin Martinson, and Susan Scrivener (2005). The Employment Retention and Advancement project: Early results from four sites, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Available at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/opre/early_results.pdf.

Hendra, Richard, Keri-Nicole Dillman, Gayle Hamilton, Erika Lundquist, Karin Martinson, Melissa Wavelet, Aaron Hill, and Sonya Williams (2010). The Employment Retention and Advancement project: How effective are different approaches aiming to increase Employment Retention and Advancement? Final impacts for twelve models, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Available at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/opre/resource/the-employment-retention-and-advancement-project-how-effective-are.

Martinson, Karin, and Richard Hendra (2006). The Employment Retention and Advancement project: Results from the Texas ERA site, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Available at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/opre/resource/the-employment-retention-and-advancement-project-results-from-the-texas.

View the glossary for more information about these and other terms used on this page.

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.

Study of Texas Employment Retention and Advancement (ERA)—Fort Worth