TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT NOTICE NO. 8-02

TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT NOTICE

NO. 8-02

DATE
March 27, 2003

TO: ALL STATE WORKFORCE LIAISONS
ALL STATE WORKFORCE AGENCIES

/s/

FROM:	EMILY STOVER DeROCCO Assistant Secretary

SUBJECT:

Implementation of Common Performance Measures for Job Training and Employment Programs

1. Purpose. To inform the workforce investment system of the implementation of common performance measures for job training and employment programs in 2004.

2. Background. In 2001, the President announced a Management Agenda to improve the management and performance of the federal government. One of the five government-wide goals, budget and performance integration, emphasizes program effectiveness. As part of the President's budget and performance integration initiative, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has developed common performance measures for programs with similar goals. In explaining this initiative, OMB has stated:

"Such measures are not determinative of whether a program is effective nor does such a comparison automatically mean one program is necessarily better or worse than another. However, such measures help raise important questions and can help managers improve certain aspects of their programs. This information can then be used to inform decisions about how to direct funding and how to improve performance in specific programs."

3. Common Measures. In coordination with federal agencies, OMB has developed uniform evaluation metrics, called "common measures," for job training and employment programs as well as four additional crosscutting, government-wide functions, including housing assistance, wildland fire management, flood mitigation, and disaster insurance. The common measures are intended to institute uniform definitions for performance. The common measures for job training and employment will be applied to 31 programs administered by six federal agencies. Attachment A provides a list of covered programs. These programs are expected to implement the common measures (begin information collection and reporting) in 2004.

EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Washington, DC 20210

Four performance measures for adults and four indicators for youth have been established for job training and employment programs:

Adult Measures

Entered Employment - Percentage employed in the 1st quarter after program exit.
Retention - Percentage of those employed in the 1st quarter after program exit that were still employed in the 2nd and 3rd quarters after program exit.
Earnings Increase - Percentage change in earnings: (i) pre-registration to post-program and (ii) 1st quarter after exit to 3rd quarter after exit.
Efficiency - Annual cost per participant.

Youth and Lifelong Learning Measures

Placement in Employment or Education - Entered employment or enrolled in education and/or training in the 1st quarter after program exit.
Attainment of a Degree or Certificate - Percentage of participants that earned a diploma, GED or certificate.
Literacy and Numeracy Gains - Attainment of literacy and numeracy skills by participants.
Efficiency - Annual cost per participant.

Attachment B further describes these measures. The common measures will affect the current performance measurement systems of all covered programs. For example, the following are some key differences between the common measures and the current performance indicators for Workforce Investment Act Title IB programs:

Exclusive use of Unemployment Insurance (UI) wage records - supplemental sources of data will not be permitted for employment-related measures.
One set of indicators for both adult and dislocated worker programs.
Earnings measure for both adults and dislocated workers will be the percentage change in earnings at two points - the 1st and 3rd quarters after exit. The common measures do not include a wage replacement rate for dislocated workers.
One set of measures for youth - eliminates distinction between older and younger youth.
New cost efficiency indicator added to both adult and youth measures.

There are similar differences between the common measures and the current performance indicators for Wagner-Peyser, Trade Adjustment Assistance, and the other job training and employment programs administered by ETA.

To the extent possible, ETA will administratively implement the common measures within the existing statutory framework to minimize reporting on multiple sets of measures. For all covered programs, when current program indicators and common measures are similar, the definitions of current indicators will be replaced by the common measure definitions. For current program indicators that are not comparable to the common measures, programs will continue to report on the current indicators as well as the common measures.

The Department will provide guidance and assistance to the grantees and program operators in the implementation of these measures. A workgroup of representatives from the federal agencies implementing common measures for job training and employment programs has been established by OMB. This workgroup will facilitate communication among agencies and will serve as a forum to work on common implementation issues. A notice providing a single set of instructions on implementing the common measures for all covered programs administered by ETA will be published in the Federal Register for public comment in spring 2003. Final guidance on the implementation of common measures will be published by fall 2003.

5. Action Required. Please make this information available to appropriate program staff.

6. Inquiries. Questions regarding the common measures should be directed to the appropriate regional office or grant administrator.

7. Attachments.

Attachment A: Job Training and Employment Programs Impacted by Common Measures
Attachment B: Common Measures for Job Training and Employment Programs



TO:	ALL STATE WORKFORCE LIAISONS ALL STATE WORKFORCE AGENCIES