Agenda

Return

C. 90

To:	Board of Supervisors
From:	Kathy Gallagher, Employment & Human Services Director
Date:	June 9, 2015

Contra

Costa

County

Subject:

Authorize Issuance of RFP for STEP-UP Program

APPROVE	OTHER
RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR	RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE

Action of Board On: 06/09/2015

APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED

OTHER

Clerks Notes:

VOTE OF SUPERVISORS

AYE:

John Gioia, District I Supervisor
Candace Andersen, District II Supervisor
Mary N. Piepho, District III Supervisor
Karen Mitchoff, District IV Supervisor

ABSENT:

Federal D. Glover, District V Supervisor

Contact:

Earl Maciel 3-1648

I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED: June 9, 2015
David Twa,

BY:	, Deputy

RECOMMENDATION(S):

APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Employment and Human Services Director, or designee, to issue Request for Proposal (RFP) #1144 in an amount not to exceed $1,334,531 for the STEP-UP (Subsidized Temporary Experience with Pay for the Under-Employed) Program covering the period November 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016.

FISCAL IMPACT:

$1,334,531 State, California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) and Expanded Subsidized Employment Single Allocations.

BACKGROUND:

The Employment and Human Services Department’s Request for Proposal (RFP) is to provide for the operation of a paid work experience program for Contra Costa County’s California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) Welfare-to-Work program participants.

BACKGROUND: (CONT'D)

The objective of the program, known as STEP-UP (Subsidized Temporary Experience with Pay for the Under-Employed Program) is to provide entry level work experience to designated CalWORKs participants who are not meeting their Welfare-to-Work participation requirements by immediately placing them into paid worksite assignments for a maximum of 180 days.

The goal of the program (when coupled with other necessary Welfare-to-Work activities and services) is to immediately engage the participants by providing an exposure to work and basic job skills ultimately leading to their successful, long-term job placement.

The selected STEP-UP operator(s) will be primarily responsible for developing and maintaining short-term paid work experience positions with participating agencies (non-profit, public, and for-profit organizations) and to immediately place and monitor those referred clients into the work experience positions. As the Employer of Record, the selected operator(s) primary responsibilities will also include managing the payroll system and disbursing payroll checks.

This program approach has proven very successful in other counties for re-engaging harder-to-serve clients and for increasing the federally-required Work Participation Rate (WPR).

The STEP-UP program will be funded under the CalWORKs program which is a federally mandated program designed to move welfare recipients into the workforce and toward family self-sufficiency and economic independence. Funding to provide services to STEP-UP participants is estimated at $467,086 beginning November 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016 with a total minimum of 400 participants to be served during the 9 month period. Wages for STEP-UP participants are estimated to be $867,445 based on a salary of California Minimum Wage up to $20.00 per hour and the entry level salary offered by the employer which will be directly paid to participants by the program operator(s). Total funding available for the program’s operation during the 9 month period is $1,334,531.

The STEP-UP program differs from the recently approved CalWORKs subsidized employment program, CCWORKS, in that the CCWORKS program targets more job-ready CalWORKs participants who are better prepared to enter the job market and long-term employment. The STEP-UP program is intended for CalWORKs participants who may have multiple barriers to employment and who are in need of a short-term work experience placement to learn basic job skills and to re-engage in Welfare-to-Work activities.

CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:

Without a release of the Request for Proposal, a proven successful program model designed to serve less job ready CalWORKs clients would not be implemented thereby adversely impacting our ability to provide an effective Welfare-to-Work activity and to meet the federally-required Work Participation Rate (WPR).

CHILDREN'S IMPACT STATEMENT:

The Welfare-to-Work STEP-UP program will support three of the community outcomes established in the Children’s Report Card: 3) “Families that are Economically Self Sufficient”, 4) “Families that are Safe, Stable and Nurturing”, and 5) “Communities that are Safe and Provide a High Quality of Life for Children and Families” by better enabling welfare recipients to enter the workforce and move to self-sufficiency and economic independence for themselves and their children.