Rural Employment Services

The vendor is required to provide rural employment services for requirements:
a. Assessment
• All individuals accessing services will complete an employment readiness assessment.
• The purpose of this assessments is to determine an individual’s strengths, needs and the programs and services that may be most helpful for the individual in moving towards sustainable employment.
• The assessment will be used to gather current and accurate information and evidence to:
o Create a plan with a goal that requires active participation on the part of the individual, and/or
o Verify program or service eligibility, and/or
o Substantiate the delivery of programs and services or for plan management decisions and progression towards employment.
o Enable decisions regarding appropriate referrals to career, employment and information services (CEIS) or community resources to assist in the progression towards employment.
b. Employment readiness assessment
• The employment readiness assessment (era) is a process that addresses one or more of the following:
o Career and occupation decision making
o Skill development and/or enhancement
o Work search and/or maintenance
• The overall objective of an era is to help individuals improve their employability and self-sufficiency in the labor market
• The proponent will describe how they will utilize the assessment to determine what CEIS services are most appropriate for the individual.
c. Workshops
• Proponents should include a description of all workshops to be offered, including topics, learning objectives, durations, minimum participant numbers, frequencies that the workshops will be offered, and where the workshops fit in the overall client flow.
• Workshops should include topics related to work search, career planning, education planning, self-assessment, personal development, career decision making and lab our market information
• Workshops should also include topics related to life skills and life management to enhance an individual’s ability to attach and sustain attachment to the labor market, such as time management, goal setting, financial planning, and stress management.
d. Job placement (JP)
• Job placement services is an element under the career employment and information services.
• Job placement services help individuals locate and obtain jobs.
• It connects individuals who are employment ready.
• Job placement services are designed to support individuals to enter and re-enter the workforce as quickly as possible and to develop the job search skills needed for effective labor market transitions now and in the future.
• The objectives of job placement services are:
• To connect eligible individuals seeking work with prospective employers able to provide them with employment as quickly as possible.
o To enable employers to fill job openings and skill shortages.
o Job placement services are designed to assist individuals who have the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed for employment, but require:
o Assistance to develop or refine job search skills,
o Assistance making connections to employers, and
o Job maintenance support in order to maintain employment.
• The job placement service components of skills analysis and generation of work options, job search techniques and job placement can be combined but must be no longer than 12 weeks in duration.
e. Exposure courses (EC)
• To augment an individual’s job specific skills or provide the certification required to obtain employment in as short a period as possible.
• To respond to employer or industry need for skilled workers by providing short-term skills enhancement courses to individuals seeking to obtain/maintain employment.
• To meet conditions of employment in a specific occupation as prescribed by employer or industry expectations.
1. Exposure courses can be taken on a full-time or a part-time basis.  
• Full-time exposure course funding for a maximum of two weeks per 12-month period (January 1 to December 31).
• part-time exposure course funding for a maximum of six weeks per 12-month period (January 1 to December 31).
f. Workforce development (wd)
• Workforce development (wd) includes a suite of services.
• Individuals must participate in at least employment development activities.
• WD services can be bundled to best meet the needs of individuals
• Any combination of workforce development component services is not to exceed 52 weeks.
• WD services help individuals:
o Develop skills to address and or overcome identified barriers.
o Obtain and maintain employment.
o Develop skills needed for effective labor market attachment.
o Connect with employers need to fill jobs
g. Employment development activities
• Employment development activities provide work/life management activities to facilitate the removal of barriers to employment.
• Skills analysis and identification of work options.
• Development of work search techniques which may include skill development such as interviewing, resume writing, and self-marketing (this is not an exhaustive list of possible work search techniques).
• Workshops to develop employment, occupational, and job skills.
• Work connection – supporting individuals to connect to available employment opportunities.
h. Work exposure*
• During work exposure, individuals receive paid work exposure opportunities with employers for 12 weeks.
• Paid work exposure is not intended to replace regular orientation, or basic training provided by the employer to new employees hired outside the wd program.
• An integral part of the paid work exposure is the development of a work plan which will:
o Address gap(s) between the individual’s skills and position requirements.
o Provide an opportunity to apply learned skills to address identified barriers to employment.
o Be developed jointly by the contractor, individual and employer.
o Promote healthy workplace practices for obtaining and maintaining employment.
• The work exposure contract will be negotiated between the contractor, individual and employer.
• The work exposure contract length is determined on a case-by-case basis and directly related to the assessed abilities and needs of the individuals and the complexity of the work exposure requirement.
• The work exposure may be full-time (a minimum of 30 hours per week) or part-time (less than 30 hours per week).
• Paid work exposure participants must receive at least minimum wage as defined in the state employment standards code.
• All work exposure participants will continue to adhere to the rules of other programs they are involved in, i.e., income support and report all income.
• Through the disability related employment supports assessment, the government of state may assist employers with worksite modification, vehicle modification, and other supportive services for people with disabilities.
i. Work maintenance and support
• Work maintenance and support component is up to 26 weeks, with most clients expected to complete within 8 weeks of support. **  
• Work maintenance may include addressing individual’s workplace behaviors and employment retention skills, establishing an employment mentor, or employer medication (this is not an exhaustive list of possible work maintenance and support activities).
• A monitoring plan is created and documented by the service provider which will be completed on each visit and consist of the following:
o On-site interviews, identification, and evaluation of supports with the wd participant.
o On-site interviews, identification, and evaluation of supports with the employer.
o Documentation of monitoring visits to be retained in the individual’s service provider file.
j. Mental health supports
• Mental health supports refer to a comprehensive array of interventions, services, and resources aimed at promoting psychological well-being, addressing mental health challenges, and supporting recovery.
• These supports are designed to empower individuals in managing their mental health, improving their quality of life, and achieving personal goals, including securing and maintaining employment.
• By fostering resilience, enhancing coping skills, and providing access to professional care and community resources, mental health supports play a critical role in guiding individuals on their path toward stability and self-sufficiency.
• Proponents are asked to describe how mental health supports will be incorporated into programming and will enhance client employability.
k. Employer services
• To address the workplace barriers that prevent clients from obtaining and sustaining employment, and to incentivize co-investment and activation from employers, eligible employers will have access to employer services.
• Employer services include job design to maximize employee skills, recruitment support through candidate screening and onboarding/retention assistance, labor market services for gathering and sharing labor market information, information referrals and resources to help employers access funding and job banks, and employment promotion services to market vacancies through government of state channels.
• Providers will work with employers to assess their needs, develop a service plan and deliver the identified supports.
• A plan is considered successfully completed once all selected services have been provided.
• The purpose of these employer services is to address the workplace barriers and policies that prevents job placement and workforce development clients from obtaining and sustaining employment as well as incentivizing co-investment and activation from employers in work exposure.  
• These services will benefit employers by addressing recruitment and retention challenges, address skills gaps of new recruits and reduce labor market friction.
- Contract Period/Term: 2 years
- Non-Mandatory Proponent Information Session Date: May 13, 2025
- Questions/Inquires Deadline: June 02, 2025