 |
YOUTH EMPLOYMENT & JOB TRAINING PROGRAMS
YOUTH JOB TRAINING PROGRAMS have become
increasingly more important as the structure of the youth
employment market has changed. Today, young people with limited education
have relatively fewer employment opportunities than their counterparts
fifty years ago. In 1997, the full and part-time youth employment
rates for youth between the ages of 16 and 27 were
one to three percentage points lower than in 1989. Minority
youth face employment rates as much as thirty percent lower
than their white peers (Friedman*).
The stakes for young people in obtaining and keeping secure
employment, particularly those with limited education, are
high. For those without high school degrees or the equivalent,
work experience is extremely important in building a base
for future advancement in the work force.
Studies of existing youth job
training programs show that they make less of a short-term impact
but may
have much more impact over the long term (Jekielek, Cochran,
and Hair*).
In general, youth job training programs should emphasize
long-term goals such as keeping a young person employed
and advancing in the workforce. Although youth in job
training
programs are giving up the immediacy of a paycheck, the
long term benefits of excellent programs can secure
better
jobs with higher salaries, benefits, and opportunities
for advancement.
Job training program goals,
structure, and staffing
Job training programs for youth
need to be somewhat different than those for adults (Zuckerman*).
Beyond simply imparting skills, youth job training must
help students learn leadership, responsibility, and self-confidence
(National Youth Employment Coalition [NYEC] 1999*).
Programs should concentrate on creating a solid structure
for the program, especially in terms of hiring staff and
selecting students. Successful programs also provide flexible
training, close attention to student needs, and rigorous
follow-up after placement.
 |
Incorporate
programs into the community. In San Jose, employers
and local organizations donate equipment and volunteer
time to the program (Zuckerman*). |
|
Aggressively
recruit youth. Hand out flyers at malls, community centers,
and door to door, and purchase radio ads on popular
stations (NYEC 2002*). |
|
Carefully
select participants based on their perseverance
and
dedication to finding a job. One approach is to schedule
multiple interviews for admittance into the program.
While this does cream off the best applicants, it also
allows the program to give the best training possible
to its students (Jastrzab et al.*). |
|
Select and
cultivate excellent staff who have experience both as
intermediates between employers and job training programs,
and who have experience and dedication to mentoring
youth (NYEC*). |
|
Consider students’
needs in addition to employability, such as drug or
alcohol treatment, child care, or family counseling.
It is often necessary to go beyond simply referring
clients to social service programs. Programs might want
to schedule appointments for their clients and arrange
transportation, if needed, to and from the appointments
(Jastrzab et al.*). |
Job Training Programs and Job Placement
|
Foster
close relationships between mentors, staff and
students.
Make sure that students have more than one mentor in
case one leaves the program. One structure is to
have
staff focus on case management, job development, or
career advising, with students receiving assistance
from one person at each stage of the process (Proscio
and Elliott*). |
|
Provide students
with ways to identify and cultivate their interests.
For example, a carpentry program can include lessons
with boatmakers and furniture crafters. One useful approach
is to create an individualized portfolio for each participant,
containing evidence of work skills, interests, and references
(NYEC 1999*).
|
 |
Do not make
classes resemble actual school classes, because students
usually did not like the school environment. Consider
incentive payments
or bonuses for students reaching milestones in the
program as a way to mirror the work environment (Jastrzab
et al.*). |
|
Combine classroom
and skills learning in a work environment. One solution
is to hold classes in rooms that simulate a work environment,
complete with computers, phones, and desks. Require
students to wear work attire and arrive on time for
classes (Zuckerman*).
|
|
Teach soft
skills as well, stressing communication with employers,
dressing, and conflict resolution (Jastrzab et al.*).
Mock job interviews are very useful (Proscio and
Elliott*). |
|
Create and
maintain close relationships with employers. Many programs
create advisory groups with employers to provide feedback
on student placements (NYEC 1999*). |
|
Appeal to
an employer’s bottom line, rather than her sense
of social responsibility, when trying to place a student.
Stress the preparation and skills the student possesses
(Jastrzab et al.*). |
After Placement Follow-Up
|
It
is helpful to provide a “run through” of
the student’s first day on the job—the route
he will take to work, what he will wear, how he will
react to managers. After the first day, call the student
and do a “debriefing,” asking him about
the details of the day and if there were any problems
(NYEC 1999*). |
|
Follow up
with youth and their employers for at least six months.
Contact employers after the first few weeks, and
again
after a few months, to inquire about any problems and
gauge progress (NYEC*).
|
|
Help the
student with career guidance, and provide her with
opportunities
to build leadership skills through involvement with
the job training program, such as teaching classes
or
presenting her experiences in a talk. Work with her
to identify possible paths to further her education,
if necessary (NYEC*).
|
|
Provide further
training and career counseling. Some examples of follow-up
seminars include how to react to the first performance
evaluation, and how to prepare income taxes and bank
accounts (Friedman*). |
|
Collect data
on job placement rates, positions, income, and other
measures to help evaluate the program and suggest future
improvements. Keep a database of employers who have
been particularly supportive (Proscio and Elliott*). |
YOUTH EMPLOYMENT & JOB TRAINING RESOURCES:
PUBLICATION FINDER
 |
Some Things
DO Make a Difference For Youth: A Compendium of Evaluations
of Youth Programs and Practices
Donna Walker James
Part one of a set, this report
contains nearly 50 evaluation summaries of programs
to improve the lives of young people. Each summary
contains several sections including an overview, population
served, evidence of effectiveness, key components
of the program design, and contact information. The
section, “Implications for Youth Policy and
Practice,” and description of six guiding principles
for effective programs are particularly informative.
American Youth Policy Forum. 1997.
|
| |
|
|
More Things That DO Make
a Difference For Youth: A Compendium of Evaluations
of Youth Programs and Practices
Donna Walker James
with Sonia Jurich
The companion volume to follow
Some Things DO Make a Difference for Youth, this compendium
summarizes 64 evaluations of career academies, school-to-work,
Tech Prep, school reform, juvenile justice and related
areas of youth policy and employment. American Youth
Policy Forum. 1999.
|
| |
|
|
Lessons Learned From
51 Effective Youth Employment Initiatives
National Youth Employment
Coalition
A synthesis of successful
strategies from programs in the Promising and Effective
Practices Network (PEPNet), a project that seeks to
build knowledge of what works in youth employment
and development. Includes program profiles, an index
of effective practices, and lessons. 1999.
|
| |
|
|
 Promising
Practices For Helping Low-Income Youth Obtain and
Retain Jobs: A Guide for Practitioners (PDF)
Catherine Dun Rappaport
and JoAnn Jastrzab
Based on a literature review
and analysis of the Department of Labor’s
Welfare to Work Project, this guide emphasizes
lessons from
the Job and Conservation Corps but are applicable
to many programs serving low-income or disenfranchised
youth. The guide also features a “how-to”
section to help agency staff translate promising
practices to their own programs. Cambridge, MA:
Abt Associates,
Inc, 2003.
|
| |
|
|
Attributes of Successful
Youth Employment Programs
Patrick McCormack
An evaluation of nine youth
employment programs running from 1995 through 1998,
this report distills six effective practices of the
programs. Minneapolis, MN: McKnight Foundation, 2001. |
YOUTH EMPLOYMENT & JOB TRAINING RESOURCES:
WEB SITE FINDER
|
