Cis,
Here's a follow up (commentary from someone else on the list) on the last
message I forwarded.  Thought it may be of continued interest to you, if you
found the first one interesting.  If not, delete them both and tell me you
don't have time for such things...

>Greetings,
>
>   Blake Poland sent a message regarding "America Works", an
>organization which I became familiar with in 1993 when I attended the
>International Healthy Communities conference in San Francisco.  At that
>time I wrote the following report to my colleagues who were engaged in
>an employment training program for people on social assistance (under
>the now defunct jobsOntario fund, where social service organizations
>worked with private sector partners to provide supports, training,
>placement and find jobs).  Peter Cove was a popular figure at the
>Healthy Communities conference and had had considerable media coverage
>already. I will be interested to hear from some of the American
>subscribers to CLICK4HP who may be more familiar with this organization
>and it's impact on the 'privatization of welfare' and job training.
>
>Subject: "Public Ends/Private Means" session at IHC conference
>Date: Tue, Dec 14, 1993 5:00PM
>
>One of the workshops that I monitored had the above title and was
>described as:
>"How to convert the public will without the intermediary of government,
>the concept of "more governance and less government" will be discussed,
>as will community programs which have "disintermediated" the bureaucracy
>from public purpose."
>The main speaker was Peter Cove, president of the job placement agency
>"America Works!" which gets welfare recipients into jobs and off
>dependency. The three elements about this agency are that it's:
>1. performance-based in that they only receive $ when the person is
>permanently employed;
>2. education/training is focused on getting a job (based on principles
>that welfare recipients want to work, any job is better than none, and
>'who you know is as important as what you know') not on training for
>specific jobs - they have a 1 week pre-employment class, then some
>upgrading of 5-6 weeks on business skills at entry level and a sales
>course.
>3. its a For-Profit company that only asks for government funds based on
>'delivering the goods' (person is off welfare on the job and stays) -
>believing that "you [taxpayers & government] should get what you pay
>for, but shouldn't pay for it if it doesn't deliver". They point out
>that it costs the government about $23,000 /year to keep someone on
>welfare, but they'll get a person off welfare for $5700.
>
>Peter Cove emphasized their "sales" program  to sell potential employees
>to companies (who pay a fee like temp. placement agency fees % of hourly
>wage) on a "try before you buy" concept - 4 months probation without
>benefits, with a corporate representative from America Works! meeting
>with the worker and line manager regularly to deal with "delicate issues
>that come into the way of the transition from dependency to working -
>barriers that could be difficult for the worker (abusive mate,
>transportation, daycare) and the company (worker fitting in,
>interpersonal relations etc)". Once the company hires the person after
>the 4 month try out, AW gets 2/3 its fee, after 5 months if the person
>is still working they get the last 1/3 (I think he referred to the $5700
>from government).
>
>Peter Cove & America Works! were very popular - the press came in twice
>to the session to film him and interview him afterwards, and the
>president or chairman from Canada's own National Citizen's Coalition
>called him to arrange for him to come in January and "speak to the
>budget minister (federal or Ontario?) about options around job training
>and welfare reform". He repeatedly referred to David Osborne's book
>"Reinventing Government" and sees the approach of "less government and
>more governance" as the new wave, which he is riding. By the way, AW had
>placed 7000 people in 2 years, which is an often quoted statistic to
>show effectiveness.  What isn't known is retention of jobs after one
>year and impact on the welfare system and social safety net.
>
>
>
>> [Stirling, Alison]  > Blake had commented:
>> > The interviewer tried to challenge him gently on a number of issues,
>> but  never really attacked his underlying assumptions (e.g. that what
>> unemployed  single moms lack - and all they lack, is proper "training"
>> and incentives to be employed).
>>
>> Welcome to the "new economy".
>>
>> [Stirling, Alison]  I agree that this model is being held up as an
>> example for the 'new economy' and certainly used in Ontario by the
>> Harris government when they began to look at revamping the workfare
>> program, after dismantling the employment training and support
>> programs for social assistance recipients.
>>
>> Alison Stirling,
>> <[log in to unmask]>
>>
>>
>
>
Pam and Michael
Auf den Haefen 23
28203 Bremen
Germany

home tel: (49) 421-72346
Pam's work: (49) 421-207-9271
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