Audio Archives

05/2109

An Economic Recovery Update: How States Can Use Economic Recovery Funds to Help Child Care - How are states using their economic recovery funds to help boost support for child care?

To strategize about how to best utilize the economic recovery funds, the National Women’s Law Center and the CLASP are hosting a conference call.

Speakers:

Bruce Liggett, Executive Director, Arizona Child Care Association

Sessy Nyman, Vice President of Public Policy & Government Affairs, Action for Children

Sheila Hansen, Policy Director, Child and Family Policy Center

Patty Siegel, Executive Director, California Child Care Resource & Referral Network

Clare S. Richie, Senior Policy Analyst, Georgia Budget and Policy Institute

03/25/2009

Making the Connection: New Opportunities to Serve Older Youth

Even before the economic downturn, youth in our economically distressed urban and rural communities were hurting. This audio conference will identify opportunities in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to serve older youth and will outline approaches states and local communities should consider to improve youth outcomes.

Speakers:

Mala Thakur, Executive Director, National Youth Employment Coalition

Sally Prouty, Executive Director, The Corps Network

Don Spangler, Policy Advisor, Philadelphia Youth Network

Moderator: Linda Harris, Director, Youth Policy, CLASP

03/18/2009

Making the Employment Connection: New Opportunities to Develop Transitional Jobs Programs

This audio conference highlights Transitional Jobs programs to help individuals with barriers to employment enter and succeed in the labor market, and will feature new opportunities created through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program to develop and expand such programs. It is co-sponsored by the National Transitional Jobs Network.

Speakers:

David A. Hansell, Commissioner, New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA)

Amy Rynell, Director of the Heartland Alliance Mid-America Institute on Poverty and the National Transitional Jobs Network

Elizabeth Lower-Basch, Senior Policy Analyst, Center for Law and Social Policy

03/11/2009

Rebuilding the Safety Net: State and Local Opportunities in Income Support

This audio conference features opportunities for improvements in income support programs created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The Unemployment Insurance Modernization Act and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Emergency Contingency Fund both provide additional funds for states – but only if they take action to expand program access. The expansion in tax credits for low-income workers also provides opportunities for community tax assistance providers.

Speakers:

Elizabeth Appley, Women’s Policy Group, Georgia

Elizabeth Lower-Basch, CLASP

Stacey Cox, Community Action Agency of New Mexico

03/04/2009

Workforce Development: New Opportunities for Creating Pathways to Good Jobs and Sustainable Employment

This audio conference highlighted opportunities created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for addressing the needs of low-skill workers under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and linking training to job creation and retention efforts.

Speakers:

Sandi Vito, Acting Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry

Carrie Thomas, Associate Director, Chicago Jobs Council

Jason Walsh, National Policy Director, Green For All

02/25/2009

Child Care and Early Education: Opportunities to Serve More Low-Income, Working Families

The audio conference discusses the opportunity for states and local communities to serve more low-income working families and to make long-term investments in quality programs through new investments in child care and early education in the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA).

11/24/2008

Poverty Task Forces: The Experience of 3 State Advocates

An audio conference call designed for advocates to ask questions of their peers about lessons learned in establishing and working with a poverty task force. In Connecticut, a legislated commission was created to shepherd a poverty target that seeks to cut child poverty in half by 2014. In Minnesota, a legislated commission was established for two years to develop a plan to eliminate poverty by 2020. The plan is due by the end of 2008 and an early draft has been posted. In Illinois, a recently enacted law calls for cutting extreme poverty in half by 2015; an NGA grant will help support a December conference designed to be the first step in identifying strategies to achieve the goal. While these three states all set poverty targets, task forces can be created without this explicit goal; task forces also can be created by a Governor, without legislation. The guests can explore the pros and cons of these approaches and other issues ranging from why bother with a task force and how does the current recession influence pursuit of a task force…

Guests:

Deborah Schlick, Affirmative Options Coalition

Jim Horan, Connecticut Association for Human Services

Doug Schenkelberg, Mid-American Institute on Poverty of Heartland Alliance for Human Needs & Human Rights

9/19/2008

What’s a Poverty Commission to Do about a Recession?

Concrete ideas for immediate actions states can take to address the high costs of food and fuel and the loss of jobs that are causing more to struggle to make ends meet and pushing more and more families towards poverty. Guests: Greg Landsman, Ohio Anti-Poverty Task Force Maurice Emsellem, National Employment Law Project Jim Weill, Food Research and Action Center Charlie Harak, National Consumer Law Center

7/30/2008

First hand-facts: visits, tours, testimony and more

In Minnesota, the Legislative Commission to End Poverty has spent two years trying to understand the nature, causes, and consequences for the state and for the individuals who struggle to make ends meet in today’s economy. The commission’s next task is to make recommendations. What role do first-hand facts–getting out around the state–have? How can advocacy organizations work collaboratively with a commission to zero-in on the most pressing problems? How can policymakers best hear from those experiencing low incomes? And, how does a commission keep getting first-hand insights after it makes recommendations? Guests: Morrie Lanning, Minnesota’s Legislative Commission to End Poverty Deborah Schlick, Affirmative Options Coalition Jessica Larsen, Circles of Support,Grand Rapids

9/11/2007

More Than a Paycheck: A Conversation On Why Job Quality Matters and What We Can Do About It

The American Dream promises that if you are willing to work hard, you will be able to achieve a better life for yourself and your family. But too many people are stuck in bad jobs—jobs that pay poverty-level wages and offer no benefits, jobs with little opportunity for advancement, jobs in which workers don’t know from week to week if they’ll get enough hours to pay their bills, jobs that workers can lose for staying home with a sick child.

In this audio conference, you’ll hear about the state of job quality in the U.S. today and how a focus on improving job quality can help reduce poverty and support families. You’ll learn why poor job quality is an issue that especially affects women. And you’ll find out about a proposed New York State law that would have required state agencies to focus on placing clients in jobs that pay sustainable wages.

8/1/2007

Poverty and Opportunity: Developments around the Nation

The Presidential candidates are beginning to talk about it. State legislatures are passing bills that target it with timelines and numerical goals. Reports are coming out that show it’s not intractable. Poverty and solutions to it are now on the radar screen. Hear the latest developments about solutions to poverty that are emerging around the country, talk about what is going on in your state, and hear some key themes from the Center for American Progress’ report.

What can workforce development professionals learn from sector based union organizing initiatives about overcoming some of the challenges to improving job quality in the new economy? Which state and local policies can support workers rights to organize and improve job quality for low-wage workers? CLASP’s upcoming conference call will address these questions and more! We hope that you can join us for this exciting call with experts from the field who will highlight successful union organizing efforts in the public and private sector, and discuss the implications of these initiatives for state and federal policy.

This audio conference is part of CLASP’s Opportunity at Work initiative, which focuses on creating better jobs for a stronger economy.

4/6/07

Making low-wage jobs family friendly: An oxymoron or cutting edge? (Part-2)

Does workforce advancement sometimes stall because job schedules conflict with kids’ care or stable parenting? Does family friendly translate into job retention? What are the research findings related to welfare “success stories”? What are some chain store practices and policies that are making a difference so that low-wage service jobs might be more family friendly? What role do supervisors play? What has one employer done for all his employees -- at all wages -- to engage them in decision-making and in scheduling?

Guests:

Kristin Seefeldt, University of Michigan
Jennifer Swanberg, University of Kentucky
Jim Johnson, Johnson Moving and Storage Company

3/15/07

Paid Sick Days: Why it Matters to Families and the Latest Developments

There is no minimum standard for paid sick days for workers. As a result, about half of workers do not have paid sick days. This means that some workers lose wages if they stay home with a child with pink eye; others can lose their jobs – and do. Other workers come to work sick. This is a family, public health, and employer issue that impacts all workers, and particularly those in low wage jobs.

In San Francisco, the voters just passed a referendum that establishes paid sick days in the city. Learn about other paid sick days policy developments around the country and in the new Congress. More cities and states are looking at this working condition and taking action. You can too.

Guests:

Portia Wu, Office of Senator Edward Kennedy
Vicky Lovell, Institute for Women’s Policy Research
Kate Kahan, National Partnership for Women & Families

3/9/07

Making low-wage jobs family friendly: An oxymoron or cutting edge? (Part-1)

How are some clothing and grocery chain stores restructuring low-wage service jobs to make them more family friendly? How does advance notice help with childcare, stress, absenteeism, and productivity? What role do supervisors play? What’s the bottom line on health – for the business, for the worker and family? Does family friendly translate into job retention? What has one major employer done -- and why – to help workers at all incomes meet work obligations and family responsibilities?

Guests:

Susan Lambert, University of Chicago
Leslie Hammer, Portland State University
Steve Bigari, America’s Family

2/8/2007

Opportunity At Work Series: Getting the job quality picture right: What’s the problem? What’s the solution?

There is strong evidence that those with more education do better in the labor market than those with less education. Yet, educational attainment is no guarantee of economic security and greater investment in education alone cannot solve the problems faced by low-wage workers in today’s labor market. Where should state and local policy makers and advocates place their priorities? How should they better coordinate workforce and economic development policies to expand opportunity and create good jobs?

Guests:

Jared Bernstein, Economic Policy Institute
Anthony Carnevale, Georgetown University
Laura Dresser, Center on Wisconsin Strategy

2/6/2007

Connecticut’s Commitment to End Child Poverty An Interview with Pat Wilson-Coker, former commissioner of Connecticut’s Department of Social Services

Pat Wilson-Coker, the former commissioner of Connecticut’s Department of Social Services, thinks highly of the state’s law that established a child poverty target. She worked under it and thinks it helped focus energy across agencies on fighting child poverty. Connecticut aims to reduce child poverty by 50 percent between 2004 and 2014. Wilson-Coker outlines the positive effects of targets on accountability, partnerships, and planning. And the conversation highlights the basic choice states have between crisis management and addressing root causes with plans for comprehensive change. A great tool to take to other Commissioners and state policy stakeholders.

1/18/2007

Transitional Jobs for Hard to Serve TANF Recipients

The passage of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) significantly changed the structure of the work requirements mandated in the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. Faced with increased work participation rate requirements and stricter definitions of the allowable work activities, states are now facing difficult choices regarding their TANF programs. One program model that has been proven to improve employment outcomes is Transitional Jobs (TJ). TJ programs have been used successfully to provide hard-to-employ TANF recipients with paid work experience. This audio conference outlines the ways in which states can report participation in Transitional Jobs programs under the interim final rules issued by HHS and provides detailed information about the expansion of the statewide Transitional Jobs program in Washington in light of these new requirements.

Guests:

Sharon Parrott -Director of Welfare Reform and Income Support, Center for Budget and Policy Priorities
Diane Klontz -Community Jobs Program Manager, Community Trade and Economic Development, Washington State
Abbey Frank -Senior Policy Analyst, Center for Law and Social Policy, moderator

6/16/2006

The Commitment to End Child Poverty: Developments in the UK & US

Developments in the UK & US. In 1999, the U.K. announced its pledge to cut child poverty by one-fourth by 2004 and eliminate it by 2020. In the U.S., Sen. Kennedy has introduced a measure that seeks to halve child poverty; some localities are looking at government initiatives that may include targets. Learn about the politics behind the U.K. initiative, what has been accomplished to date, and expectations for the future; and hear from U.S. officials contemplating or implementing initiatives around the country.

5/16/2006

TANF 2006 CLASP-CBPP Series - Improving Employment Outcomes for TANF Recipients: Win-Win Solutions for Families and States

This series highlights effective policies and practices to help low-income families succeed in the labor market and states to meet the higher effective TANF work participation rates enacted in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. The series includes Earned Income Disregards and Income Supplements (May 16, 2006), Transitional Jobs: Helping TANF Recipients with Barriers to Employment Succeed in the Labor Market (May 23, 2006), Not Just Any Job: Helping TANF Recipients Access Good Jobs (June 1, 2006), and Skill Upgrading: The Role of Community Colleges in Helping Low-Skilled Workers to Advance in the Labor Market (June 20, 2006). The accompanying guidebook is available online.

5/12/2006

Forgotten Families: An Interview with Author Dr. Jody Heymann

Parents have to balance the often impossible demands of earning a living with those of raising healthy, cared-for children. Dr. Jody Heymann created Global Working Families to find out how families fare when parents work. Her research reveals the difficult truth that parents in Baltimore are more likely to leave their children home alone sick all day than parents in Vietnam. In her latest book, Forgotten Families, Heymann asserts that only by embracing truly global solutions can we improve the lives of working families everywhere.

3/31/2006

Marriage and Fatherhood

In this era of budget cuts, there’s a new federal grants program to promote healthy marriage and responsible fatherhood. What are the promises and pitfalls of this new legislation? Can these programs really meet the needs of low-income families? Where does the domestic violence community fit in? Practitioners will discuss these questions and more. Guests: Mary Myrick, Public Strategies, Inc.; Joe Jones, Center for Fathers, Families & Workforce Development; Anne Menard, National Resource Center on Domestic Violence

2/22/2006

Child Welfare

Federal child welfare budget developments enacted and proposed.

2/21/2006

Child Support

Federal child support budget developments enacted and proposed.

2/17/2006

Medicaid

Federal Medicaid budget developments enacted and proposed.

2/16/2006

Child Care

Federal child care budget developments enacted and proposed.

2/15/2006

TANF

Federal TANF budget developments enacted and proposed.

2/14/2006

The FY 07 Budget

An interview with Bob Greenstein, Executive Director of the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, about President Bush’s fiscal year (FY) 2007 budget proposal.

11/18/2005

Better Business: Making Work "Work" for Employers and Employees

Many efforts to provide family support at the workplace have been framed as helping either business or employees. But a new movement is looking at the mutual benefits of making work “work” for both. The business case for such efforts includes the attraction, development, and retention of employees, as well as community economic development. What are some examples in small, mid-sized, and larger companies of new approaches to make work “work”? Guests: Ellen Galinsky, Families and Work Institute; Donna Klein, Corporate Voices for Working Families