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Pa. to fund jobs with federal stimulus money

By Jane M. Von Bergen

Inquirer Staff Writer
Pennsylvania's <http://topics.philly.com/topic/Pennsylvania> state
government will use hundreds of millions of federal stimulus dollars to
provide government-subsidized jobs to up to 20,000 adults and young people.

How many will actually receive jobs will depend on how quickly local
workforce investment boards can recruit employers and place people. The
money runs out Sept. 30.

"I don't want to be in the situation where we have overpromised," said
acting Secretary of Public Welfare Harriet Dichter, who announced the
program yesterday with Sandy Vito, secretary of the state Department of
Labor and Industry.

Under the program, the state will pay employees' salaries, with the hope
that many workplaces will then hire the workers permanently. Eligible are
those on public assistance or food stamps. Pay will be $7.15 an hour for
young people and up to $13 an hour for adults.

"Together, we have the chance to make a real difference in the lives of
low-income families," Dichter said in a statement. "Providing them with
these opportunities connects them to the workplace, lets them earn some
additional income, and builds new skills that will help them to be more
successful at work."

Pennsylvania's unemployment rate was 8.9 percent in December, the most
recent month for which U.S. Department of Labor statistics were available.

The state will draw the money from a $5 billion emergency stimulus fund
created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act under the Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families block grant. TANF money funds welfare
programs.

The stimulus money can be used for basic assistance, short-term emergency
needs, and subsidized job programs such as the one Pennsylvania is setting
up. Pennsylvania is eligible for $359.7 million in TANF emergency funds and
has drawn $29 million of the sum for basic assistance and short-term uses.

"We are very pleased that the state has recognized the need for a jobs
program and is taking advantage of the opportunity to fund it with stimulus
dollars," said Sharon Dietrich, who heads the Community Legal Services
employment practice in Philadelphia<http://topics.philly.com/topic/Philadelphia>
and has been advocating for the program.

"This program is a win-win for business, which can benefit from these
subsidized jobs, and for the unemployed, who are desperately looking for
work," Dietrich said.

"The key is to place people in meaningful work," said Gerald Birkelbach,
executive director of the Montgomery County Workforce Investment Board. "We
don't want one of the outcomes to be more government dependency. We want to
look at it as a temporary way to upgrade a resumé during these challenging
times."

Putting together the program quickly represents a managerial challenge, said
Sallie Glickman, who heads Philadelphia's Workforce Investment Board. The
easiest way might be a bulk placement, she said.

The program specifically requires that its participants cannot be used "when
an employer has terminated individuals from employment or caused an
involuntary reduction in its workforce to fill the vacancy with a subsidized
worker," according to state guidelines.

That poses a problem. So many companies, such as Independence Blue Cross
and Pfizer Inc <http://topics.philly.com/topic/Pfizer_Inc.>., have had
layoffs that it might be difficult to find employers who qualify.

Smaller employers might be able to use the help, but "we have to see how
many dollars are there for administration," Glickman said. "Can we manage
2,000 work sites?"

Still, she said, "it's exciting to have the resources." Both she and
Birkelbach will meet with their staffs next week to draw up plans.

Local boards must submit their plans to the state by March 30.
--
Eric D. Schwerin
Rosemont Seneca Partners
(202) 333-1880
eschwerin@rosemontseneca.co