One-Stop Service Centersand WorkforceInvestment Boards

“One-Stop” Service Centers and Workforce Investment Boards

Approximately 600 local workforce areas are located throughout the nation. Customers can go to their local one-stop centers for information about job openings; job search and placement assistance; an assessment of their skill levels, aptitudes, and abilities; and information on a full array of employment-related services, including information on local education and training providers. One-stop centers also provide employers with a single point of contact to share information about current and future skills needed by their workers and to list job openings.[1]

Each local area has a local Workforce Investment Board (WIB) that administers WIA activities within the local area. The WIB’s responsibilities include selecting one-stop center operators, identifying eligible training providers, developing links with employers, and overseeing the use of funds for employment and training activities.[2]

Collaboration among various service providers is vital to the success of each local one-stop center. In fact, the Act requires that recipients of funding from several federal sources partner with each other to provide stream-lined workforce development services. The local area may also include other appropriate federal, state or local government programs -- as well as private sector initiatives -- as partners in the one-stop system.[3]

The Iowa One-Stop System

Iowa’s one-stop system delivers statewide services in conjunction with several workforce development partners. Administrative staff is centralized in two offices in Des Moines with a network of local centers in 16 defined regions. Each region has a full-service workforce development center with a network of itinerant and satellite offices. Many centers are shared by multiple workforce partners, including non-profit organizations, the Department of Human Services, Vocational Rehabilitation, and community colleges.[4]

Iowa job seekers enjoy access to computerized resource centers for career exploration, resume preparation, skills assessment and testing, job search, on-line work registration, and on-line unemployment insurance claims filing.[5] Employers access recruitment, screening, and referral services at Workforce Centers across the state. In addition to Iowa Workforce Development’s (IWD) job matching system, business assistance includes job analysis, skills testing, and business regulatory information. Regional staff also work one-on-one with employers to help solve unique recruitment and staffing issues; identify employer issues in the workplace; arrange seminars and workshops; and provide current information on workforce trends. In 2006, staff worked with local management to develop and promote the on-line job order and direct links to businesses web sites via IWD’s web site.[6]

The partnership between the Employers Councils of Iowa (ECIs) and the IWD is a good model for cooperation between a government agency and a private sector organization. ECIs advise IWD and other policy makers on the full range of workforce issues and topics from an employer’s perspective. The state level ECI gathers and disseminates information about local council activities and represents the local councils at the state and federal levels. Local ECIs support their mission through lunch and learn sessions, seminars, conferences, job fairs, legislative open houses and other employer driven programs. Some ECIs have broadened their mission to include scholarship awards and computer purchases.[7]

Adult, Dislocated Worker, and Youth Activities
Employment Service
Adult Education
Postsecondary Vocational Education
Vocational Rehabilitation
Welfare-to-Work
Title V of the Older Americans Act
Trade Adjustment Assistance
NAFTA Transitional Adjustment Assistance
Veterans Employment and Training Programs
Community Services Block Grant
Employment and training activities carried out by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Unemployment Insurance

[1] GAO, Workforce Investment Act, 8.

[2] Ibid., 7

[3] USDOL, White Paper: Implementing the Workforce Investment Act.

[4] IWD, State of Iowa Annual Report, 5.

[5] Ibid., 25-26.

[6] Ibid., 32.

[7] Ibid.