United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2011-06-20 U.S. Government Printing Office 2001-09-12 monographic deposited born digital 38 p. GA 1.13:GAO-01-928 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-928 P0b002ee180d76f0c f:d01928 DGPO 2011-06-20 2011-06-20 GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-928 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-928 GAO-01-928 Employment or training programs Funds management Grant administration Grant monitoring Veterans benefits Veterans employment programs VA Disabled Veteran Outreach Program VA Local Veterans Employment Reps Program Other Written Product A01517 Recognizing that the country's fragmented employment and training programs were not serving job seekers or employers well, Congress enacted the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) in 1988. One of WIA's goals was to create a one-stop center system to help unify the services provided by numerous programs and give states the flexibility to design services better suited to local workforce needs. Veterans' employment and training programs, administered by the Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS), are mandatory program partners in this new one-stop center system. VETS administers two grants--for Disabled Veterans' Outreach Program (DVOP) specialists and the Local Veterans' Employment Representative (LVER) program--that fund staff offering services for veterans. Although veterans receive priority employment services at one-stop centers, VETS does not collect appropriate data for determining the effectiveness of these services, including subsequent job retention and wages. VETS requires states to collect information on the number and type of employment services provided to veterans relative to nonveterans. This information showed that veterans received more intensive services, and received these services more readily, than did nonveterans seeking services through states' employment service offices or one-stop centers--an elevated level of service principally provided by DVOP and LVER staff. VETS' oversight of the DVOP and LVER grants is inadequate. The agency lacks a comprehensive system in place to manage state performance in serving veterans. The two programs do not always operate well within the one-stop center environment because states do not have the flexibility to design their services for veterans in a way that best meets the needs of employers and veterans. The success of the one-stop system depends on providing services that meet the changing employment needs in local communities. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-928/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-928.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-928/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-928.pdf GAO-01-928 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-928 Other Written Product GAO-01-928; Veterans' Employment and Training Service: Flexibility and Accountability Needed to Improve Service to Veterans; Employment or training programs Funds management Grant administration Grant monitoring Veterans benefits Veterans employment programs VA Disabled Veteran Outreach Program VA Local Veterans Employment Reps Program