Create a win-win for employers, workers

Are you a business that needs some extra help and would like to receive monetary compensation for training a potential employee? If so, then the On the Job Training program might be the answer for you. Alaska Family Services Job Development program would like to give employers in the Mat-Su community the opportunity to tap into a pool of workers who are good candidates for a job, but just may need some additional training.

“On the Job Training,” or OJT, creates a job opportunity for Temporary Assistance participants by subsidizing an employer’s training cost when they hire and train a Temporary Assistance recipient. A Temporary Assistance participant employed in an OJT position is to be considered a regular employee. The working conditions, wages, and required federal and state benefits in OJT positions must be equal to those provided to a regular employee employed a similar length of time, and doing the same type of work.

Eligible employers are private sector businesses, non-profit organizations, and non-government employers. The employer must have a Federal Employer Identification Number and a current Alaska business license. On the Job Training reimburses an employer for a portion of the wages during the training of a TA client/employee.

If an employer does not have any jobs available but could use some extra help, and would like to assist a participant in developing job skills, then hosting a work opportunity such as a Community Work Experience or Business Work Experience site might be what you are looking for.

Community Work Experience is an activity in which clients perform assigned duties and provide useful public service without receiving wages from an employer. Clients engage in needed work tasks at non-profit, government, and charitable organizations or as a member of their community, while gaining valuable work skills.

Community Work Experience allows participants to develop job skills and recent work experience, network with potential employers, and contribute valuable services to their communities. Clients acquire knowledge, skills and work ethics that employers find beneficial when seeking new employees. Work assignments include work duties that match the participant’s vocational interests, and enhance their skills and abilities to find paid employment.

For a business that operates as a for-profit entity, a Business Work Experience participant could be very beneficial to the company hosting a placement opportunity. When a business accepts a Department of Public Assistance Business Work Experience participant, they are providing an individual the chance to develop skills necessary to be successful in paid employment. If, at a future date, a Business Work Experience participant secures an offer of paid employment, it is agreed that this Business Work Experience Agreement may be ended with short notice. The participant’s entry into a paid job represents a positive and meaningful outcome for all parties. Successful employment for employers and workers helps to create a healthy and productive Mat-Su Valley.

Employers seeking more information should contact 352-2634, or hillarys@akafs.org.

For more information on all the programs and services offered by Alaska Family Services, contact 746-4080.

Hillary Saffran is a Job Development Specialist in Alaska Family Services’ Families First Work Services program.