Located in:
- Program-Specific Requirements for Wagner-Peyser Program (Employment Services)
All Program-Specific Requirements provided for the WIOA core programs in this section must be addressed for either a Unified or Combined State Plan.
- e. Agricultural Outreach Plan (AOP). Each State agency must develop an AOP every four years as part of the Unified or Combined State Plan required under sections 102 or 103 of WIOA. The AOP must include an assessment of need. An assessment need describes the unique needs of farmworkers in the area based on past and projected agricultural and farmworker activity in the State. Such needs may include but are not limited to: employment, training, and housing.
- 4. Outreach Activities
The local offices outreach activities must be designed to meet the needs of MSFWs in the State and to locate and contact MSFWs who are not being reached through normal intake activities. Describe the State agency's proposed strategies for:
- 4. Outreach Activities
- e. Agricultural Outreach Plan (AOP). Each State agency must develop an AOP every four years as part of the Unified or Combined State Plan required under sections 102 or 103 of WIOA. The AOP must include an assessment of need. An assessment need describes the unique needs of farmworkers in the area based on past and projected agricultural and farmworker activity in the State. Such needs may include but are not limited to: employment, training, and housing.
e. 4. A. Contacting farmworkers who are not being reached by the normal intake activities conducted by the employment service offices
Current Narrative:
Intensive efforts will be made to contact MSFW whose residence is in the local Career Center area served and those that migrate into the area that are not aware of the Center(s) or services available. In an effort to make sure that farmworkers are being informed of resource available to them, the state MSFW Monitor Advocate will continuously conduct outreach and reach out to all available resources related to MSFW program. Among these resources are the state’s One-Stop Career Centers. The Monitor Advocate will visit and inform Center staff of the MSFW program and their responsibilities to outreach and provide services. Pre-seasonal canvassing will be conducted by Career Center staff with leads provided from the State Monitor Advocate to determine anticipated MSFW population in local Center areas. Career Centers contact individuals and groups to identify, offer and provide services to these individuals not reached by usual Career Center intake activities.
As part of the outreach, MSFW will be informed of their rights to full Career Center services and invited to the local Center for registration, orientation, and assessment in accordance with ADOL/MSFW regulations. Services, including job referral, job development, as well as referral to other service agencies to include WIOA for possible individualized and training services, will be provided. Appropriate information will be directed to MSFW informing them of their rights, including the complaint process, under various Federal and State laws, as well as directives of service agencies in the community. Handouts will be provided to each person contacted advising them of this information.
Telamon, (WIOA 167 grantee) partnering with the Career Centers also performs outreach registering farmworkers in Alabama JobLink (AJL) who may be eligible for additional American Job Center services through the Career Center system. Telamon is currently co-located in four (4) Centers (Montgomery, Mobile, Dothan and Huntsville) with possibility of additional co- locations being explored. Through this partnership Career Centers and Telamon Corporation work cooperatively to leverage resources for more efficient service delivery to MSFWs. This includes the provision of employment, training and housing assistance. Career Center One-stop staff members make every effort to ensure appropriate resources are made available to MSFWs. Services may include assessment, counseling, job development, job referral, training, support services and job placement assistance.
The activities to promote interagency cooperation the SMA speaking at Alabama Farm Bureau meetings, regional, state, and, county. Also meeting with County Cooperatives, County and state young farmers groups, and Alabama County farmers chapter meetings. Visiting U.S. Department of Agriculture offices statewide as well as NFJP Grantee corporate office for the latest updates on MSFW activities in all areas throughout the state.