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1 1 (June 23, 2022)

handle is hein.crs/govehwv0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research Service nforming the legislitive debate since 1914 0 June 23, 2022 The U.S. Employment Service: Service Delivery and Merit Staffing Introduction Since the establishment of the Employment Service (ES) in 1933, there has been congressional and executive branch interest and activity around the staffing requirements in the delivery of ES services. In particular, there has been a long- standing dialogue on the best way to ensure uniformity of service delivery and standards of efficiency across states in the ES-through public sector workers hired on the basis of merit (merit staff) or through non-state or non-public sector workers. In 2020, the Department of Labor (DOL) changed its longstanding regulations on ES staffing; in 2022, DOL proposes to partially reverse those changes. In 2022, the House passed a reauthorization of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (H.R. 7309) that includes merit staffing requirements in the ES. This In Focus summarizes the major statutory and regulatory developments related to the use of merit staff in ES offices since the enactment of the Wagner-Peyser Act. the law that created the ES. The Ermployment Servce In response to exceptionally high unemployment during the Great Depression, the Franklin D. Roosevelt Administration and Congress proposed and enacted numerous New Deal programs to address unemployment and to improve the efficiency of the U.S. labor market. The decentralized and uneven nature of labor exchange services in the United States in the early 1930s led to proposals for the federal government to take a more active approach in matching unemployed workers with employment opportunities. Building on prior experience with labor exchange services, the Wagner-Peyser Act (29 U.S.C. §49 et seq.) was enacted in 1933 to establish a more uniform federal-state system of public employment service offices from the existing mix of state and local offices. The act created the ES within DOL to promote the establishment and maintenance of the federal-state public employment service. The Wagner-Peyser Act and federal regulations require that each state, in order to receive related federal appropriations, must operate a labor exchange system that has, at a minimum, the capacity to * assist job seekers in finding employment, * assist employers in filling jobs, * facilitate the match between jobseekers and employers, * participate in a system for clearing labor between the states, and * meet the work-test requirements of the state unemployment compensation system. The ES is federally funded, primarily by appropriations from the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA). The ES is the central component of most states' workforce development systems, as services are universally accessible to all jobseekers and employers. Reflecting this central role, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA; 29 U.S.C. §3101 et seq.), enacted in 2014, requires ES offices to be integrated by being physically located with One-Stop centers and prohibits standalone ES offices. In addition, because ES staff conduct the work test for the receipt of unemployment benefits, ES is also a critical component of the Unemployment Insurance (UI) system. Current ES Staffing Requirerments The Wagner-Peyser Act does not use the term merit staff in the ES; using merit staff in the ES began shortly after the act passed in 1933 and continued until 2020. Initial discussions in the 1930s around setting staffing standards in the ES were informed by concerns about favoritism and partiality in the provision of employment services, especially given patronage systems then operating in several states and localities. Current staffing requirements for the ES are based on a combination of law and regulations. Under DOL regulations finalized in 2020, labor exchange services authorized through the ES may be provided through a variety of staffing models. States may choose to provide ES services by state merit-staff employees; they are not required to do so. Merit Staff Defnion While no specific merit standards are described in the Wagner-Peyser Act, such requirements are typically adopted to ensure (1) hiring is based on competence rather than patronage, (2) execution of services is impartial and nonpartisan, and (3) administration of services is not affected by favoritism. The Intergovernmental Personnel Act of 1970 (IPA; 42 U.S.C. §4701 et seq.) authorized the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to prescribe personnel standards consistent with merit principles for the administration of certain federal programs, including those funded by the Wagner-Peyser Act. In implementing the IPA, OPM noted that the quality of public services can be improved by developing personnel systems consistent with * employee recruitment based on knowledge, skills, and abilities; * equitable and adequate compensation; * employee training to ensure high performance; * employee retention based on adequacy of performance; * assurance of non-discrimination; and

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