Welfare to Work

Phase 2

Provincial and Territorial Updates

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ONTARIO

Phase 2 Provincial Update

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Summary

Ontario Works was introduced and phased in across the province through 1996 and 1997. In May 1998, the Ontario Works Act was proclaimed and the Ontario Works program replaced the existing social assistance program.

Ontario Works is a labour market adjustment program that provides employment assistance and temporary financial assistance to people in financial need.

Eligibility rules are designed to ensure that employment is the first resort for people in financial need and that people turn to social assistance only when all other resources have been exhausted, thereby ensuring that assistance is directed to those most in need.

Unless participation requirements are temporarily deferred, all recipients are required to participate in one or more employment assistance activities as a condition of eligibility for financial assistance. Participation in Ontario Works employment assistance activities assists people to move as quickly as possible to a job and to become self-reliant.

Between June 1995 and September 2001, 601,544 people left the province's welfare rolls. As of September 2001, there were 191,917 Ontario Works cases and 414,932 beneficiaries.

The Ontario Works Act provides authority for the ministry to set and enforce province-wide program and delivery standards. Ontario Works delivery agents are required to meet service, delivery and operating standards prescribed in regulations, to ensure consistency and high quality services throughout the province.

Ontario Works delivery agents include 47 Consolidated Municipal Service Managers, including District Social Services Administration Boards, and 108 First Nations who deliver the program across the province. There are two types of assistance which Ontario Works delivery agents must provide: basic financial assistance and employment assistance.

The Act provides for basic financial assistance to be paid to persons who meet the eligibility requirements. Basic financial assistance includes:

The Act provides for employment assistance to recipients based on individual skills, experience and circumstances. Employment assistance includes:

Key initiatives for this year include increasing Ontario Works placements, providing additional supports to address participants with significant employment barriers, mandatory literacy testing and training, mandatory addiction treatment, advanced training for caseworkers and the new Service Delivery Model Technology.

For 2000/01, actual provincial expenditures for Ontario Works financial assistance were $1,491.3 million and for Ontario Works employment assistance were $159.6 million.

For information about for Ontario Works Policy Directives and other program information see the Ontario government’s website at http://www.gov.on.ca/CSS.

Welfare-to-Work Programs

Program

Ontario Works

Description

Ontario Works was introduced and phased in across the province through 1996 and 1997. In May 1998, the Ontario Works Act was proclaimed and the Ontario Works program replaced the existing social assistance program.

Ontario Works is a labour market adjustment program that provides employment assistance and temporary financial assistance to people in financial need.

Eligibility rules are designed to ensure that employment is the first resort for people in financial need and that people turn to social assistance only when all other resources have been exhausted, thereby ensuring that assistance is directed to those most in need.

Unless participation requirements are temporarily deferred, all recipients are required to participate in one or more employment assistance activities as a condition of eligibility for financial assistance. Participation in Ontario Works employment assistance activities assists people to move as quickly as possible to a job and to become self-reliant.

Between June 1995 and September 2001, 601,544 people left the province's welfare rolls. As of September 2001, there were 191,917 Ontario Works cases and 414,932 beneficiaries.

The Ontario Works Act provides authority for the ministry to set and enforce province-wide program and delivery standards. Ontario Works delivery agents are required to meet service, delivery and operating standards prescribed in regulations, to ensure consistency and high quality services throughout the province.

Under Ontario Works legislation, the ministry's Director designates the delivery agent for a geographical area. Ontario Works delivery agents include 47 Consolidated Municipal Service Managers, including District Social Services Administration Boards, and 108 First Nations who deliver the program across the province.

The Ontario Works Act provides the necessary legislative framework to place clear obligations on the delivery agent to offer specific types of assistance that help participants become self-reliant, provide the necessary authority to administer that assistance and to recover some or all of the assistance provided under specific circumstances.

There are two types of assistance which Ontario Works delivery agents must provide: basic financial assistance and employment assistance.

The Act provides for basic financial assistance to be paid to persons who meet the eligibility requirements. Basic financial assistance includes:

The Act also provides for employment assistance to participants based on individual skills, experience and circumstances. Employment assistance includes:

Goals

The strategic goals, as outlined in the Ontario Works Act, establish a program that:

Program Rationale

The Ontario Works program represents a fundamental reform to a welfare system that was not helping people who were truly in need. In 1995 over a million people were trapped in a system that offered no hope and few opportunities. While Ontario was the most prosperous province in the country, it also had the highest number of people per capita on welfare, and welfare dependency continued to rise. Previous welfare rates were so generous, instead of supporting self-reliance, the system was encouraging people to remain dependent on welfare, rather than find a job.

For these reasons, the government introduced Ontario Works, a mandatory welfare-to-work program, cracked down on fraud, adjusted benefits and made sure the system was there for those who are most in need.

The Ontario Works program delivers employment assistance and temporary financial assistance to people in financial need in a way that encourages people to get back on their feet so they can help themselves and their families. It is based on the fundamental principle that people should be better off working than on welfare.

Ontario Works is based on accountability and responsibility to people who need help and the taxpayers who pay for the programs.

Labour Market Development Agreement

No agreement has been signed.

Program Activities

Main Activity

The shortest route to paid employment is the overriding principle of all program activities.

Ontario Works has a broad range of employment assistance activities which are designed to:

Specific Activities

Ontario Works helps people to determine what they need to become employed. Some participants need to update or upgrade their skills. Some need to complete their basic education or training for a particular job. Others simply need help in finding a job and staying employed.

Ontario Works addresses each of these needs through a range of employment assistance activities based on individual skills, experience and circumstances. Employment assistance activities include:

Ontario Works Placements

Ontario Works placements include both community and employment placements.

Community placements are designed to give Ontario Works participants the opportunity to contribute to their community while gaining new skills, build confidence, make job contacts and obtain current employment references. A community placement is any unpaid community service activity sponsored and directed by communities, public organizations or non-profit organizations. It includes self-initiated placements proposed by participants. Community placements range in complexity to match the work experience and needs of different participants.

Ontario Works delivery agents must ensure that community placements meet certain criteria, including that:

In December 1998, the government announced that Ontario Works was expanding into the private sector to create more opportunities for participants to find employment. This initiative provides a range of incentives to employers to hire participants directly into paid employment. Employment placements are either new or vacant positions and are expected to continue beyond the incentive period. Key components of employment placement services include a comprehensive hiring service, screening and matching process, and one or more of the following:

Financial assistance for up to six months may be available to employers to offset additional costs. For participants, financial assistance with child care, transportation, equipment and special clothing is available.

The Ontario Works Placement Secretariat was established in November 1999 under the Welfare-to-Work Action Plan to assist in developing more community placements and to promote placements at the provincial level. The Secretariat works closely with Ontario Works delivery agents across the province to develop, market and implement new placement development projects. Regular meetings are held with municipalities to bring forward ideas and best practices and resolve concerns.

Education and Training

Ontario Works delivery agents refer participants to basic education opportunities where appropriate and to available skills training to assist participants in becoming job-ready and to support their shortest route to paid employment. Training is job-specific, providing a quick connection with or return to employment.

Ontario Works participants who wish to attend full-time post-secondary education are expected to seek student loans from the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP).

Educational programs are appropriate for people who lack the basic language, literacy, numeracy and work skills required for most jobs. For some participants, the time required for basic education may be lengthy but is still considered the shortest route to paid employment given their skills and circumstances.

There are a number of considerations in determining whether a referral for basic education will achieve the shortest route to paid employment for any participant, such as:

Supports to Self-Employment

Where approved, participants may pursue self-employment activities. Participants interested in becoming self-employed are referred to a self-employment development agency in the private or non-profit sector for an assessment of the viability of their business proposal and ongoing support in business development. This program requires participants to:

Learning Earning and Parenting

In March 1999, the government introduced the Learning, Earning and Parenting program (LEAP). LEAP helps teen parents on assistance to finish high school, to learn more about being good parents and to get a job.

The objectives of LEAP are to:

LEAP is a requirement for 16- and 17-year old parents on Ontario Works who have not completed high school. Single parents and couples aged 18 to 21 on assistance may participate in LEAP voluntarily if they have not completed high school.

LEAP includes a $500 incentive bursary, for participants who successfully complete high school and a minimum of 35 hours of parenting, that may be used to further their education/training or their children’s future education. Program funding is also available for child care expenses, counselling, parenting programs and transportation, as well as education-related services such as tutoring or counselling and school supplies.

Five-Point Action Plan

In May 2001, the government announced a five-point action plan designed to make Ontario Works more responsive to the needs of welfare recipients. This plan will fulfill the government’s commitment to help tear down the barriers to employment for participants and get more people earning and learning their way to new jobs. The five-point plan includes:

Mandatory Addiction Treatment

To ensure that Ontario Works participants who are unable to find or keep employment because of an addiction to illicit drugs, alcohol or prescription drugs are connected to treatment, a program of mandatory addiction treatment is being introduced. Participants will be referred to an assessment test only if there is reason to believe their addiction is posing a barrier to employment. Participants who can not find or keep employment because of an addiction will be expected to go for treatment that is supported by an individualized service plan which will provide the support they and their families need while in recovery.

Mandatory Literacy Testing and Training

The mandatory literacy testing and training initiative will connect participants who can not get or keep a job because they do not have basic reading, writing and math skills with the help they need. It is about helping people break down the barriers to employment. Through the use of a screening test designed with input from literacy experts, caseworkers will be able to identify whether the participant’s literacy skills may be a barrier to employment. Participants who appear to lack these basic skills will be connected to literacy training providers who will assess their specific needs and provide the training that is needed.

Program Design and Implementation

Responsibility for Design

The provincial government is responsible for the design of Ontario Works.

Service Delivery Model Technology

The Business Transformation Project focuses on replacing outdated mainframe technology, reducing social assistance overpayments and fraud, and eliminating duplications and inefficiencies in business practices through the implementation of a new Service Delivery Model Technology. These innovations are also expected to improve client services and program integrity, support self-sufficiency and reduce overall program expenditures.

The Business Transformation Project has streamlined the business processes as well as developed and implemented a common technology to support the provision of social assistance in Ontario. Features of the Service Delivery Model are:

Responsibility for Implementation

There are 47 Consolidated Municipal Service Managers including District Social Services Administration Boards and 108 First Nations designated as Ontario Works delivery agents. Responsibilities include the administration and delivery of Ontario Works employment assistance and financial assistance as defined in the Act and regulations.

Local Flexibility in Program Design and Implementation

Ontario Works delivery agents are able to exercise local flexibility in delivery approaches within established parameters including:

Duration of the Program

Ontario Works was introduced in 1996 in 20 early sites and was implemented across the province by January 1998. Since then Ontario Works has evolved as refinements were introduced and the range of employment supports continues to expand.

While there is not a set time limit by which participants must leave Ontario Works, the principle of shortest route to paid employment governs all activities. The focus on participation is to move people towards employment and independence. For this reason, some time limits have been established. For example:

Funding and Program Costs

Type and Amount of Financial Assistance for Participants

In addition to mandatory benefits for basic needs and shelter, the following mandatory benefits are provided under the program:

Discretionary Benefits include:

Specific financial assistance under Ontario Works that support employment-related activities include:

In addition, Ontario Works supports participants making the transition from social assistance to earnings. Participants are eligible for a number of exemptions that allow them to earn income and receive financial assistance. Ontario Works includes an earn-back provision that allows participants to retain a portion of earnings without penalty as a step toward self-sufficiency. As well, an additional percent of earnings may also be retained without penalty for up to two years. Child care expenses, as a necessary support to employment, may also be deducted from earnings.

Financial Incentives for Employers

In December 1998, the government announced that Ontario Works was expanding into the private sector to create more opportunities for participants to find employment. This employment placement initiative provides a range of incentives to employers to hire participants directly into paid employment. Employment placements are either new or vacant positions and are expected to continue beyond the incentive period. Key components of employment placement services include a comprehensive hiring service, screening and matching process, and one or more of the following:

Financial assistance for up to six months may be available to employers to offset additional costs. For participants, financial assistance with child care, transportation, equipment and special clothing is available.

Program Funding

Funding of Ontario Works is cost-shared between the Ministry of Community and Social Services and municipalities at 50-50 for administration and 80-20 for financial assistance, employment assistance and Ontario Works Child Care. These cost-sharing arrangements reflect decisions about provincial/municipal service re-alignment of social assistance. The Ontario Works Innovation Fund and Enhancement Fund are 100 percent provincial.

The 1965 Indian Services Welfare Agreement allows Ontario to obtain reimbursement from the federal government for approximately 91 percent of Ontario Works costs related to First Nations.

For 2000/01, actual provincial expenditures for Ontario Works financial assistance was $1,491.3 million and for Ontario Works employment assistance was $159.6 million.

The province introduced a more businesslike approach to the funding of services by paying based on agreed upon results. The ministry's regional offices negotiate service contracts with delivery agents that include service targets. Performance is monitored against targets and delivery agents that do not meet their targets have their funding adjusted to actual units of service achieved.

In February 2000, a new funding formula for employment assistance was introduced. Advised by a joint Provincial/Municipal Advisory Group on funding, the new formula streamlines and simplifies funding and provides flexibility to delivery agents to invest in intensive services to meet participants needs.

The new employment assistance funding formula supports the provision of a full range of services to enable participants to be provided with the level of employment assistance services needed to build and maintain employment readiness, gain paid employment, and exit social assistance.

Funding for Ontario Works services is based on the level of employment services provided to participants and documented in individual participation agreements. The new funding approach replaces the model that was used since the introduction of the program. With the new funding formula, the previous planning envelopes for community participation and employment supports, employment placement, community participation expenses, employment-related expenses and supports to people with disabilities were combined into a single planning envelope per Ontario Works delivery agent.

Ontario Works delivery agents are expected to submit a three-year service plan for employment assistance. The plan includes the development of a caseload profile based on key caseload characteristics and an outline of the requirements for service planning for service levels, including a description of the range of services provided to participants with mandatory requirements as well as voluntary participants.

The model funds on the basis of three service levels:

SERVICE LEVEL

EMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE SERVICES

Level 1-Basic

Independent Job Search including:

  • Job Banks
  • Attendance at seminars (e.g., orientations to employment assistance services and participation requirements, the local job market, résumé-writing, conducting a job search or interviewing for a job)
  • Telephone, fax and copying services
  • Computing services, including word-processing and other applications
  • Information referral for basic education, job-specific skills training, literacy, other special employment-related services
  • Structured Job Search, including two or more of the following:
    • Job club
    • Workshop attendance (as a separate activity from a job club, including life skills, résumé-writing, job retention, interview and presentation skills)
    • Attendance for employment referral
    • Scheduled attendance at a resource centre to review job boards and speak to workers about job-seeking efforts

Level 2-Intermediate

  • Community placements of less than 30 hours per month
  • Basic education designed to help participants complete their secondary education, improve their language skills, upgrade literacy and numeracy skills, job-oriented life skills (e.g., “Opportunity for Advancement”, “Focus on Change”)
  • Job-specific skills training (e.g., WHMIS, basic computer skills, general office procedure) and short-term occupational skills-training courses (e.g., forklift operator course for a warehouse position)
  • Employment Placement (i.e., without incentives) through screening and matching services

Level 3-Advanced

  • Community placements of 30 or more hours per month
  • Employment Placement with Incentives
  • Self-Employment Development

Enhancement Fund

Since 1999/00, increased provincial funding was made available to delivery agents that exceeded their provincially-established placement targets. The Enhancement Fund is a performance-based fund that is awarded to delivery agents that exceed their placement targets. Delivery agents have the flexibility to invest this increased funding in human service priorities that address unmet needs in local communities.

Innovation Fund

The Innovation Fund was created in 1999 to support delivery agents in creating and developing new and innovative approaches to placements. The fund provides for one-time start-up and related costs associated with the development and establishment of new and innovative placements. It also acts as a catalyst for the expansion of placements.

Subsidized Child Care

Child care is an essential employment support component provided to Ontario Works participants with the objective of maximizing employment and training opportunities. Implemented in 1999, the Child Care Strategic Management Guideline to Support Ontario Works Participation and the Transition to Employment provides direction to delivery agents on the development of appropriate child care plans to assist Ontario Works participants based on their level of participation, eligibility for supports, and child care needs. Delivery agents are expected to provide a full range of child care options such as:

Participants can be reimbursed for the actual cost of licensed child care or the cost of informal child care up to $390 per month for children up to 5 years of age and up to $346 per month for children ages 6 to 12 years. For special circumstances such as special needs, child care costs may be reimbursed up to $390 per month for children ages 6 or older.

Program Participants

Eligibility Criteria

Ontario Works is a labour market adjustment program that provides employment assistance and temporary financial assistance to people in financial need.

Eligibility rules are designed to ensure that employment is the first resort for people in financial need and that people turn to social assistance only when all other resources have been exhausted, thereby ensuring that assistance is directed to those most in need.

Participation in Ontario Works employment assistance activities assists people to move as quickly as possible to a job and to become self-reliant. Unless participation requirements are temporarily deferred, all recipients are required to participate in one or more employment assistance activities as a condition of eligibility for financial assistance.

Caseloads

Between June 1995 and September 2001, 601,544 people left the province's welfare rolls. As of September 2001, there were 191,917 Ontario Works cases and 414,932 beneficiaries.

Statistical information maintained by the ministry includes family structure (single, family, sole support parent) and number of beneficiaries.

Accessibility

Ontario Works offers a wide range of employment assistance activities and is able to serve all of those who are required to participate or have chosen to participate. If there is a waiting list for one activity, then participants may be involved in another activity until space is available.

The Welfare-to-Work Action Plan was first introduced in November 1999, with the goal of increasing participant opportunities for placements across Ontario. The Ontario government made a number of commitments related to social assistance reforms which included doubling the target of community participation. For 2000/01, the target across the province was set at 47,778 placements. Overall, the province exceeded its target by over 45 percent for a total of 69,692 placements.

Nature of Participation

The Ontario Works delivery agent has responsibility to offer a full range of employment assistance activities to participants to help them find employment and become self-sufficient. Under Ontario Works, eligible participants have the responsibility to participate in one or more employment assistance activities as a condition of eligibility for financial assistance. A participation agreement, negotiated between an individual and their case worker, documents the employment assistance activities that the individual will participate in. The agreement is updated as activities are completed or new activities are added.

Temporary deferrals from employment assistance activities are available in specific circumstances including where the applicant or participant is:

If the recipient does not participate in employment assistance activities as outlined in his/her agreement, the Ontario Works delivery agent may determine that the recipient is in non-compliance. Unless a reasonable excuse for non-compliance has been established, financial assistance may be refused, reduced or terminated. If an adult member of the benefit unit fails to comply with program requirements, the unit continues to receive assistance less the pro-rated share of assistance attributable to the adult member in non-compliance.

Assistance will be refused, cancelled or reduced for a period of three months for a first occurrence and six months for each subsequent occurrence of non-compliance with participation requirements. Individuals must reapply or request reinstatement after the expiration of the time period, as well as meet the participation requirements in order to re-qualify.

There are four kinds of non-compliance with participation requirements under Ontario Works:

A determination of “reasonableness” is made in accordance with current business practices and includes the notion of “best fit” between a participant’s interest and/or skills and available opportunities. Ontario Works delivery agents are expected to use the reasonableness tests identified in their approved business plans. Reasonableness may also be determined using the following criteria as a guide when assessing opportunities:

Orientation and Follow-up

Ontario Works delivery agents are required to provide applicants with an employment information session as part of the interview process. Group employment information sessions are integrated into the service provider’s ongoing business.

Employment information sessions provide an in-depth introduction to Ontario Works and available employment supports. Key elements include mandatory requirements and obligations, information about employment assistance measures, participation agreements, rights and responsibilities and compliance. Other information includes the types of support available for participation and employment, community resources and the local labour market.

Ontario Works delivery agents are expected to monitor the implementation of Ontario Works on two levels:

When Ontario Works was introduced, the ministry provided an orientation to all Ontario Works delivery agents' front-line staff. Detailed training is the responsibility of the municipality and is an allowable expense within Ontario Works funding.

Appeals Process

An applicant or participant who does not comply with or meet the participation requirements may have their financial assistance refused, reduced or cancelled -- with financial assistance for other members of the benefit unit to continue

Assistance will be refused, cancelled or reduced for a period of three months for a first occurrence and six months for each subsequent occurrence of non-compliance with participation requirements. Individuals must reapply or request reinstatement after the expiration of the time period, as well as meet the participation requirements in order to re-qualify.

Voluntary participants are not subject to benefit cancellation or reduction. If they do not participate in Ontario Works as planned, they may be removed from active participation at the discretion of the Ontario Works delivery agent.

Notice of decision letters are used to inform applicants and participants of the reason for the decision, the right to a non-statutory internal review and appeal information, and the subsequent right to appeal to the Social Benefits Tribunal. A request for an internal review for appealable decisions should be made within ten days after the notice letter is received. Participants are provided with written information about their rights and responsibilities, including their right of appeal, at the time of application.

The Community

The Employment Base

Program Design Considerations

Ontario Works is available province-wide. The range of employment assistance activities and the participation planning process reflects the diversity of the province’s labour market and local communities.

Employment Equity and Displacement

Ontario Works delivery agents customize Ontario Works delivery approaches and employment assistance activities to meet the needs of individuals and groups. This helps to ensure that opportunities are available to and appropriate for the full range of participants. As well, Ontario Works delivery agents refer to programs and services in their local communities (e.g., pre-apprenticeship programs for women).

Delivery agents must ensure that community placements, including self-initiated placements offered by communities and public or non-profit organizations, meet specific criteria.

Paid employment must not be displaced in the participating organization, including any associated or related organization. This includes:

Under employment placement, employers must not hire immediate family as placements, pay less than the minimum wage or receive duplicate financial incentives or subsidy from any other similar program funding source for the same placement. In addition, employers must not demonstrate any behaviour or pattern of behaviour that is inconsistent with the objectives of employment placement.

Community Services

Integration of Community Resources

Ontario Works delivery agents are required to plan and bring together appropriate local partners and resources, which may include:

Consolidated Municipal Service Managers have responsibility for a number of major human services including public health, housing and child care services. This enables a systemic approach to service management. This approach recognizes the complex, multi-faceted needs of people, and involves collaboration among the organizations that are part of the delivery system.

Ontario Works delivery agents are expected to promote Ontario Works in their communities and to recruit participation from local community, public and non-profit organizations and private-sector employers.

Single-Window Access

As a result of Local Services Realignment which addressed the division of responsibilities between two levels of government (i.e., provincial and municipal) for human services, a number of important social, community health and housing programs were brought together to create an integrated social and community health services system. These arrangements have the following key features:

In many communities Employment Resource Centres are available to support people who are looking for jobs and employment assistance services. In a number of communities up to three levels of government together with local service providers combine their efforts to maximize the use of their resources in delivering services. This creates single-window access for individuals and reduces unnecessary overlap and duplication of services.

Community Diversity

Ontario Works delivery agents customize Ontario Works components to individuals and groups to ensure that opportunities are available to and appropriate for the full range of participants. For example:

Program Evaluation

Evaluation Plan

Ontario Works Annual Compliance Reviews must be conducted as part of normal business practices at least once a year. The purpose of the Review is to ensure that the financial and employment components of the program are delivered in accordance with all legislative, regulatory and program standards. Lessons learned through these Reviews and the experience of program implementation are incorporated into Ontario Works on an ongoing basis.

The province has responsibility for monitoring province-wide data collection and reporting by Ontario Works delivery agents. Each Ontario Works delivery agent collects data on a monthly basis and reports to the province on a quarterly basis according to the business plan. The province provides funding based on agreed upon results as described above under Program Funding.

The ministry's Transfer Payment Business Process is a service and financial management system that supports a devolved delivery system. It includes a planning process for Ontario Works delivery for the year through to the final report on the actual service delivery and expenditures associated with the delivery of each contracted service.

After the province negotiates a contract with the Ontario Works delivery agent there continue to be opportunities to adjust the service contract to address unanticipated delivery factors and the achievement of units above anticipated levels. A feedback loop is built into the system via quarterly reporting on service targets and expenditures. Where targets are not achieved or there is a significant variance, the Ontario Works delivery agent must provide an explanation and a planned course of action.

Cost-Benefit Research

Ontario Works delivery agents are required to demonstrate that:

Outcome Data

Between June 1995 and September 2001, 601,544 people have left the province's welfare rolls. As of September 2001, there were 191,917 Ontario Works cases and 414,932 beneficiaries.

Ontario Works delivery agents are required to have a contract in place if they are brokering service delivery through any other local providers. The contracts must be performance based with payment linked to actual services provided and/or outcomes. This data is available at a local level.

Participant Evaluation

Under Ontario Works, a participation agreement is negotiated between a participant and their case worker. The agreement documents the planned employment assistance activities that will help the participant to move to paid employment.

All applicants or participants whose participation requirements are not deferred are encouraged to propose their own participation plan including participation in self-initiated placements to maintain and develop employment skills and gain experience.

The participation agreement is a living document that evolves and changes as participants access activities and complete them. It also responds to changed circumstances in a person's life such as illness or child care requirements.

Use of Findings

Lessons learned through Annual Compliance Reviews, the experience of program delivery, and feedback from delivery agents are incorporated into Ontario Works on an ongoing basis.

Planned Changes and Directions

In May 2001, the government announced a five-point action plan designed to make Ontario Works more responsive to the needs of welfare recipients. This plan will fulfill the government’s commitment to help tear down the barriers to employment for participants and get more people earning and learning their way to new jobs.

The five-point plan includes:

The ministry will continue its crackdown on fraud and misuse of the social assistance system by continuing to implement the zero tolerance policy.

As well, the implementation of the Service Delivery Model Technology will continue to support more effective and efficient delivery of Ontario Works.

Primary Information Sources

Ontario Works Policy Directives are available at the Ontario Works web site:

http://www.gov.on.ca/CSS/page/brochure/policy/policy.html

Contacts

NAME:

C. McMullin

TITLE: Director, Ontario Works Branch

ADDRESS:

Ministry of Community and Social Services

880 Bay Street, 4th Floor, Room 434

Toronto, ON M7A 2B6

E-MAIL ontario.works@css.gov.on.ca
TELEPHONE: (416) 326-8205
FAX: (416) 326-9777
WEB SITE: http://www.gov.on.ca/CSS/page/services/ontworks.html


Last Revised: Fri, Jan 18, 2002

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