Getting a Second Chance

By Sherese Brewington-Carr, M.H.S.

To the more than 500 employees at the Delaware Department of Labor (DOL), every day is centered around ensuring their services enable employers and job seekers to make informed employment and training decisions that will ultimately lead to employment. It is the DOL’s Division of Employment & Training (DET) that makes that mission a reality for Delawareans.

DET intentionally works to meet people where they are in an ever increasingly complex job market today. The team of DET professionals are uniquely prepared to offer specialized support for a variety of stakeholders looking to engage with the Delaware workforce.

DET has a dual customer responsibility: assisting employers with finding job seekers and helping job seekers find employment. It is this kind of public-facing role that sets DET’s work apart from others the work in the employment space.

For example, some jobseekers may have barriers to employment such as a past criminal history or limited work experience. DET offers customized programming that is specifically designed to help people address a past criminal record and gain marketable job skills, as well as employer incentives to hire these candidates.

A web-based job matching and labor market information system, Delaware Job Link (DJL) is free and easy to use. Upon registering, users gain access to job seekers, employers, and training providers with easy-to-use tools to secure employment and a career pathway. Feature's include:

• Creating and posting resumes or job listings

• Establishing eligibility for state- or federally-funded workforce programs

• Job or candidate searches

•  Training or service provider searches

To get started, visit joblink.delaware.gov.

The U.S. Department of Labor created the Federal Bonding Program in 1966. Employers receive the bonds at no cost as an incentive to hire applicants with barriers or may be deemed high risk. Each bond has a $5,000 limit with no deductible and covers the first six months of a selected individual’s employment. Eligible persons can be bonded for an additional six months free of charge. This program provides fidelity bonding insurance coverage to justice involved persons and other high-risk job applicants who may be denied coverage due to their backgrounds.

• Free to the employer with no deductible for up to 12 months and paid for by the Delaware DOL

•  Eliminates bonding as an employment barrier for the applicant and employer

Learn more at bonds4jobs.com.

The Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) is a federal tax credit available to employers for hiring and employing individuals from certain targeted groups who have faced significant barriers to employment.

APEX helps justice-impacted people with a criminal record seek expungement and pardon. If eligible, one-on-one assistance is provided through each step of the process to help a person apply. Learn more at labor.delaware.gov/apex.

Be encouraged and know that you have a partner in the Delaware Department of Labor to take advantage of a real second chance. We look forward to working with you.

Sherese Brewington-Carr, M.H.S. is administrator at the Delaware Department of Labor's Division of Employment and Training