52:27D-292. Services and programs offered

Through the demonstration training and resource model center or other similar centers established by the division or the centers specified in section 2 of this 1989 amendatory and supplementary act, the division shall undertake to provide at least seven of the following services:

a. Job counseling services which are specifically designed to prepare women to enter or reenter the work force by assisting them in acquiring knowledge of their talents and skills in relation to existing traditional and nontraditional job opportunities and to those which are emerging as a result of new employment trends;

b. A job training and job placement service which assists participants in gaining admission to existing public and private job training programs and opportunities by cooperating, wherever possible, with appropriate State and local government agencies and private employers. This training and placement service shall foster the development of partnerships with industry, particularly those concerns which are associated with urban enterprise zones, and the enhancement of the neighborhood and communities which surround the training and resource center. To the extent possible, the training and placement service shall consult with the area private industry councils established pursuant to the provisions of the federal Job Training Partnership Act, Pub. L. 97-300 (29 U.S.C. s. 1501 et seq.) in order to help identify local job opportunities or areas of expansion in private industry;

c. Self-help programs and mentoring projects, including workshops, group discussions, and dissemination of information about existing federal, State, and local employment, education, health, and other community services which provide assistance in overcoming barriers to employment. These programs shall include outreach and information about other programs which are determined to be of interest and benefit to working parents, women newly entering or reentering the work force after a prolonged absence from it, those in need of financial management services (including information and assistance with respect to credit, insurance, taxes, loans, and related financial matters), and women who need information about a diversity of housing problems;

d. Counseling and referral through the use of workshops and group discussions, with the cooperation of State and local women's organizations to help promote identification with role models and the use of mentors in entering the world of work;

e. Information and referral services concerning federal and State employment, education, legal counseling, health, and public assistance programs;

f. Child care, which shall be funded independently of the appropriation provided in section 14 of this act, to enable women to participate in and benefit from the services provided by these training and resource centers;

g. Technical assistance to allow for the expansion of other multi-purpose programs aimed at enhancing the employability of urban women throughout the State, including on-site consultation, workshops within the division or at one or more community locations, and facilitation of access to relevant informational material, and professional and lay resources;

h. Pre-business and business development training to develop a business plan, and single session activities on specific topics, including but not limited to bookkeeping, pricing, and marketing, for women with an interest in self-employment or small business ownership as a non-traditional career option. Individual and group business counseling sessions shall be included in the training; and

i. Information and guidance on accessing post-secondary education and personal and academic counseling, to facilitate entry or re-entry into educational institutions as well as the completion of educational programs.

L.1985, c.189, s.5; amended 1989,c.344,s.1.