Policy Chapters and Sections

Service Integration Overview

Chapter: 1 Section: 13.1
Effective Date: 1/1/2019
Expiration Date: Continuing
Published Date: 11/29/2023 2:48:51 PM
Status: Current
Version: 2

Tags: One-Stop, LWIBs, Training, Supportive Services, Service Integration, MOU, Career Services, Governance

  1. Summary
    1. Illinois’s Service Integration Policy focuses on improving customer service by building strong partnerships to share resources and expertise across the workforce, education, and social services systems. This policy applies to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Core and Required Partners network in Illinois.
  2. Background
    1. The WIOA is a critical driver in transforming how workforce development programs can offer integrated service delivery. This integrated service delivery operates through a network of one-stop centers and partner organizations branded as the American Job Center (AJC) network. One-Stop Centers, referred to in Illinois as Illinois workNet Center/partner of AJC, provide central contact points for job seekers and businesses to access employment and training services.
    2. Six core programs deliver these services: Title I Youth, Adult, and Dislocated Worker; Title II Adult Education and Literacy; Title III Wagner-Peyser; and Title IV Vocational Rehabilitation. Additionally, WIOA requires twelve (12) partner programs to provide access through the one-stops:
      1. Career and Technical Education (Perkins)
      2. Community Services Block Grant
      3. Indian and Native American Programs
      4. HUD Employment and Training Programs
      5. Job Corps
      6. Local Veterans Employment Representatives and Disabled Veterans’ Outreach Program
      7. National Farmworker Jobs Program
      8. Senior Community Service Employment Program
      9. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
      10. Trade Adjustment Assistance Programs
      11. Unemployment Compensation Programs
      12. YouthBuild
    3. Local boards may include additional partners in one-stop centers such as employment and training programs operated by other federal agencies (e.g., the Social Security Administration and Small Business Administration), local employers, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, and/or not-for-profit programs.
    4. Effective planning and coordination among these workforce development programs are needed to maximize their value and benefits to business and job-seeking customers. The foundation of this policy is building relationships and consistent and ongoing communication among partners to align service delivery in a cohesive way to achieve greater outcomes for employers and job seekers.
    5. The State recognizes and acknowledges that at the core of this system are federal programs with specific regulations. As outlined, State-level partners are responsible for helping to understand and implement these programs. 
  3. Vision Statement
    1. Service Integration connects people with resources within and outside the workforce development system. Customers of the local workforce system are supported with integrated services as core and required partners, and other community partners work together to continuously improve service delivery through policy and data-driven decisions to assist individuals in meeting their training and employment goals. These partnerships will value customers, equity, and the law.
  4. This policy builds on the existing guidance and support for service integration within the Illinois workforce ecosystem.  
    1. The Unified State Plan sets the vision, goals, and strategies for the workforce system in Illinois.
    2. The Governor’s Guidelines to State and Local Program Partners Negotiating Costs and Services under WIOA guides how one-stops coordinate and jointly use WIOA resources.
    3. The IWIB has embedded service integration expectations in key planning and policy documents, including the Unified State Plan and the IWIB’s strategic plan.
    4. The IWIB’s Certification of One-Stop Centers policy guides certification of One-Stop Centers.
    5. The Career Pathways Dictionary provides a framework for the definition of career pathways in Illinois developed by workforce, education, and other stakeholders.
    6. The IWIB’s definition of equity is the lens the State will evaluate equitable service delivery. “The State, quality, or ideal of being just, impartial, and fair. The concept of equity is synonymous with fairness and justice. To be achieved and sustained, equity needs to be thought of as a structural and systemic concept.” Source: The Annie E. Casey Foundation