The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) announces the release and availability of two papers under the subject project: Strategies for Connecting Unemployment Insurance (UI) Claimants to the Workforce System: Findings from the Implementation Study of the UI Workforce Connectivity Grant Program, and Experiences of Three States in Developing Social Media Strategies for Employment Assistance Programs.

To ensure State Workforce Agencies are aware of the Federal military retired pay annual cost of living adjustment (COLA) provided by the Department of Defense.

This Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) Change 3 provides the newly awarded national and set-aside SCSEP grantees with the allocations and the process and procedures for requesting Optional Special Requests (OSR) for the third and fourth quarters of Program Year (PY) 2016.

To ensure states are aware of the Schedule of Remuneration for the UCX program that reflects the military pay increase effective January 1, 2017.

To transmit the subject computation for State Workforce Agency usage in computing minimum weekly DUA amounts for all major disasters declared during the second quarter of Fiscal Year (FY) 2017.

To announce the availability of a technical assistance resource, the Career Pathways Toolkit: An Enhanced Guide and Workbook for System Development, for States, locals, tribal entities, and competitive grantees developing career pathways systems.

To provide the Department of Labor's (the Department) interpretation of the terms "contract" and "reasonable assurance" as used in sections 3304(a)(6)(A)(i) through (iv) of the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA). This guidance supersedes the guidance provided in Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL) No. 04-87 issued on December 24, 1986, and applies to all levels of education for public and non-profit educational institutions, including primary, secondary, and post-secondary education. The Department is issuing this guidance to remind states of the requirements, clarify the definitions of "contract" and "reasonable assurance," and to explain how they apply to situations that were not addressed in UIPL No. 04-87. This guidance also provides an overview of the relevant amendments to section 3304(a)(6), FUTA, to help states understand the historical background and the Department's interpretation of these provisions.

To assist State Workforce Agencies (SWAs) or agencies designated by Governors as "Cooperating State Agencies" (CSAs) (also jointly referred to as "states") in administering the TAA Program by providing guidance on the effects of strikes and lockouts on eligibility for TAA Program benefits, including TRA.

This Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) clarifies compliance with Davis-Bacon and Related Acts requirements for YouthBuild programs.

To announce the release and availability of issue briefs from the current evaluation of the Linking to Employment Activities Pre-Release (LEAP) Specialized American Job Centers. These briefs provide lessons learned and implementation issues faced by grantees working to provide employment and training services for incarcerated individuals.