This Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) provides general guidance for the implementation of operational requirements under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) pertaining to the one-stop delivery system, branded nationally as the American Job Center network. Due to the broad scope of the one-stop delivery system, encompassing multiple programs administered by different Federal agencies, this guidance provides the primary components for understanding and implementing an integrated American Job Center network. Consistent with the requirement to promote increased public identification of the one-stop delivery system and the requirement for the use of a common identifier across the nation (WIOA sec. 121(e)(4)), the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), in coordination with the U.S. Department of Education (ED), established the "American Job Center" network, a unifying name and brand that identifies online and in-person workforce development services as part of a single network of publicly-funded services. The use of the American Job Center network designation in this guidance establishes a framework for accentuating and implementing an integrated workforce delivery system. DOL and ED, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (collectively, the Departments), published the WIOA Joint Rule for Unified and Combined State Plans, Performance Accountability, and the One-Stop System Joint Provisions; Final Rule (Joint WIOA Final Rule) on August 19, 2016, in the Federal Register at 81 FR 55791. The Joint WIOA Final Rule, which became effective on October 18, 2016, can be found at: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/08/19/2016-15977/workforce-innovation-and-opportunity-act-joint-rule-for-unified-and-combined-state-plans-performance.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) announces the release and availability of two papers from a study of states' use of Workforce Data Quality Initiative (WDQI) Databases to inform Consumer Report Card Systems and manage Eligible Training Provider Lists (ETPL).

This Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) provides information on the requirements to designate or certify one-stop operators through a competitive process as setforth in sec. 121(d)(2)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA).

The WIOA Joint Rule for Unified and Combined State Plans, Performance Accountability, and the One-Stop System Joint Provisions ("WIOA Joint Final Rule") was published in the Federal Register (FR) on August 19, 2016, with an effective date of October 18, 2016, at 81 FR 55791.This guidance has been reviewed by our Federal partners in the one-stop system, and is based on the statutory provisions of WIOA and its final implementing regulations.

To announce the release and availability of the ETA National Agricultural Workers Survey (NAWS) Public Access Data for Fiscal Years 1989-2014 and three NAWS research reports:

• Findings from the National Agricultural Workers Survey (NAWS) 2000-2009: Profiles of Youth, Parents, and Children of Farm Workers in the United States. Research Report No. 10 (Report No. 10);
• Findings from the National Agricultural Workers Survey (NAWS) 2011-2012: A Demographic and Employment Profile of United States Farm Workers. Research Report No. 11 (Report No. 11); and
• Findings from the National Agricultural Workers Survey (NAWS) 2013-2014: A Demographic and Employment Profile of United States Farmworkers. Research Report No. 12 (Report No. 12).

To announce the release and availability of three issue briefs from the current evaluation of the Self-Employment Training (SET) demonstration. These briefs provide lessons learned and implementation issues faced as part of a project piloting self-employment assistance and training services for dislocated workers. The briefs include:

• Case Management for Self-Employment Success: Emerging Lessons from the Self-Employment Training Program;
• The Characteristics and Motivations of Participants in the Self-Employment Training Demonstration; and
• What Does $1,000 in Seed Capital Buy? Emerging Lessons from the SET Program's Offer of Micro-grants for Business Start-Ups.

The Framework on Registered Apprenticeship (RA) for High School Students provides guidance from the U.S. Departments of Labor (USDOL) and Education (ED) to the public workforce and education systems on the components of a high-quality RA program for high school students. The purpose of this framework is to provide recommendations on key elements of RA programs for high school students and to encourage greater use of RA and pre-apprenticeship programs for in-school youth at least 16 years old, enrolled in secondary schools. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets the minimum ages and occupations in which youth can be employed in agricultural and nonagricultural employment. In nonagricultural employment, 16- and 17-year-old apprentices are specifically permitted to do some hazardous work otherwise prohibited for that age group provided certain requirements are met (see footnote three in Attachment 1). Apart from these exceptions, all other work deemed to be hazardous by the Secretary of Labor is prohibited for 16- and 17-year-old apprentices working in nonagricultural employment. This framework provides an important opportunity for youth to finish high school and continue on a pathway toward multiple career and educational opportunities, such as entering an RA program, earning an associate's and/or a bachelor's degree, and obtaining sustainable employment. The framework seeks to enhance the competitiveness of businesses by connecting youth to work-based learning and developing in-demand skills and competencies.

This Change 1 replaces and makes corrections to the previously issued Training and Employment Notice (TEN) 28-16 to inform the workforce system with examples, best practices, partnership models, and information on how to align resources available under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) to increase services to English Language Learners (ELL) with substantial cultural and language barriers to employment. It further provides information to the workforce system, including partner programs and entities that are jointly responsible for workforce and economic development, educational, and other human resource programs, about how to align their efforts to provide basic career services, individualized career services, and training services.

To transmit to States and outlying areas estimated funding levels for WIOA Title I Youth, Adult, and Dislocated Worker program allotments for PY 2017.

To respond to questions from state workforce agencies about prior guidance provided to state agencies regarding the requirements of Federal law pertaining to protecting individual rights in state procedures to prevent or recover unemployment compensation (UC) overpayments.

Registered Apprenticeship is an important workforce development strategy that the workforce system provides to its customers, both job seekers and employers. It is an evidence-based model for job seekers and is a job-driven strategy for employers and industries. Engagement with employers, institutions of higher education, and policy makers has ramped up significantly in order to achieve the administration's goal to double the number of apprentices across the United States. This is an historic opportunity for the workforce system to expand its business base and offer job seekers greater employment prospects while offering employers a strategic approach to talent development. The purpose of this guidance is to provide information about the new provisions for Registered Apprenticeship in WIOA, including the status of Registered Apprenticeship sponsors as Eligible Training Providers, membership on State and Local Workforce Boards, the use of WIOA funding to support Registered Apprenticeship, reporting on Registered Apprenticeship activity, and suggestions about how to coordinate with the Registered Apprenticeship system.