Michigan's work participation rate hits record high

Nearly 62 percent of cash assistance recipients completed PATH work participation activities

LANSING, MICH. -- Nearly 62 percent of PATH participants are successfully completing the program’s required work participation activities Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Chief Deputy Duane Berger announced today. PATH – Partnership. Accountability. Training. Hope. – is Michigan’s work participation program that is required for families receiving cash assistance through the federal Family Independence Program (FIP). PATH is a collaborative effort between Michigan Works! and MDHHS.

“Approaching a 62 percent participation rate this year is an amazing achievement and gives us the flexibility to do even more to help families on the path to self-sufficiency,” said Berger. “When Governor Rick Snyder took office four years ago Michigan was at 22 percent – well below its 50 percent federal participation target and facing up to $200 million in sanctions and loss of federal matches.”

Federal law requires that states receiving funding under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant meet work participation rates for FIP caseloads. Michigan is required to achieve minimum work participation rates that are a percentage of the total FIP caseload. States that do not meet federal targets can face stiff and costly sanctions.

In 2013, the previous TANF-funded FIP program JET (Jobs, Education and Training) was reorganized into PATH. Work participation is not the same as getting a job. The PATH program is about preparing clients to become job-ready. That means individually assessing them in terms of job readiness and removing barriers that can prevent them from finding and, more important to long term self-sufficiency, keeping a job and helping them follow a proven path of activities including resume writing, interviewing skills and vocational education that can lead to employment.

Under PATH, MDHHS case workers meet with clients before they are referred to their local Michigan Works! agency. During the 21-day application eligibility period, resources are identified to help participants overcome any barriers by providing more support. This additional assistance can include Medicaid, food assistance, State Emergency Relief including rent and utilities assistance, child care and transportation.

“Self-sufficiency is the ultimate goal but past experience showed us that a one-size-fits-all approach does not work -- taking a more customized, client-focused approach that identifies ways to overcome individual barriers has been a key to PATH’s success,” said Berger.

According to Berger, PATH’s success means the state will have more funding flexibility and discretion to be more demand-driven and successful in training people for jobs and career paths that not only help them become self-sufficient today but will keep them independent well into the future.

When Michigan’s program was reorganized it was done with an eye toward helping more participants overcome challenges that might prohibit them from doing the preparatory work needed to successfully begin looking for a job. MDHHS also looked at where the system could be improved. Prior to PATH, clients and their activities were being manually entered into the system and many were not getting captured at all. By modifying the Bridges computer system, MDHHS was able to rectify this and now has much more accurate records for PATH participants.