How do public job creation programs help participants?
Participants gain much-needed work experiences, marketable job skills, and additional income to help support themselves and their families. The skills that parti-cipants acquire can include both “soft skills” (e.g., the ability to work effectively with customers and co-workers) and vocational skills taught on the job or in the classroom. Paid employment in a temporary, publicly-funded job can allow participants to demonstrate that they are reliable workers, and the references provided by supervisors can help to overcome the barriers to employment posed by long spells of joblessness or criminal records. The wages earned through such jobs also enable participants to qualify for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, giving them an extra income boost.
