Q & A Employment Services Transformation and Works Funding Transfer

OVERVIEW

1. What is happening with Employment Services Transformation?

The government is integrating and transforming the employment services system to help Ontarians find and sustain good jobs.

We are helping job seekers, including those on social assistance and people with disabilities get the support they need to find meaningful employment and helping employers to find the right workers with the right skills.

In the new system, service system managers selected by the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU) will plan and deliver employment services that meet the needs of their local economy and make Ontario open for business. Service system managers will be selected through a new, competitive process that is open to any public, not-for-profit and private sector organization.

2. What is the purpose of the funding transfer?

Employment services transformation will integrate Ontario Works Employment Assistance and Ontario Disability Support Program Employment Supports into Employment Ontario to create one system.

Beginning in January 2020, the new employment services system will be implemented in three prototype communities in Ontario through the selection of service system managers so lessons learned may be applied and rolled-out across the province. Client intake will begin in April 2020.

The three regions are Hamilton–Niagara Peninsula, Muskoka–Kawarthas and Peel, which together include nine municipalities.

In these prototype communities some provincial funding will be transferred to MTCU for the purposes of delivering employment services in those communities. The funding transfer for the prototype communities will begin in October 2020, following a transition to the integrated employment services delivery model.

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3. Which municipalities are affected by this transfer?

The only municipalities affected by this transfer are the nine municipalities in the three prototype regions. These include:

Region of Hamilton-Niagara: Niagara CMSM, Hamilton CMSM, Norfolk CMSM, Brant CMSM

Region of Muskoka-Kawarthas: CMSM, Muskoka CMSM, Peterborough CMSM, Northumberland CMSM

Region of Peel: Peel CMSM

4. What funds are being transferred?

A portion of the provincial Ontario Works Program Delivery Funding allocation will be transferred to MTCU beginning in October 2020.

5. How is this funding transfer being communicated to municipalities?

The Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services (MCCSS) is sending memos and supporting information to each of the impacted municipalities. A phone call will also be held with each impacted municipality.

Supporting materials will be shared with Program Supervisors as well as regional offices operated by MTCU.

The principles and overall direction of this transfer were also shared with the Association of Municipalities of Ontario - Memorandum of Understanding (AMO- MOU) table by Minister Todd Smith on October 3rd, 2019.

6. Who can municipalities contact if they have questions or concerns?

Program supervisors continue to be point of contact for municipalities on funding matters.

7. How will this affect clients?

The government is transforming the employment services system to deliver stronger, locally-focused employment and social services that help more people find and keep jobs.

This is not a reduction in funding for the system; it is a transfer of funding from MCCSS to Employment Ontario to better support clients in an integrated system.

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MCCSS, MTCU and the new service system managers will be working closely with municipalities to minimize service disruption and provide a smooth transition for clients receiving employment services.

Although integration of service networks in the prototype areas will begin in April 2020, there will be a six-month transition period (April 2020 to September 2020) to allow for effective management of client-facing service transition. Delivery of fully integrated employment services in the prototype areas will begin October 1, 2020.

8. How will these changes impact communities?

The changes that will be introduced in the prototype phase will not apply to employment services delivered by First Nations partners within First Nations communities, including Ontario Works Employment Assistance and Employment Ontario Employment Services.

The government committed to seek advice from First Nations Ontario Works delivery partners on the future design of employment services in First Nations communities. In line with this commitment, in May, together with MTCU we started discussions with the First Nations caucus through the Joint First Nations – MCCSS Social Services Table (JSST) on an approach and work plan to address employment services transformation and delivery in First Nations communities.

FUNDING TRANSFER SPECIFICS

9. How much money will be transferred?

Approximately $23M in Ontario Works provincial program delivery funding will be transferred to MTCU for employment service delivery in the three prototype regions. The amount transferred is equivalent to approximately 22 per cent of the provincial 2018 Ontario Works Program Delivery Funding expenditures for impacted municipalities.

Specifically, this amount will come from the 100 per cent provincially-funded envelope.

Given that delivery responsibility for employment services will not fully transfer to MTCU until October 2020, the transfer in 2020 will be pro-rated.

- October 2020 – December 2020 – approximately $6M in program delivery funding will be transferred.

- January 2021 onward - $23M.

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10. What was the methodology and rationale for calculating this amount?

The transfer amount represents our best evidence-informed estimate of overall spending on employment services.

Applying the same percentage across municipalities is the simplest and most equitable way forward.

Transferring funding from the 100 per cent provincially-funded envelope gives municipalities continued flexibility to access provincial funding as needed in a 50/50 funding arrangement.

11. Has the ministry consulted with municipal officials on the approach to employment services funding transfer?

Yes, the ministry has been consulting with municipal officials on this topic through the Provincial-Municipal Social Assistance and Employment Committee (PMSAEC) throughout September 2019.

12. When will the transfer take effect?

To support a smooth transition, funding will not be transferred for the prototype regions until October 2020.

13. How will the transfer impact Program Delivery Funding going forward?

Program Delivery Funding will remain stable through 2020, aside from municipal partners whose funding is impacted by the implementation of employment services transformation prototypes.

NEXT STEPS

14. How will the province support a smooth transition for municipalities for employment services transformation, both for the prototype period and for the broader change?

We recognize the need for an effective approach to transition throughout the transformation.

For the prototype period, we are committed to working closely with the nine impacted municipalities over the coming months to understand implications and support transition as decisions are made regarding approaches to service delivery in the three prototype areas.

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Lessons learned from the prototype period, as well as ongoing collaboration with municipalities toward a new funding model for Ontario Works, will help to inform an approach to transition for broader transformation across the province gradually.

15. Will the ministry be providing transitional funding to assist impacted municipalities with any costs associated with restructuring that results from the funding transfer?

The ministry recognizes that transition planning needs will vary by municipality and will be informed both by their current service delivery structures and on the results of the competitive process to select service system managers in the prototype regions.

The ministry will continue to engage with municipalities throughout the fall and winter to identify transition planning needs and solutions to address them.

16. When will this transformation roll out to other municipalities?

We will gradually implement the changes to Ontario’s employment services, starting with the three prototypes in January 2020 and learn from this implementation along the way. Full implementation will be phased-in over the next several years, with regular communications to help people understand and prepare for any changes.

17. Will this approach be applied to all municipalities as the broader employment services transformation rolls out?

This is the approach for the prototype period. We are committed to working with municipalities over the coming year to develop a new Ontario Works funding model, based on outcomes, that will establish a fair set of expectations and accountabilities.

We look forward to learning from the prototype period. This will help inform the development of the new funding model and the transfer of employment services funding from MCCSS to Employment Ontario, as well as support the broader change.

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