F WHAT AGE RANGE OF YOUTH SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN A RELEVANT OUT-OF-SCHOOL NYC PROGRAM In 1966, the Deparrment of Labor described out-of-school enrollees in need of prime consideration for selection in NYC as having the fol H. Emotional or attitudinal problems requiring personal The above list sums up rather succinctly the employment related characteristics of disadvantaged in the sixteen through twenty-one year old age bracket. The description is as accurate today as it was in 1966. The NYC should retain the sixteen through twenty-one age range principally because many disadvantaged youth eighteen and over are not ready for MDTA, JOBS, PACE, etc. Such youth can be trained more effectively in work programs modified to establish a semi-protected work situation for a longer period of time than is available in most adult programs. Past experience has clearly shown that training programs employing traditional approaches do not succeed with disadvantaged youth 21 and to challenge these young people into such programs would be futile. It is also important to point out that the MA-5 program guidelines are geared to the needs of the larger employer. In areas that are not highly industrialized, programs like JOBS, and WTI are not realistic resources. Also, the MA-5 program to date has not successfully dealt with the problem of real skills training. Staff at MFY have correctly pointed out that JOBS is an up-dated OJT model and that short term OJT for small employers must be low entry level jobs, since jobs on higher levels first require formal skills training. The resulting dilemma is that once enrollees function on these low level jobs, the small employer is unable to provide the training for the next level of jobs. In reality, the MA-5 program can, in the urban context, become a dead end without adequate provision for skills training. In order for the older youth to obtain optimum benefit from a training program, the program must continue to provide him with pre-vocational skills so that once he is hired he is equipped to qualify for higher level jobs. Consequently, if MA-5 is to be ultimately meaningful, it must be linked to hard skills training provided by a vehicle such as the NYC. 22 PAYMENT TO TRAINEES--STIPENDS VERSUS WAGES The authors of the New Design speak of prividing the enrollee with a $25 a week stipend which will cover the cost of his participation in training. It is important to recognize that most low income youth do not share the kind of values which would lead them to participate in long range training programs that will eventually terminate with the acquisition of a good job. It is important to recognize as well, however, that part of the reason lies in their limited participation in the economy, both as producer and consumer. The experiences of the Mobilization for Youth staff have shown that there is a close relationship between such social problems as narcotic addiction, "delinquency," and the young person's pessimistic outlook, and the fact that he has The question of income for disadvantaged youth is not merely a personal one; it is a part of the problem of survival for his entire family. It is simply not feasible to expect a young person to become part of society without the provision of a minimum substantive income. Lacking these resources, the young person is likely to choose other paths to economic enhancement. no money. The New Design leans heavily towards a predominance of training slots in the private sector. Employers would pay trainee wages and the sponsoring agency would subsidize the percentage of the training costs, or possibly the employer would absorbe all training costs and a stipend of $25 a week would be paid to the enrollee. Although the enrollee stipend is significantly a vast reduction from present enrollee wages, 23 the emphasis is decidely upon private enterprise to pay enrollees since the New Design does not call for a proportionate ration of wages against enrollee costs. It is totally unrealistic to expect the private sector, in a profit-motivate economy to subsidize the training of 16 and 17 year old drop-outs for any extended period of time. Exhortation by government to businessmen about their social responsibilities can produce no more than a token impact on the numbers unemployed. A businessman's first responsibility runs to the owner of his business. We cannot ask or expect him to use stockholder's assets to subsidize labor at rates above its true value to the enterprise. 24 PART II THE ALTERNATIVE FOREWARD In reviewing the many problems which have afflicted the planning and operation of the Neighborhood Youth Corps, it should be made clear once again that the existence of such problems does not signify that the program has failed or that it is beyond redemption. On the contrary, there are many impressive indications of success. Although this report does not include documentation for the aforementioned, it is readily available on a regional basis. Many current problems will be relieved by program maturity, experience and better support and technical assistance from RMA's; others will require systematic study and analysis and determined problem solving activities. A number of recommendations for dealing with specific problems are contained in PART I of this study. The development of specifications for a functional model Neighborhood Youth Corps Program is a task of sufficient magnitude and complexity as to require resources beyond those previously pro vided in the Out-of-School Program. 25 40-963 70-18 |