Public Employment Services:
Facing the Challenges through Innovative
Delivery Models
Donna Koeltz
Employment Services
Employment and Labour Market Policies Branch
KEY FEATURES OF PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT
SERVICES
 Free services for all citizens
 National in scope
 Use of services is Voluntary
 Arrange the best organization of services for the
labour market needs
 Encourages collaboration between labour market
partners
 Core Functions
Employment Service Convention C88, 1948
Employment Service Recommendation R83, 1948
CORE FUNCTIONS
Job search
assistance &
placement
services
Regulatory
Services
Labour Market
Information
Employment
services
Administer
unemployment benefits
Labour Market
Programmes
WHO ARE THE VULNERABLE GROUPS?
Women
Persons with Disabilities
Migrant Workers
Youth
Older Workers
Long Term Unemployed
• Registration
• General Information on Services Provided
• Access to Self-Service Options
INITIAL INTAKE
• Group Information Sessions
• Individualized Counseling
• Assessment and Development of a Return-To-Work Action Plan
EMPLOYABILITY • May include Career, Vocational and / or Employment Counseling
IMPROVEMENT • May involve one or more Labour Market Progammes
• Do all clients have fair and equitable access to the services?
• Are the desired outcomes being achieved?
PERFORMANCE • Are both job seekers and enterprises satisfied with the services?
MANAGEMENT • Are services delivered efficiently?
• Informality
• Social Inclusion
• Skills Mismatch
• Demographic Issues
• Structural issues in the labour market
• Low job creation and low labour demand
There is a need at the National and/or Regional
level for employment policies, strategies and
guidelines related to…
•
•
•
•
•
•
Delivery Model
Work First versus Human Capital Development
Profiling
Early intervention
Target Groups
Migration
 Lack of funds and budget
constraints
 Managing Performance
Number and size of offices
Qualifications of Staff
Use of information technology
Capacity for multi channeling
• Need to coordinate work of PES
with other providers to avoid
duplication and to maximize
results
• Must consider the needs and
opinions of both jobseekers and
enterprises
• Also necessary in relation to
migration both internally and
across borders
• Job placement services vs.
administrative duties
• Profiling
• Early intervention
• Self Help vs. Employability
Improvement
• Integrating career guidance
activities vs. maintaining services
for deeper engagement with clients
• Clearly defined and standardized
occupational descriptions
• Good information sharing between
stakeholders
• Capacity to collect, analyze and
disseminate information


Placement / Job
Brokerage
Labour Market
Information

Placement / Job Brokerage

Placement / Job Brokerage

Labour Market Information
(generally limited to their
sectoral specialty)

Often specialized in issues
related to a specific target
group
Some training programmes
generally specific to the
industry within which the
PrEA specializes

May offer some training,
workshops or seminars on
basic job search
techniques, life skills etc.

May provide some
financial support or other
services to help job
seekers get started

Administration of Labour 
Market Adjustment
Programmes

Administration of
Unemployment
Insurance

Regulatory Activities

The association of private
employment agencies,
CIETT promotes self
regulation of its members.
Unemployed Less that 1 Year
INITIAL INTAKE
• INTIAL INTAKE
• JOBCENTER PLUS
EMPLOYABILITY
IMPROVEMENT
• EMPLOYABILITY
IMPROVEMENT
• JOBCENTRE PLUS
Unemployed More than 1 Year
INITIAL INTAKE
EMPLOYABILITY
IMPROVEMENT
• Prime
Contractors
• Prime
Contractors
 Consistent delivery system during the past 15 years
 Clear division of roles between JobCentre Plus and
External Service Providers
 Job Seeker Allowance
 A menu of labour market and employability
improvement measures currently under the Work
Programme
 Performance Management System
Large Urban Areas
• Initial Intake
• Employability Improvement
ALL
SERVICES • Performance Management
Outlying and Rural Areas
ALL
SERVICES
• Municipal Offices
• Training Institutions
• Private Employment Agencies
 Clear division of roles between Centrelink and Job
Services Australia providers
 Job Seeker Classification Instrument
 Employment Pathway Plan
 Employment Pathway Fund
 A menu of labour
improvement measures
market
and
employability
 Performance Management System “Star Rating”
• Government is putting more responsibility on citizens,
businesses and other organisations.
• Werkbedrijf (UVW) actively seeks cooperation with labour
market partners including temporary work agencies (TWA)
• UVW focuses primarily on job seekers who are at a great
distance from the labour market and employers who are
willing to hire these job seekers.
• Accelerated development of e-services for job seekers and
employers via werk.nl.
• Increased emphasis on Labour Market Information
• All clients who apply for a benefit are monitored from the day
of registration until the end of the benefit to ensure
compliance with the rules
 There is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to delivering
employment services.
 Perhaps it is not so much who delivers the services but the quality
with which they are delivered that is the final determinant.
 A key to successful outcomes is the accurate classification of
jobseekers at the outset.
 While there appears to be a growing trend among PES to
subcontract some of elements of their service, this differs among
countries in both degree and approach
 Collaboration among the various organizations will broaden the
pool of available workers and open the doors of more enterprises in
terms of job opportunities, and consolidating these services in a
one-stop-shop approach can benefit all partners within the labour
market.
Regardless of the degree of collaboration with external
providers, PES will want to ensure that the core
employment services are universally available and that all
clients, both jobseekers and enterprises, have equitable
choices in how they receive these services.
Most countries have not realized cost savings but rather
re-allocated funds in a more effective and efficient
manner.