Upjohn Author ORCID Identifier
Publication Date
12-2008
Abstract
This paper provides an overview of the public labor exchange system in the United States, how it came to be, and where it is going. The paper begins by offering a brief history of the development of the U.S. Employment Service, emphasizing the federal-state partnership that has evolved over time and highlighting the differing priorities Congress has placed on the services funded under Wagner-Peyser Act. It then examines the ways workers search for jobs and employers recruit employees. It also shows the role the ES plays in this job matching process. The complementarity between ES services and the broader workforce development system is then examined. Systems for ES performance measurement and the results of impact evaluations of ES services are then reviewed. The paper concludes with a summary and list of challenges facing the ES.
Issue Date
December 2008
Sponsorship
Prepared for Center for Employment Security Education and Research (CESER); National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA)
Subject Areas
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT; Labor exchange
Citation
O'Leary, Christopher J. and Randall W. Eberts. 2008. "The Wagner-Peyser Act and U.S. Employment Service: Seventy-Five Years of Matching Job Seekers and Employers." Report prepared for Center for Employment Security Education and Research (SESER); National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA).