By Sarah Lyngdal , TTW Manager
ERI’s Ticket to Work program, ERI PLUS, is a Partnership Plus Employment Network in Wisconsin. It provides state Vocational Rehabilitation counselors with a great opportunity to better serve consumers in the retention phase of their rehabilitation plan.
Partnership Plus is a Win-Win-Win
Partnership Plus is a collaboration between Employment Networks and state Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agencies to provide seamless services for ticket holders. This collaboration is a win-win-win:
- Ticket holders get smooth transitions from VR to an Employment Network while working.
- State VR agencies benefit from performance tracking under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA).
- Employment Networks get more referrals to grow and sustain their programs.
Key Points of Partnership Plus (+)
The Ticket to Work Program counts a successful handoff from VR if the ticket holder assigns their ticket to a Partnership Plus Employment Network within 90 days of VR case closure. Here are some key points to remember:
- A ticketholder can assign their ticket to an Employment Network if they are in current pay status with Social Security within 90 days of VR case closure or Employment Network unassignment.
- This 90-day extension period to assign their ticket after VR case closure or Employment Network unassignment is available regardless of their benefit status with SSA (Social Security Administration).
- If a ticket holder’s benefits are in suspense and they are beyond the 90-day extension period, their ticket will be unassignable.
Best Practices to Improve Services and Outreach
While not all states support Partnership Plus, all states can apply best practices to improve services and outreach to other community organizations. These three best practices are critical:
Share TTW Timelines with Partners
Sharing TTW timelines with your partners ensures that a ticket holder can use their ticket with an Employment Network. Timely assignment of a ticket allows Employment Networks to provide services and supports to a ticketholder anywhere from 3 to 5+ years, depending on their benefits and work history.
Unfortunately, there have been times when a consumer was referred for Ticket to Work too late and even though they were ticket-eligible, their ticket was not available to use with an Employment Network (not assignable).
Identify Community Partners
The key to avoiding missed timelines is to identify and educate your community partners. Here are some examples of community partners:
- Benefits Specialists
- Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors
- Project Search Coordinators
- Community Rehab Providers (CRPs)
- Long-term care providers
- Independent Living Centers (ILCs)
- Aging and Disability Resource Centers (ADRCs)
- American Job Centers
- Social Security Administration
- Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) projects
Engage With Community Partners
Partnerships are a two-way street. Get to know what community partner organizations do, how they work with individuals, their referral process, and the best ways to connect:
- Explain the Ticket to Work program and how it works.
- Identify potential Ticket to Work candidates.
- Highlight the benefits of participating in the program:
- Ticket holders receive ongoing benefits and career counseling, plus job retention support.
- If a job doesn’t work out, they’re already connected with an agency to start job searching with their Employment Network.
- Recognize when a ticket is assignable and the importance of timely referrals.
- Determine when someone’s ticket is available to use and the sense of urgency in referring.
- Respond quickly to inquiries from ticketholders, family members, VR counselors, or other professionals.
- Create a referral process. Make it easy for people to refer and be referred to your program/agency.
- Release of Information (ROI)—have the ticket holder sign a ROI when appropriate for coordination of services.
- Close the loop—(with ROI) communicate when someone is enrolled with your Ticket to Work services, when appropriate.
Our motto for referrals is, "When in doubt, just reach out." We can discuss the consumer's work goals and needs to see if the Ticket to Work program can help.
Source: This post was originally published on the National Employment Network Association (NENA) website on April 22, 2022.