Work Advancement and Support Center

The Work Advancement and Support Center (WASC) is a program to help low-wage workers advance in the labor market and increase their income. The Center helps workers stay employed, improve their skills, and find higher-paying jobs. The program also provides access to financial work supports, such as child care subsidies, food stamps, medical insurance for adults and children, and the Earned Income Tax Credit. Services available through the program include career coaching, skills development, education about available work supports, and simplified work support application procedures. Services are offered to participants for up to two years. The program is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor, the Ford Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The goal of the work Advancement and Support Center is to provide services to help low-wage workers increase their family income and well-being through the use of existing work supports.

The effects of the Work Advancement and Support Center was evaluated using a randomized controlled study comparing intervention participants with a control group at two demonstration sites in Dayton, OH and San Diego, CA. WASC significantly increased the receipt of food stamps when compared to the control group at both sites, with increases of 10% in Dayton and 23% in San Diego (p < 0.05). Children in WASC families were more likely than children in control group families to be covered by publicly funded health care (p < 0.05). The WASC program in San Diego also increased Medicaid coverage for adults, and increased parents' use of child care. The WASC program in Dayton significantly increased participation in education and training activities and increased the receipt of certificates and licenses p's < 0.05).