The BACK TO WORK 50+ Program

BACK TO WORK 50+ supports community colleges and workforce investment boards that are helping 50+ workers overcome barriers to finding better jobs through:

• Outreach to 50+ job candidates through mass market advertising.
• AARP Foundation’s national contact center as a single point of initial contact.
• Specific skills training for in-demand jobs.
• Support for institutions that build strong ties to employers and infuse employer perspective into each aspect of BACK TO WORK 50+.
• A shared platform for identifying and assessing best practices in supporting 50+ low-income job seekers in building skills and making connections that lead to full-time jobs and increased economic security.
• Access to a common menu of core employment services across more than 20 locations nationwide.
  • Career counseling, job coaching and skills development for 50+ jobseekers.
  • Needs assessment and referrals to supportive service, in collaboration with other programs designed to help 50+ workers, including Workforce Investment Act, Supplimental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), housing assistance and the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP).
  • Financial skills training and financial crisis counseling.

The BACK TO WORK 50+ Network

BACK TO WORK 50+ is targeting 50+ workers who were previously employed in working class and moderate income jobs and whose educational attainment and lack of computer skills present barriers to employment in jobs that lead to better economic security. BACK TO WORK 50+ focuses on workers ages 50-64 that are not eligible for programs like SCSEP because of their age (SCSEP serves 55+) or their income.

With alarming statistics on the number of older unemployed Americans seeking work in mind, AARP Foundation announced the expansion of its BACK TO WORK 50+ initiative through a new collaboration with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) and with generous support from Walmart Foundation in 2014. BACK TO WORK 50+ is dedicated to moving low income, unemployed men and women age 50+ from instability to stability by increasing their income through employment in good jobs in their communities.

The BACK TO WORK 50+: Women’s Economic Stability Initiative

The BACK TO WORK 50+: Women’s Economic Stability Initiative (WESI) is a program model developed by AARP Foundation to help unemployed and underemployed women aged 50 to 64 gain the confidence, skills and opportunities they need to find full-time employment, improve their financial capability and avoid poverty later in life.

Community colleges that are effective and trusted leaders in their communities are well positioned to anchor this initiative. Higher education has long been a resource for older adult women and we believe that collaborating with colleges will allow us to collectively build a model to be even more effective in helping this often ignored population secure work and reach financial security. By identifying and evaluating the most effective integrated services that provide job search strategies, training and support for moving older adult women from vulnerability to stability, we set the stage to scale the program across the community college system as well as adapt the model to other systems in underserved communities.

In 2014, AARP Foundation received a Social Innovation Fund (SIF) grant from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) to serve as an intermediary grantmaking organization that will identify, support and monitor five community colleges that are selected to implement and evaluate the BACK TO WORK 50+: WESI.