Barriers to Employment and LGBT Data Collection

Workforce Services Information Notice
WSIN17-22

Issued: January 10, 2018

On October 15, 2017, Governor Edmund J. Brown signed the Transgender Work Opportunity Act (Senate Bill 396). This state law amends California Unemployment Insurance Code Section 14005 to add a new population under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) definition of individuals with barriers to employment. Effective January 1, 2018, transgender and gender nonconforming individuals are included as one of the populations who face employment barriers under WIOA Section 3(24)(N).

The WIOA emphasizes serving those with barriers to employment. This state law will allow Local Workforce Development Areas to target and provide employment and training services to more disadvantaged populations. America’s Job Center of California^SM (AJCC) staff may recognize individuals who voluntarily disclose their transgender identity by selecting “other groups as the Governor determines to have barriers to employment” on the WIOA application in CalJOBS^SM.

Additionally, on October 13, 2017, Governor Brown also signed the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Disparities Reduction Act (Assembly Bill 677). This state law amends Government Code Section 8310.8 to require the Employment Development Department (EDD) to collect voluntary data on sexual orientation and gender identity. By July 1, 2019, sexual orientation and gender identity questions will be incorporated into the demographic data collection within CalJOBS.

The EDD will provide training to AJCC staff on the new data collection requirements as well as additional Equal Employment Opportunity training to assist AJCC staff with serving the LGBT community. Training is forthcoming in calendar year 2018.

/s/ JAIME L. GUTIERREZ, Chief
Central Office Workforce Services Division