• Home
  • About the Department
    • Branches and Divisions
      • Income, Employment and Youth Services Branch

Income, Employment and Youth Services Branch

The Income, Employment and Youth Services Branch has three divisions:

• Income Support Division
• Career, Employment and Youth Services (CEYS) Division
• Poverty Reduction Division

The branch is also responsible multi-departmental strategies and services, such as the Support During Disasters Program and the Support Application Social Worker Program, a component of Family Justice Services.

Responsibilities

The branch provides planning, policy and program development for the income support and employment supports programs, which are governed by the Income and Employment Support Act and Regulations .

The branch also leads and coordinates multi-departmental initiatives that seek to reduce poverty in the province, provide disaster relief in emergency situations and support families dealing with separation and divorce.

Services

• provides basic assistance for food, clothing and shelter; medical transportation, vision care, special diets and dentures; municipal taxes; fuel allowance; blind persons allowance; burials; special needs assistance and, in partnership with the Department of Health and Community Services, provides prescription drugs, medical equipment and supplies;
• develops policies and eligibility criteria and sets rates of assistance for the Income Support Program, the Newfoundland and Labrador Child Benefit and the Mother Baby Nutrition Supplement;
• develops programs that provide career, employment and youth services, such as wage subsidies, employment supports, assessments, career counseling, training and referrals for intensive support;
• manages the portion of the provincial budget allocated to income and employment support programs and services;
• supports regional offices, staff, other divisions and community-based organizations in delivering services;
• evaluates the impacts of policies and procedures on clients and initiates changes to improve services;
• leads multi-departmental strategies that provide: emergency and disaster relief services, assistance in obtaining support orders or agreements on behalf of dependent children and estranged spouses and coordinated responses to poverty reduction in the province.

Clients

Clients groups for income support include individuals or families who have insufficient financial resources to meet their basic living requirements; people living with disabilities; single parents and their children; single persons; childless couples and two-parent families.

Client groups for career and employment services include the general public, industry organizations, employers, immigrants, youth, retired workers, income support clients, post secondary students and graduates, marginalized workers, career counsellors, educators, people with disabilities, policy makers, planners, researchers, human resource professionals, economic development staff and community-based organizations.

Client groups for poverty reduction, Support During Disasters and family justice services, include low income individuals, low income families and community-based organizations; members of the general public who require disaster relief supports and services; and separating couples who require supportive services to minimize time spent in Family Court.

Contact