In an effort to jolt the local economy, the San Francisco Human Services Agency is expanding its JobsNOW! program, which provides jobs to low-income residents and offers wage reimbursements to small businesses that employ them.
On Tuesday, Mayor London Breed announced that the city’s JobsNOW! program, a 10-year-old city project that placed approximately 3,600 people into jobs last year, has received a $7.4 million annual budgetary boost and will operate with a $28 million budget for the next two fiscal years. The program also lowered its barriers for enrollment.
That means more jobs for out-of-work residents, and more subsidies for businesses that offer them employment.
“We need to get people back to work, and as businesses throughout the City continue the hard work of reopening and getting back on their feet, this is a great way to match people looking for jobs with businesses that are hiring,” Breed said in a statement.
The program is meant for people who earn 200 percent below the federal poverty line, which is $25,520 for a single person and $52,400 for a family of four. People who receive Human Services Agency benefits — such as CalWORKs, CalFresh, Medi-Cal, or cash assistance — are also eligible.
San Francisco could see an increasing number of residents fall into those income brackets, as more than 200,000 San Francisco residents have filed for unemployment this year. The city’s employment rate stands at an estimated 8.4 percent, according to the mayor’s office.
Businesses can receive $625 to $1,500 per month for six months to cover the wages of employees they hire through the program. The reimbursement amount will be determined by an employee’s wage amount and a business’s ability to offer full- or part-time work.
For businesses trying to reopen or start up, 100 percent of an employee’s wages will be reimbursed for the first three months, and 50 percent for the following three months. And businesses who pay $25 per hour will receive a 50 percent wage reimbursement for six months.
The Human Services Agency will not count Federal assistance checks and unemployment insurance payments when determining a person’s eligibility.
Job-seekers and employers can both apply here.
I take math seriously and believe accurate use of numbers is a mark of diligence and competence. I lose a lot of trust and respect for people who make very obvious(to me) calculation errors.
Wrong MissionLocal editing:
The program is meant for people who earn 200 percent below the federal poverty line, which is $25,520 for a single person and $52,400 for a family of four.
Better description from SF Examiner:
Residents eligible for JobsNOW! are those who earn less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level, or less than $25,520 as a single resident or $52,400 as a family of four.