Federal Agencies on Aging

Two programs administered within the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the Department of Labor (DOL) have particular relevance to older people: the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) and the Job Partnership Training Act.

SCSEP is Title V of the Older Americans Act (OAA), and it is the only title of the act that is not administered by the Administration on Aging in the Department of Health and Human Services. SCSEP is run by the Employment and Training Administration within DOL. It serves people who are fifty-five or older and have low incomes and poor employment prospects. ETA does not directly oversee the employment of these individuals, but contracts with both national and state organizations to provide employment services. The three principal national contractors are the National Council of Senior Citizens, AARP (formerly the American Association of Retired Persons), and the National Farmers Union (or "Green Thumb," an elder employment program targeting rural America). The state-level contracts are administered through the state units on aging, created through Title III of the OAA.

ETA also administers the Job Partnership Training Act. which is the latest in a series of employment and training programs enacted by the federal government that date back to President John F. Kennedy's administration in the 1960s. Most of the jobs are intended for younger workers, but provisions in the Title II adult training program require that services be provided to "older individuals on an equitable basis" (Sec. 204).