Center for Employment Opportunities Inc

“Board of directors members david moskovitz and kathy jo mannes have a family relationship.”

“Form 990 review process: ceo's form 990 is prepared by an independent accounting firm in collaboration with its finance and management team. Upon completion the audit committee of the board of trustees reviews the form 990. Once the 990 is approved for filing, a copy is distributed to the full board of trustees.”

“Conflict of interest policy enforcement and monitoring: ceo has a conflict of interest policy. Each january, the conflict of interest policy is circulated to the board of directors and to the organization's executive team. All board members and executive team must disclose any interests that could give rise to conflicts. The organization's conflict of interest policy is summarized in the employee handbook.”

“The nominating and governance committee and executive committee of the board of directors review the ceo's self-evaluation and current compensation. In addition, they review third party studies which provide data on comparable ceo salaries at comparable organizations to determine if the compensation of the executive director/ceo each executive falls within the salary range of similar executives at such organizations. After each committee approves the proposed compensation, the information is presented to the full board for review and approval of a compensation package. Each year, each ceo staff member receives a performance review prior to determination of compensation. The executive director and the chair of the board review the performance evaluation and compensation of certain executives. The nominating and governance committee and the executive committee of the board review executive compensation, data on comparable positions at comparable organizations and make a final determination on the reasonableness of the proposed compensation. Each party is an independent party; there is no conflict of interest. The secretary or the chair of the nominating and governance committee then documents the decision. In 2023, ceo utilized a national compensation database for non-profit organizations and hired a new external compensation consultant who led data analysis of market compensation data which informs our compensation structure.”

“The organization makes its form 990 available to the public by posting it on its website and retaining a copy at its place of business. The organization's governing documents, conflict of interest policy, and audited financial statements are available upon request and at management's discretion.”

“Center for employment opportunities, inc. (ceo) is a national organization dedicated to providing immediate, effective, and comprehensive employment services exclusively to individuals returning home after incarceration. Ceo's theory of change posits that if the employment needs of persons with criminal convictions are addressed at their most vulnerable point when they are first released from incarceration or soon after conviction by providing life skills education, short-term paid transitional employment, full-time job placement, and post-placement services, they will be less likely to become reincarcerated and more likely to build a foundation for a stable, productive life for themselves and their families. Our vision is that anyone with a recent criminal history who wants to work has the preparation and support needed to find a job and stay connected to the labor force. Our program consists of providing participants with immediate employment with daily pay, skills training, job placement, and ongoing career support. Ceo is dedicated to ensuring that justice-impacted job seekers have opportunities to achieve social and economic mobility. Ceo was formed in order to: provide employment, rehabilitative and support services to persons with criminal convictions and persons facing barriers to employment, including but not limited to applicants or recipients of public assistance; design, implement, demonstrate, and evaluate innovative supportive and rehabilitative services for men and women recently released from incarceration and/or with experience with the criminal legal system, including but not limited to employment and training services and other services designed to alleviate barriers to employment; conduct studies and research regarding services for formerly incarcerated people and their barriers to employment; impact the field of reentry more broadly; and to disseminate information regarding the work of the corporation and the administration of such services. Ceo began as a vera institute of justice demonstration project in the 1970s. Ceo was separately established in 1996 and has grown significantly since then. In fiscal year 2024, ceo had 31 offices in twelve states - california, colorado, georgia, kentucky, louisiana, michigan, new york, north carolina, ohio, oklahoma, pennsylvania, and tennessee.”

“Transition work program - immediate work for same day pay: as described above, after orientation, ceo program participants work on transitional work crews. Each transitional work crew is comprised of approximately 5-8 participants who work for, and are paid by, ceo. Each transitional work crew is run and supervised by a site supervisor, a permanent ceo employee. In fy2024, ceo provided transitional employment to 7,080 formerly incarcerated persons through its 31 offices. Ceo's transitional work crews are typically funded by the entity receiving the crew services. Ceo has established contractual relationships with a variety of government agencies (such as public works departments, housing authorities, and transportation departments) and certain private employers for services including but not limited to groundskeeping, building maintenance, litter abatement, and event setup and breakdown. The transitional work setting benefits participants in several ways. First, all participants can begin working immediately after completing orientation. Ceo pays each member of a work crew on a daily basis, providing an important source of income. The daily pay schedule eliminates the income timing gap inherent in bi-weekly or monthly pay cycles. Second, the close supervision provided by the trained permanent supervisor to a small number of program participants enables supervisors to closely guide and coach each work crew member. The transitional work model also facilitates participants in supporting one another and gaining motivation from each other's successes.”

“Vocational training: concurrent with transitional work, ceo provides vocational training and support services. During the period that participants are working on transitional work crews, they typically meet with a job coach one day per week. Job coaches reinforce the lessons learned during transitional work, coach participants on job performance and behaviors, and assist participants with any issues that may arise during their transitional work experience. During this time ceo also offers workshops for participants to build financial skills, improve digital literacy, and effectively complete online job applications. After a participant shows consistent, high-performing workplace behaviors, job coaches assess the participant as "job start ready and assign them to a business account manager (bam). Bams work directly with employers to identify labor market needs and potential job opportunities. Bams then match eligible participants with employers. Since becoming an independent nonprofit organization in 1996, ceo has made more than 51,000 full-time job placements for formerly incarcerated individuals. In fy2024, ceo's employment services resulted in 3,875 full-time job placements in a variety of industries and sectors such as food service, retail, wholesale, manufacturing, human services, construction, maintenance, and warehousing. After participants begin working in permanent jobs, they meet regularly with a ceo retention specialist. Retention specialists work with each participant to help that individual remain connected to the workforce. Retention specialists offer workplace counseling, crisis management, new job development in the event of a job loss, and long-term career planning for one year after placement. An incentive-based job retention program also rewards participants the longer they remain employed during that first year.”

“Ceo's inclusive hiring initiative is a demand side approach to increasing employment opportunities for job seekers with past convictions. Ceo works to assist mid-sized and large private sector employers in improving their hiring and talent practices with a view to creating more job opportunities and career mobility for job seekers with past convictions. In addition, the inclusive hiring program provides support to prospective employers in building local employment pipelines for job seekers across multiple markets, including cities where ceo operates. Consistent with ceo's mission, this effort seeks to educate employers and policymakers through a variety of in-person and online learning activities.”