(CFR 361.42) Nebraska VR must presume that an applicant who (i) has an impairment, (ii) that impairment results in an impediment to employment, and that applicant (iii) requires VR services to prepare for, secure, retain, advance in, or regain employment can benefit in terms of an employment outcome and will be determined eligible for services. See Eligibility chapter for more information.

Prior to determining that a client is unable to benefit from services in terms of an employment outcome because of the severity of that individual’s disability or that individual is ineligible for services, Nebraska VR must conduct an exploration of the individual’s abilities, capabilities, and capacity to perform in realistic work situations.

Nebraska VR must develop a written plan to assess the individual’s abilities, capabilities, and capacity to perform in competitive work situations using trial work experiences, which must be provided in competitive integrated employment settings to the maximum extent possible, consistent with the informed choice and rehabilitation needs of the individual.

Trial work experiences include:

• Supported employment,
• On-the-job training,
• On-the-job evaluation,
• Other experiences using real or realistic work settings (Job Shadow, Volunteer Experience, Informational Interview, Mock Interview, Employer Tours, in office activities as appropriate, etc.)

and must:

• Be of sufficient variety (i.e. more than one),
• Over a sufficient period,
• Include appropriate support including but not limited to assistive technology devices and services from personal assistance services to accommodate the rehabilitation needs of the individual during the trial work experiences.

 

Staff and community safety are a top priority. If a question of ability to benefit from services stems from safety concerns, immediately discuss with Office Director and refer to the Violent and Disruptive Behavior chapter. 

If any part of the trial work experience process is in question, consult with your Office Director and Program Director for Evaluation and Community Integration to discuss development of the trial work plan and considerations to be made at any point in the process. 

1.    If during the career planning process, the client’s ability to benefit from competitive integrated employment is unclear, a discussion must occur with the client and, if applicable, their authorized representative outlining the next steps toward completing the trial work experiences to gain an understanding of the job seeker’s abilities, capabilities, and capacity to perform in real work situations. 

The full consultation will include: 

     •    A discussion about the purpose and potential outcomes of trial work experiences   as a determination of ability to benefit from VR services resulting in IPE development or case closure.
     •    Assistive technology devices and services, if necessary
     •    Personal assistance services, if necessary
     •    Any other support services that are necessary to determine the client’s ability to obtain an employment outcome.
     •    Clarification that the assessment/evaluation site is not expected to hire the client following the trial work experience. 

2.    If not already addressed, explore with the client their interests and basic skills utilizing tools such as, but not limited to: 

    •    Reading Free or PICS interest inventory; 
    •    Basic Skills Assessment for evaluating daily living abilities and support needed. 
    •    See Job Planning Resources Guide for other career assessment and exploration tools

If the client is not able to complete any recommended activities, summarize available information learned from these attempts; and 

Review all results with the client, their authorized representative (as applicable), and support team for planning.

3.    All efforts will be made to match the applicant’s vocational interests, abilities, and capacity to perform in a realistic work setting for the trial work experiences in a competitive integrated environment.

In very rare circumstances when a competitive integrated setting cannot be arranged to accommodate specific needs of the client, a non-integrated setting may be considered. The VR Specialist must discuss this with the client and their authorized representative (as applicable) and document that the person can work for a limited period of time in a non-integrated setting with VR support.

4.    VR Staff will locate a business willing and able to provide a trial work experience and ensure the business has the capacity to accommodate all necessary supports, including initial job or task analysis to allow full participation. 

5.    In consultation with the client, complete the Trial Work Experience Plan to document the essential details of the trial work experience including: 

     •    Start and End dates, 
     •    Evaluation schedule, 
     •    Knowledge, skills, abilities, and/or behaviors to be assessed,
     •    Goals of the trial work experience, and
     •    Agreed upon level of follow up. 

6.    If the client is a recipient of SSI and/or SSDI, consider Benefits Orientation and/or Analysis prior to the start of the trial work experience so that an informed decision can be made regarding the potential impact wages may have on benefits. 

7.    Document In QE2

     •    All planning meetings demonstrating the informed choice of the client to participate in the trial work experience. 
     •    Add the trial work experience (e.g. OJE, Volunteer Experience, OJT, Supported Employment, etc.) in QE2 and proceed with setting it up.
     •    Add any other Assessment Supports necessary to support the client during the trial work experience.

8.    Upload the signed Trial Work Experience Plan and any related documents to Trial Work Experiences.

9.    Enter a QE2 task note at the start of a trial work experience articulating a clear purpose and expected outcome. Refer to the Trial Work Experience Plan sections to help organize the structure of the task note. 

10.  Based on the timeline for check-ins pre-determined with the client and the employer, continue to communicate feedback and address additional needs that arise throughout the trial work experience with the informed consent of the client. 

Document communication and feedback. At a minimum, VR Specialist will review progress with the client, job coach, and business contact the first day and weekly thereafter; however, more frequent contact is highly encouraged. Contact can be in-person, or by phone, email or virtual contact. 

Complete the On-the-Job Report biweekly. Share information and provide copies to the client, authorized representative, DD service coordinator, and I/DD service provider, as applicable. 

If progress is interrupted or the trial work experience is not going well, reconvene as a team for a targeted conversation on the intent and goals of the experience. This will allow for the client to make an informed decision to continue, alter, or terminate the trial work experience. A trial work experience may be terminated at any point at the discretion of Nebraska VR, host business, client or as applicable, the authorized representative. 

More than one trial work experience is needed. Clearly summarize in a task note what was learned from each, the justification for the additional trial work experience, and what new information is expected to be gained. A new Trial Work Experience Plan must be completed and uploaded for each TWE and a separate service or Comparable Benefit entered in QE2. 

11.    Document the outcome of the trial work experience(s). Potential Outcomes: 

     (1)    There is sufficient evidence to conclude that the individual can benefit from the provision of VR services, to include an employment outcome, and VR staff may proceed with Career Planning; or
     (2)    There is clear and convincing evidence that due to the severity of the individual’s disability, the individual is incapable of benefiting from the provision of VR services in terms of an employment outcome. See Ineligibility chapter for next steps in this process, related to unable to benefit in terms of an employment outcome.

Information and Referral (I & R) to Other Programs

Job Readiness Factors & Initial Meeting - A Guide for Staff

Functional Capacities Checklist

On-the-Job Report

(TWE) Trial Work Experience Plan

Exit Status Decision Tree