The state of Alabama and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta will be launching an online tool to help workers visualize how career training might help them increase their salary, and what that might mean to public assistance they may be getting.
The Dashboard for Alabamians to Visualize Income Determinations, known as DAVID, was developed by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta in coordination with the Governor’s Office of Education and Workforce Transformation and the Governor’s Human Capital Development Task Force, according to a press release from Alabama Works.
The tool will allow users to insert information about their personal finances, family makeup and career goals, then see how their chosen career path will impact their salary, as well as when the new career and raise in pay could result in them losing different kinds of public assistance.
“We are the first state to take a benefits cliff calculator and merge it with a workforce development career path planner,” said Gov. Kay Ivey in a statement. “This is a significant milestone, and we are proud to, once again, be leading the way with innovative workforce development solutions for the people of Alabama. We are grateful for the work of the Atlanta Fed in developing this resource that will help Alabama reach our Attainment Goal of adding 500,000 credentialed workers to the workforce by 2025.”
Raphael Bostic, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, said in a statement that he is excited about the collaboration with the state of Alabama.
“It is important to address the issue of increased marginal tax rates—or benefit cliffs—in a coordinated way, to make sure that the incentives are not sending the wrong signal to people, but rather are pushing and driving them to invest in themselves and get to a more stable place,” Bostic said. “This is one way we make sure that this economy works for everyone.”
“DAVID helps workforce development professionals gain insight into what an actual career pathway looks like as a worker enters and moves up in a profession. It can help inform decisions, reduce uncertainty and ensure everyone has an opportunity to participate fully in our economy,” said David Altig, executive vice president and director of research at the Atlanta Fed.
More information on the DAVID tool, complete with a demo, can be found on the Alabama Works website.
