Arkansas Human Development Corporation provides emergency shelter service for migrant workers

The Arkansas Human Development Corporation strives to provide training and services to eligible migrant and seasonal farmworkers within the state of Arkansas. The goal of the Arkansas Human Development Corporation is to strengthen the ability of the migrant and seasonal farmworkers to achieve economic self-sufficiency. The Arkansas Human Development Corporation operates six offices within the state of Arkansas. The offices are located in Little Rock, Gosnell, Forrest City, Dumas, Hope, and Fort Smith. The offices are located in these cities to maximize the availability of Arkansas Human Development Corporation programs to seasonal or migrant farmworkers.

The Arkansas Human Development Corporation over the years has provided training and other assistance to migrant and seasonal farm workers over the years. During one year, the Arkansas Human Development Corporation placed 87 eligible migrant or seasonal workers in unsubsidized jobs, and provided an additional 712 migrant or seasonal workers with supportive services.

Part of the training and work experience that the Arkansas Human Development Corporation offers is through the National Farmworker Jobs Program. Several types of training are provided to migrant and seasonal farmworkers through the National Farmworker Jobs Program. Classroom training, including general employment skills classes and vocational and technical job training, is provided to eligible individuals through the Arkansas Human Development Corporation. On-the-job-training is provided to eligible migrant or seasonal farmworkers, which places a participant in an actual work environment. The third type of training offered through the National Farmworker Jobs Program is work experience, which helps to provide eligible individuals with non-farm work employment experience, which will make an individual more attractive to prospective employers.

The Arkansas Human Development Corporation is also authorized to administer several other social service programs. One of these programs includes an emergency assistance program for low-income migrant and seasonal farmworkers. These emergency assistance programs include emergency services to meet shelter or transportation needs, pesticide safety training while still in farm work, and referrals to other assistance providers.

For a needy migrant or seasonal farmworker to be eligible for the National Farmworkers Job Program, an individual must be primarily employed in agricultural labor that is characterized by underemployment or unemployment during a 12 month period, is a citizen or is authorized to work in the United States, and is registered for military selective service, if the applicant is a male.

For more information regarding the Arkansas Human Development Corporation services in the Little Rock, Gosnell, Forrest City, Dumas, Hope, and Fort Smith areas, please call (501) 374-1103.