Ohio’s Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessment

The Ohio State University is collaborating with the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) to conduct a statewide randomized controlled study (RCT) evaluating the effectiveness of the Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessment (RESEA) program. RESEA is a federally funded initiative that verifies the eligibility of Unemployment Insurance (UI) claimants and provides job search assistance, such as one-on-one meetings and labor market information workshops, for claimants most at risk of exhausting their benefits.

This study examines whether the RESEA services reduce claimants’ reliance on UI benefits by helping them return to work more quickly. Key outcomes include weeks of UI benefits receipt, reemployment rates, and earnings. Between July 2024 and December 2025, we randomly assign claimants into three groups on a weekly basis:

• Treatment Group 1: Two one-on-one appointments with RESEA advisors;
• Treatment Group 2: Two one-on-one appointments with RESEA advisors and a workshop;
• Control Group: No RESEA services.

We supplement these quantitative analyses with an implementation study to document Ohio’s RESEA service delivery model and examine barriers to program implementation and claimant participation. We anticipate that findings in this study will not only inform ODJFS of the effectiveness of the RESEA services, but also help identify areas for improvement, and prioritize specific populations who may benefit more from RESEA services.