Transitional employment training for SSI recipients with mental retardation

Transitional employment training is a promising method for assisting persons with mental retardation to gain and hold regular marketplace jobs. The Social Security Administration (SSA) has concluded a large scale demonstration project in which this training was provided to recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) with mental retardation. This article introduces the concepts and practices of transitional employment and presents findings of the SSA demonstration derived from observation of demonstration operations. A followup article will discuss the effects of the demonstration services on the employment, earnings, and SSI payments of the trainees, as derived from analysis of SSI administrative records and other quantitative data.