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| Friday, June 26, 1998 Governor Tommy G. Thompson Secretary Linda Stewart | News Media Contact Michael H. McCoy 608/267-4400 e-mail: mccoymi@dwd.state.wi.us fax: 608/266-1784 |
For more information contact:
Jean Rogers, 608/266-3035
W-2 participation in May
little changed
Madison, Wis. -- The number of families participating in the state’s W-2 program was little changed in May, declining slightly from the previous month to just below 16,000 for the first time since the program started.
"The relatively-small changes we now are seeing month to month are about what we expected as we complete the first nine months of operation of ‘Wisconsin Works’," said Linda Stewart, Secretary of the State Department of Workforce (DWD).W-2 was formally implemented Sept. 1, 1997.
Her comments came as DWD data showed an estimated 15,979 families received W-2 services statewide last month, down 2.3 per cent from the 16,350 recorded in April.
Much of the decline came in the number of participants in Community Service jobs. The May total of 9,155 compared to 9,375 in April, a drop of 220. That type of activity still accounted for about 57 per cent of all W-2 participants both months, however, meaning it was not a particularly significant change.
Community Service jobs are held by individuals who are judged not ready for regular employment and need more education or work training. These jobs provide an opportunity to practice work habits and skills that are necessary to succeed in any regular job environment.
Also declining were the number of participants in unsubsidized activities. The May count was 4,718, down from April’s 4,897. That was a drop of 179, or 3.7 per cent.
Although most in that category are in unsubsidized employment, it also includes those who are receiving child care subsidies, job access loans, or selected other W-2 services.
Stewart said the reasons for the changes in the number for those two categories were not readily apparent, but were no cause for concern. "Some of the change could be for purely technical reasons, such as our continuing improvements in our reporting system that increase precision," Stewart said.
The number of those in the other two W-2 categories -- Trial jobs and W-2 Transitions placement -- were little changed and together constituted only about 13 per cent of all W-2 cases. Trial job participants totalled 96 in May, compared to 97 in April, while W-2 Transitions had 2,010 participants in May, up slightly from 1,981 in April.
Milwaukee County, which accounted for 82.9 per cent of all W-2 participating families in April, accounted for a slightly-larger share in May -- 83.9 per cent.
The number of those in Community Service jobs in Milwaukee County fell to 8,369 in May from 8,506 in April, or a drop of 137 and 1.6 per cent. Those in unsubsidized employment and other unsubsidized activities declined slightly, from 3,762 to 3,706. Those in Trial jobs and the W-2 Transitions category were little changed, with 27 in Trial jobs in May compared to 28 a month earlier, and 1,311 in Transitions, up from April’s 1,259.
The W-2 Transitions category provides education and work training for individuals who are unable to successfully participate in one of the other W-2 employment positions for such reasons as various personal barriers, recovering from abusive relationships, incapacitation, and similar reasons.
Trial jobs are subsidized employment contracted by a W-2 agency with an employer and which is expected to lead to a permanent, unsubsidized position. Employers receive a wage subsidy up to $300 a month to cover training costs of those in Trial jobs.
Stewart said her agency still was researching what happened to those formerly receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children, or AFDC, who did not enroll in W-2 as AFDC ended. The results of that study are expected later this summer, she said, and will give W-2 officials the first solid information as to why some people did not make the transition.
W-2 Placements | ||||
Total State | % | Milwaukee | % | |
| Unsubsidized | 4718 | 29.5 | 3706 | 27.6 |
| Trial Job | 96 | 0.6 | 27 | 0.2 |
| Community Service | 9155 | 57.3 | 8369 | 62.4 |
| W-2 Transitions | 2010 | 12.6 | 1311 | 9.8 |
| Total W-2 | 15979 | 100.0 | 13413 | 100.0 |
| W-2 May 1998 | |||||
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| AGENCY | W-2 | W-2 | W-2 TOTAL | FOOD STAMPS | MEDICAL |
col 3 = 1+2 | |||||
| STATE TOTAL | 11,261 | 4,718 | 15,979 | 73,885 | 145,687 |
| Adams | 5 | 3 | 8 | 329 | 699 |
| Ashland | 3 | 0 | 3 | 379 | 765 |
| Barron | 2 | 4 | 6 | 692 | 1,684 |
| Bayfield | 1 | 0 | 1 | 169 | 455 |
| Brown | 27 | 13 | 40 | 1,885 | 4,653 |
| Buffalo | 8 | 1 | 9 | 213 | 436 |
| Burnett | 6 | 4 | 10 | 215 | 563 |
| Calumet | 2 | 9 | 11 | 167 | 575 |
| Chippewa | 22 | 11 | 33 | 645 | 1,714 |
| Clark | 2 | 3 | 5 | 276 | 946 |
| Columbia | 7 | 0 | 7 | 306 | 1,040 |
| Crawford | 2 | 1 | 3 | 180 | 542 |
| Dane | 319 | 166 | 485 | 3,624 | 6,353 |
| Dodge | 20 | 9 | 29 | 481 | 1,743 |
| Door | 9 | 10 | 19 | 213 | 594 |
| Douglas | 35 | 29 | 64 | 1,014 | 1,925 |
| Dunn | 20 | 19 | 39 | 507 | 1,071 |
| Eau Claire | 36 | 31 | 67 | 1,164 | 2,528 |
| Florence | 2 | 8 | 10 | 62 | 194 |
| Fond du Lac | 29 | 52 | 81 | 639 | 2,240 |
| Forest | 7 | 0 | 7 | 116 | 431 |
| Grant | 3 | 0 | 3 | 345 | 1,266 |
| Green | 4 | 2 | 6 | 266 | 744 |
| Green Lake | 6 | 2 | 8 | 148 | 472 |
| Iowa | 4 | 2 | 6 | 216 | 468 |
| Iron | 0 | 1 | 1 | 83 | 271 |
| Jackson | 4 | 0 | 4 | 243 | 606 |
| Jefferson | 7 | 2 | 9 | 306 | 1,422 |
| Juneau | 21 | 11 | 32 | 274 | 702 |
| Kenosha | 145 | 208 | 353 | 2,003 | 3,825 |
| Kewaunee | 6 | 3 | 9 | 109 | 447 |
| La Crosse | 39 | 27 | 66 | 1,380 | 2,806 |
| Lafayette | 2 | 1 | 3 | 108 | 289 |
| Langlade | 8 | 4 | 12 | 339 | 757 |
| Lincoln | 5 | 2 | 7 | 272 | 881 |
| Manitowoc | 11 | 0 | 11 | 446 | 1,868 |
| Marinette | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,025 | 2,753 |
| Marathon | 72 | 27 | 99 | 503 | 1,459 |
| Marquette | 1 | 0 | 1 | 148 | 373 |
| Milwaukee: Region 1 | 1,062 | 473 | 1,535 | NA | NA |
| Milwaukee: Region 2 | 1,157 | 614 | 1,771 | NA | NA |
| Milwaukee: Region 3 | 1,872 | 741 | 2,613 | NA | NA |
| Milwaukee: Region 4 | 2,101 | 717 | 2,818 | NA | NA |
| Milwaukee: Region 5 | 1,730 | 713 | 2,443 | NA | NA |
| Milwaukee: Region 6 | 1,773 | 446 | 2,219 | NA | NA |
| Milwaukee: No Region | 12 | 2 | 14 | NA | NA |
| Milwaukee: Total | 9,707 | 3,706 | 13,413 | 35,961 | 47,190 |
| Monroe | 14 | 16 | 30 | 447 | 1,217 |
| Oconto | 3 | 0 | 3 | 298 | 880 |
| Oneida | 11 | 8 | 19 | 463 | 1,135 |
| Outagamie | 56 | 19 | 75 | 553 | 2,057 |
| Ozaukee | 1 | 4 | 5 | 201 | 769 |
| Pepin | 1 | 1 | 2 | 64 | 248 |
| Pierce | 9 | 2 | 11 | 180 | 656 |
| Polk | 4 | 10 | 14 | 408 | 1,186 |
| Portage | 20 | 12 | 32 | 704 | 1,489 |
| Price | 3 | 16 | 19 | 319 | 737 |
| Racine | 162 | 22 | 184 | 2,345 | 5,016 |
| Richland | 2 | 8 | 10 | 226 | 468 |
| Rock | 52 | 49 | 101 | 1,684 | 3,899 |
| Rusk | 2 | 2 | 4 | 272 | 645 |
| St.Croix | 3 | 9 | 12 | 264 | 1,074 |
| Sauk | 19 | 2 | 21 | 421 | 1,311 |
| Sawyer | 6 | 8 | 14 | 312 | 760 |
| Shawano | 22 | 11 | 33 | 344 | 994 |
| Sheboygan | 16 | 6 | 22 | 508 | 2,162 |
| Taylor | 3 | 3 | 6 | 236 | 625 |
| Trempealeau | 11 | 5 | 16 | 361 | 1,039 |
| Vernon | 7 | 3 | 10 | 349 | 835 |
| Vilas | 12 | 1 | 13 | 158 | 489 |
| Walworth | 20 | 21 | 41 | 471 | 1,653 |
| Washburn | 2 | 3 | 5 | 211 | 569 |
| Washington | 19 | 25 | 44 | 449 | 1,493 |
| Waukesha | 25 | 28 | 53 | 954 | 3,628 |
| Waupaca | 11 | 1 | 12 | 308 | 1,845 |
| Waushara | 1 | 1 | 2 | 284 | 645 |
| Winnebago | 40 | 23 | 63 | 1,146 | 3,078 |
| Wood | 32 | 13 | 45 | 957 | 2,181 |
| Menominee | 31 | 12 | 43 | 112 | 325 |
| Red Cliff | 0 | 0 | 0 | 131 | 156 |
| Stockbridge-Munsee | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 51 |
| Lac du Flambeau | 13 | 1 | 14 | 91 | 185 |
| Bad River | 7 | 0 | 7 | 77 | 131 |
| Sokaogon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 42 |
| Oneida Tr. | 12 | 2 | 14 | 75 | 264 |
| This report is considered preliminary, testing is ongoing. W2 W/Payment category includes CSJ, W2T, JOB & CMC. W2 caseload is determined by cases that are open and eligible during the report month. | |||||