Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development

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* Total of Trial Jobs, Community Service Jobs, W-2 Transitions. Most do receive payments directly or are helped through subsidies to their employers.

 
For comparison:

* See explanation above
 

* See explanation above
 

Selected Other Services:

General Analysis:

• A major reason for the decline in the number of families participating in W-2 is that the number of people entering the program is smaller than the number of people leaving the program. People also continue to leave the program as they find unsubsidized jobs in an extended period of labor shortages, move out of state, locate other sources of assistance, etc.

• Four counties reported no cash assistance cases under W-2 in December, while 38 reported cases in the single digits. The four were Florence, Iron, Jackson and Rusk.

• The food stamp caseload statewide rose slightly and was up for the third month in a row from 1998’s low of 70,458 in September. Preliminary information, mainly anecdotal, suggests that increased outreach by W-2 agencies is having some positive impact.

Definitions:

Unsubsidized Activities: Employment and employment-related activities for which a W-2 agency provides no subsidy to the employer, including self-employment and entrepreneurship.
 

Trial Job: A W-2 subsidized employment position that provides work experience and training which may become permanent, unsubsidized employment. The W-2 subsidy is paid directly to the employer.
 

Community Service Job: A W-2 work-readiness practice placement designed to improve the employability of participants by providing work experience and training in the public and private sectors. These participants must serve a useful public purpose or be employed in a project whose cost is partially or wholly offset by revenue generated by such projects.
 

W-2 Transition: A W-2 work-readiness practice placement for individuals who are unable to perform independent, self-sustaining work, but who are able to participate in work practice or other developmental activities and training up to their abilities.

There is a two year lifetime limit for participation in any of the above subsidized W-2 programs, and a five-year lifetime limit on participation in any mix of the above.
 

Philosophy and Goals of W-2:

• For those who can work, only work should pay.
• W-2 assumes everyone is able to work within their abilities.
• Families are society’s way of nurturing and protecting children, and all policies must be judged in light of how well they strengthen the responsibility of both parents to care for their children.
• The system’s fairness will be gauged by comparison with low-income families who work for a living.
• There will be no entitlement; the W-2 reward system is designed tdo reinforce behavior that leads to independence and self-sufficiency.
• Individuals are part of various communities of people and places; W-2 operates in ways that enhance the way communities support individual efforts to achieve self-sufficiency.
• The system provides only as much service as an eligible individual asks for or needs; many individuals do much better with just a "light touch."
• W-2’s objectives are best achieved by working with the most effective providers and by relying on market and performance mechanisms.