Wisconsin Works (W-2)
Discontinued Program -- Workforce Attachment and Advancement (WAA) Program
Note: WAA contracts ended 12-31-03 and new funding was not authorized.
The Workforce Attachment and Advancement (WAA) Program offered services designed to promote upward mobility for low-income working families and non-custodial parents (NCPs). WAA provided job retention and training services.
WAA helped promote job retention and skill development while simultaneously meeting employers’ needs for skilled workers. The WAA program was funded for two years, with $19.7 million in federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) funds.
Target population: Low income families and NCPs that meet TANF income eligibility level, under 200% of poverty. The target population included adults with children who previously participated in the W-2 program and other TANF-eligible persons who needed workforce attachment and advancement services. NCPs must have been low-income and cooperate with child support collections for their children.
Service provision: WAA programs services were provided by both W-2 agencies and Workforce Development Boards (WDBs), utilizing the statewide Job Center system. The WAA program built on existing employment and training programs, providing continued support to individuals placed in employment and helping individuals to move beyond entry level employment. WAA agencies coordinated their WAA program planning to ensure that services were delivered in an integrated manner, without duplication.
Program Services: The program was expected to lead to job placement and advancement, job retention, increased earnings and increased child support payments for NCPs. The WAA program included the following services:
- Training for Worker Advancement – Training was the major emphasis of the WAA program, and it can be provided to individual workers as well as groups of workers within a single employer.
- Services for Job Retention – Job retention services included activities to assist persons in retaining employment, increase working hours and find more steady work. Mentoring, job coaching, crisis intervention, and counseling are but a few examples of allowable services.
- Services to Employers – These services must have benefited the TANF-eligible population. Examples of employer services include: These services must have benefited the TANF-eligible population. Examples of employer services include:
- Job development and placement
- Assisting employers with recruitment
- Work site mentoring and job coaching services
- Work place assessments of employee training needs
- Arranging training for incumbent workers
- Developing work site training programs
- Employee retention activities, such as employee assistance programs and crisis resolution
- Arranging support services such as child care, health care and transportation
- Developing upward mobility programs for their workers.
- Job Readiness/Placement –