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WIOA Title I Programs: Adult, Dislocated Worker, and Youth

 

WIOA is designed to help job seekers access employment, education, training, and support services to succeed in the labor market and to match employers with the skilled workers they need to compete in the global economy. WIOA has six main purposes:

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  1. Increasing access to and opportunities for the employment, education, training, and support services for individuals, particularly those with barriers to employment;

  2. Supporting the alignment of workforce investment, education, and economic development systems in support of a comprehensive, accessible, and high-quality workforce development system;

  3. Improving the quality and labor market relevance of workforce investment, education, and economic development efforts;

  4. Promoting improvement in the structure and delivery of services;

  5. Increasing the prosperity of workers and employers; and

  6. Providing workforce development activities that increase employment, retention, and earnings of participants and that increase post-secondary credential attainment and as a result, improve the quality of the workforce, reduce welfare dependency, increase economic self- sufficiency, meet skill requirements of employers, and enhance productivity and competitiveness of the nation.

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Adult Program

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The purpose of the information below is to outline the eligibility requirements for the WIOA Adult program in accordance with the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 (WIOA), the WIOA Final Rule, Training and Employment Guidance Letters (TEGLs) published by the Employment and Training Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor (ETA), and policies of the Arkansas Workforce Development Board (AWDB).

The order of priority of services for those meeting eligibility requirements for the Adult Program is below.

  1. Veterans and eligible spouses who is either are low-income or individuals who are basic skills deficient. (Note: Veterans must have discharge other than dishonorable).

  2. Individuals who are not veterans or eligible spouses, but who are recipients of public assistance, other low-income individuals, or are individuals who are basic skills deficient.

  3. Veterans and eligible spouses who are not recipients of public assistance, are not other low-income individuals, and are not basic skills deficient.

  4. Individuals who has barrier(s) to employment and does not meet one of the first three priorities.

  5. Individuals who meet basic requirements but do not meet one of the first four priorities.

 

An individual who meets any one of the following criteria satisfies the low-income requirement for WIOA adult services:

  1. Receives or has received in the last 6 months SNAP, SSI, or other state or local income-based cash public assistance.

  2. Is in a family with a total family income no higher than the poverty line or 70% of the Lower Living Standing Income Level.

  3. Individual with a disability whose income meets the criteria in (B), but whose family does not.

  4. Is homeless.

Program Requirements

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To be eligible to receive WIOA services in the adult program, an individual must:

  1. Be 18 years of age or older

  2. Be registered for Selective Service or have valid exemption

  3. Be able to work in the United States

  4. Provide a valid Social Security Number​

Dislocated Worker Program

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The WIOA Dislocated Worker program offers employment and training services for eligible workers who are unemployed through no fault of their own or who have received an official layoff notice. WIOA expands the definition of dislocated worker to include the spouse of an active military member who lost employment as a result of a permanent change in duty location or is unemployed or underemployed and experiencing difficulty in obtaining or upgrading employment.

A dislocated worker is an individual who meets one of the following criteria listed below.

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Category A- Individual Lay-off. The applicant must meet all three of the numbered conditions OR the Special Veteran's Criterion:

1. Has been terminated or laid off or has received a notice of termination or layoff, from employment

2. Meets one of the following conditions concerning unemployment compensation

  • Is eligible for or has exhausted entitlement to unemployment compensation

  • Has been employed long enough to demonstrate attachment to the workforce (that is, has received wages in at least one (1) quarter in the last year immediately prior to eligibility determination, but is not eligible for unemployment compensation due to insufficient earnings or having performed services for an employer not covered under a state unemployment  compensation law

3. Is unlikely to return to a previous industry or occupation, as defined by local policy

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Special Veteran's Criterion: A separating service member qualifies as a dislocated worker under Category A if the separation is anything other than dishonorable, whether or not he or she receives or is eligible for Unemployment Compensation.

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Category B- Business closure or substantial layoff. The applicant must meet one of the following conditions:

1. Has been terminated or laid off, or has received a notice of termination or layoff from employment as a result of any permanent closure of, or any substantial layoff at, a plant, facility, or enterprise

2. Is employed at a facility at which the employer has made a general announcement that such facility will close within 180 days

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Category C- Self-employed individuals An individual who was previously self-employed, but is unemployed as a result of general economic conditions in the community in which the individual resides or because of natural disasters qualifies as a dislocated worker, as defined by the local area.

 

Category D - Displaced homemaker. To qualify as a displaced homemaker, an individual must meet all three of the numbered conditions:

1. Has been providing unpaid services to family members in the home

2. Meets one of the conditions of losing the income of another family member:

  • Has been dependent on the income of another family member, but is no longer supported by that income (see definition of family above)

  • Is the dependent spouse of a member of the Armed Forces on active duty, and the family income is significantly reduced because of a deployment, a call or order to active duty, a permanent change of state, or the service-connected death or disability of the member

3. Is unemployed or underemployed and is experiencing difficulty in obtaining or upgrading employment

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Category E - Spouse of an active-duty member of the Armed Forces who meets of one of the following conditions:

1. Has lost employment as a direct result of a relocation due to a permanent change in the duty station of such member

2. Is unemployed or underemployed and is experiencing difficulty in obtaining or upgrading employment

Program Requirements

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To be eligible to receive WIOA services in the dislocated worker program, an individual must:

  1. Be 18 years of age or older

  2. Be registered for Selective Service or have valid exemption

  3. Be able to work in the United States

  4. Provide a valid Social Security Number​

  5. Must meet criteria of one of the following categories listed to the left.

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