The following core unpaid employment activities are listed in the order that most likely leads to self-sufficiency for the Temporary Assistance (TA) participant. While it is more desirable to place TA participants in paid employment activities, these activities can lead to paid employment and self-sufficiency.
1. Job Search and Job Readiness Assistance: The Job Search and Job Readiness activities are limited to 240 hours for single parent households and 360 hours for all two-parent households for the previous 12-month period. The TA participant can participate in these activities for four consecutive weeks and must take the fifth week “off”, up to the 240/360 hour maximum. This core activity can also be used to meet non-core work participation requirements.
In the job search activity TA participants look for suitable jobs by making contact with potential employers. The TA participant presents himself/herself to a prospective employer as available for work. The prospective employer ordinarily employs persons in areas of work for which the TA participant is reasonably qualified by means of experience, training, or ability.
The job readiness activity involves preparing a TA participant to seek, obtain, and maintain employment through assessments, workshops, classes, and treatment programs.
See 0275.035.00 Job Search and Job Readiness Assistance (Core).
2. Alternative Work Experience Program (AWEP)/Community Work Experience Program (CWEP): AWEP includes work at employers in the private sector (other than those that provide social services). CWEP is limited to employers or projects that serve a useful public purpose. The TA participant performs volunteer work designed to improve employability when he/she is not otherwise able to obtain sufficient or suitable employment. This activity is used for the TA participant who has “soft skills” (comes to work on time, dresses appropriately, etc.) and allows the TA participant to gain “work skills” such as: keyboarding, automotive repair, etc. The number of allowable hours in the AWEP/CWEP activity is limited by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), but a TA participant can be deemed as meeting participation if the FLSA calculation of hours is less than his/her required amount of participation hours. This activity can be used to supplement another activity (other than Community Service) if the TA participant is not meeting the required hours in that activity and additional “work skills” are needed. See 0275.040.00 Work Experience Program.
3. Community Service Program: The TA participant performs volunteer work designed to improve employability when he/she is not otherwise able to obtain sufficient or suitable employment. This activity is used for TA participants to gain soft skills such as: coming to work on time, dressing appropriately, calling in if going to be late, etc.
The number of Community Service activity hours are limited by the FLSA, but a TA participant can be deemed as meeting participation if the FLSA calculation of hours is less than his/her required amount of participation hours. This activity can be used to supplement another activity (other than AWEP/CWEP) if the TA participant is not meeting the required hours in that activity and additional soft skills are needed.
4. Provision of Child Care Services to Participant in Community Service Program. This is a structured program in which individuals provide child care for participants in approved TANF community service program activities. It is used on a very limited basis for individuals who cannot be placed in other employment activities.
Program participants report actual hours of participation on time sheets and activity logs that report hours of participation for every day of every week in each month.
The Child Care Provider and the MWA Program Administrator sign the time sheet or activity log attesting to the truthfulness of the information provided. The MWA program administrator must ensure that the child care provider has daily supervision, and the daily timesheets or activity logs will document this.