WorkFirst HandBook

Employment Services

4.4 Employment Services – Work Experience

The ESD Work Experience section includes:

4.4.1 What is an ESD Work Experience?

An ESD work experience is an unpaid part-time training assignment linked with job search activities. Work experience offers an opportunity for parents to practice or expand their work skills in a supportive and flexible work environment. The employment services work experience opportunities are typically short-term activities (up to 6 weeks). The work experience assignment provides minimal supervision and should complement the parent's career goals.

4.4.2 Who needs an Employment Services Work Experience?

Parents with no significant barriers to employment and are otherwise appropriate for job search may benefit from a short-term work experience. These parents have:

Note: Parents need only be deficient in one area above to be considered appropriate for a short term WEX.

4.4.3 What are ESD Work Experience Timeframes?

An ESD work experience assignment may be approved for up to six (6) weeks. The ESD employment counselor must review the WEX assignment prior to the end of the 5th week. The review will determine how much more time is needed (up to an additional 6 weeks) for the parent to practice or expand his/her work skills to be competitive in the local labor market.

4.4.4 What are Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Requirements?

According to state and federal law, parents cannot be required to engage in unpaid work for more hours than their monthly grant amount plus their monthly food stamp amount divided by the state or federal minimum wage, whichever is higher. ESD employment counselors will coordinate with the WFPS or as shown on the FLSA hours block in eJAS to ensure that the number of hours a parent is scheduled to participate in the WEX meets FLSA requirements. For a detail summary on FLSA see Chapter 3.3.2.5 How To Deem

For nonexempt two-parent families, the maximum number of work experience hours can be split between the two parents. ESD staff during the development of a WEX must determine if the parent is a member of a two-parent family to ensure the WEX hours do not exceed FLSA requirements.

4.4.5 What are ESD Work Experience Work Site Standards?

The ESD employment counselor, in coordination with the WorkSource business team, will develop ESD work experience placement sites.

4.4.6 Who develops the ESD Work Site Development/Training Agreement?

The ESD employment counselor will develop the ESD work experience training site and agreement.

The ESD employment counselor obtains signatures on the WorkFirst Work Experience (WEX) Master Agreement and the WorkFirst Work Experience Training Contract Terms and Conditions and then creates the employment services WEX Training Agreement (Contract) in JAS. For instructions see the Internal Controls manual in CATS.

There is no expectation of transition to unsubsidized employment with the work site after completion of the work experience training agreement.

4.4.7 What is the process for reviewing the ESD Work Experience Assignment?

The work site supervisor must review the parent's progress at least every two weeks and complete the Work Experience Monthly Time Report and Progress Review form. The reviews address:

The Work Experience Monthly Time Report and Progress Review form will be obtained from the employer during the ESD employment counselor's visits. Visits will be conducted every two weeks.

4.4.8 What is required to supervise (monitor), document, verify and report Work Experience actual hours of participation?
4.4.9 Who pays for Industrial Insurance Coverage?

State and federal law also requires a parent in work experience be covered by state industrial insurance or a comparable industrial insurance. This coverage is sometimes referred to as L&I.

Employment Security Department (ESD) will pay L&I coverage for all ESD Work Experiences.

4.4.10 ESD Work Experience – Step-by-step guide
  1. The ESD employment counselor will establish an ESD WEX by:
    1. Interviewing an eligible parent who would benefit from work experience.
    2. Discussing with an eligible parent appropriate work site opportunities.
    3. Determining and coordinating stacked activities with other service providers, i.e. college, to ensure the parent remains in full time participation prior to commencing the WEX.
    4. Determining with the WFPS or as shown on the FLSA indicated hours block in eJAS the number of hours the parent may participate in a WEX.
    5. Developing work experience work sites and coordinating with Community Jobs and Workforce Investment Act (WIA) providers to avoid duplication of effort.
    6. Creating a Work Experience Agreement to:
      1. Discuss work site standards, limiations, and general conditions with the approving authority for the work site.
      2. Negotiate an agreement with the work site provider and sign the WEX Master Agreement and the WEX Terms & Limitations.
      3. State the specific job duties to reflect the skills to be learned or enhanced.
      4. Justify the Work Experience. The ESD WorkFirst supervisor must document the justification for the WEX in eJas prior to signing Work Experience documents.
      5. Obtain signatures from the parent, the ESD WorkFirst supervisor and the work site supervisor. The parent may sign to acknowledge the contract.
      6. Arrange for ESD to pay the L&I premium, the ESD counselor must mail a time report every two weeks to: Employment Security Department, WorkFirst Admin., WEX Coordinator, P.O. Box 9046 , Olympia , WA 98507-9046, and
      7. Advise the work site provider of the requirement to complete and turn in the “Monthly Timesheet and Progress Review” within 5 business days of the end of every two weeks period.
    7. Documenting on the eJAS Notes Screen:
      1. Work site name, location, supervisor, and supervisor's phone number.
      2. Start and end dates of WEX agreement.
      3. Days and hours of participation.
      4. Skill sets to be practiced or expanded.
      5. List all stacked activities that will ensure parent remains in full time participation.
    8. Entering *WE on Component Screen in eJAS.
    9. Register the General Agreement in eJAS.
    10. Create WEX contract in eJAS (for instructions see the Internal Control manual in CATS).
    11. Coordinating with the WFPS to update the IRP to include activities stacked activities with the Work Experience.
  2. The ESD employment counselor will also:
    1. Accompany the eligible parent to the work experience training site for initial introductions.
    2. Provide employer with the Monthly Timesheet and Progress Review. Timesheets and Progress Review forms. This form will be returned to the ESD employment counselor during the on sites visits every two weeks.
    3. Document the parent's progress in eJAS Notes for attendance, attitude, communication skills, grooming/dress, interpersonal relationships, job skills progress, motivation, production and punctuality.
    4. Record actual hours of participation, excused absences and other information concerning participation in CATS.
    5. Forward a copy of the Monthly Time Sheet and Progress Review to ESD WorkSource Operations Division (WSOD), Attn: WorkFirst with a copy of the WEX Master Agreement, WEX Terms and Conditions, and contract attached no later than the 5th working day of the following month. WSOD will maintain the Monthly Time Sheet and Progress Reviews for 30 months.
    6. Authorize Support Services when needed.
    7. Meet with the parent at the end of the 5th week to review the parent's overall progress, determine next steps and document as part of Continuous Participation Planning:
      1. If the parent is ready to resume job search or
      2. If other activities would be more appropriate.
    8. Modify the Work Experience Agreement as needed to include:
      1. Extending the period of time in the agreement
      2. Extending the WE on the Component Screen
      3. Coordination with the WFPS to continue stacked activities for fulltime participation.
  3. The WorkFirst Program Specialist will:
    1. Update the IRP to include the stacked activities.
    2. Enter new component codes for stacked activities
    3. Authorize childcare when needed

*(Note: The WE component is also used for internships and practicum. For more on internships and practicum see Section 7.5 . The WE component is also used for CTED's Community WEX (CWEX). For more on CWEX see Section 8.4.3).

Resources

Related WorkFirst Handbook Sections
Forms & Other Resources

For more information about the WorkFirst HandBook, contact Olga Walker, WorkFirst Program Manager.