IowaWORKS

The Workforce Innovation & Opportunity Act (WIOA) provides individuals with multiple services to upgrade skills and get them back in the workforce. Some of these services include:

• Assessments: Find out what career you would be best suited for!
• Work Experience: Do you have gaps in your employment? Work Experience can help you gain skills for your next career.
• On the Job Training (OJT):  This can help you and the employer.  Provides wage reimbursement while they train you.
• Pre-Employment Training:  Training that can assist you with the soft skills that employers want.
• Basic Skills Training:  Remedial education in Adult Basic Education and Literacy.
• Secondary Education Certification:  Complete your High School Diploma or HiSED.
• Occupational Skills Training: Tuition assistance for approved college programs on the Eligible Training Provider List.

Other Programs

• National Able. A program for experienced individuals over the age of 55.
• Ticket to Work - Assits individuals with disabilities to obtain employment.
• PROMISE JOBS - Iowa's Welfare to Work Program
• GAP Tuition Assistance - provides assistance for certain vocational programs.

To Apply for WIOA Assistance, please email us at [email protected]  

Work Experience Program/Internships: An internship or work experience for WIOA participants is an Individualized Career Service and is defined as a planned structured learning experience that takes place in the workplace for a limited period of time. The experiential learning activity will be paid.

Customized Training: Customized Training provides training that is specific to an employer (or group of employers) which includes specific requirements so that individuals will be hired by the employer after successful completion of the training.

Incumbent Worker Training: Incumbent Worker Training (IWT) is designed to ensure that employees of a company are able to gain the skills necessary to retain employment and advance within the company or to provide the skills necessary to avert a layoff. Such training must increase both a participant's and a company's competitiveness.

On-The-Job Training: OJT is where an indivi dual is hired by an employer for an open position within their company. We develop a contract with the employer and will reimburse the employer 50% of the wages during the authorized training period. OJTs are designed to be limit ed in duration as appropriate to the occupation for which the participant is being trained, taking into account the content of the training, and prior work experience of the participant. The OJT training hours for a participant must be reduced if a participant has prior-related employment or training in the same or similar occupation.

QuaIity Pre-Apprenticeship: Quality pre-apprenticeship is a program or a set of str ategies designed to prepare individuals to enter and succeed in a Registered Apprenticeship program, including a formal written agreement with one or more nationally Registered Apprenticeship programs. A QPA program provides training to increase math, literacy, and other vocational skills needed to gain entry into a Registered Apprenticeship program

Registered Apprenticeship: A Registered Apprenticeship (RA) combines paid on-the-job training (OJT) with related training instruction (RTI) to progressively increase workers' skill levels and wages. An RA is also a business-driven model that provides an effective way for employers to recruit, train, and retain highly skilled workers. RAs offer job seekers immediate employment opportunities that pay sustainable wages and offer advancement along a career path . Graduates of an RA program receive nationally-recognized portable credentials and their training may be applied toward further post-secondary education.

Online Job Postings: Have your open positions posted on Iowa's largest job bank at lowaworks.org. If you have a career sit e as part of your company's website, we can set up an "indexing" process to aut omatically dow nload the jobs. If you don't post jobs on your website, we can help to set up an account on lowaworks.org to create job listings and search for qualified applicants.

Targeted Recruitment, Hiring Events & Career Expos: Ask IowaWORKS to develop customized recruitment strategy using hiring events, career fairs, job boards, high school career expos, social media and outreach to targeted populations.

Assessment Services: Take advantage of no-cost competency testing assessments: foundational employment skills, keyboarding, data entry, and Microsoft Office Suite of products. We also partner with Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services to offer ergonomic and ADA assessments.

Unemployment Insurance Help: Pay Unemployment Insurance Taxes Online: Through the myiowaUI portal, you can submit contribution reports, make tax payments, view account information and update account information . Go to www.mylowaUl.org to learn more.

Electronic Unemployment Insurance Request Tool: Easily manage unemployment insurance information requests and streamline your response by using the State Information Data Exchange System (SIDES). SIDES E-Response is a website that allows you to respond to state unemployment insurance requests quickly, easily and accurately. SIDES is a system for employers and TPSs who usually have 30 or more unemployment requests per week or have employees in multiple states.

Protecting Your Tax Fund: Maintaining the integrity of the unemployment insurance trust fund is one of the highest priorities. Conducting audits is one way we make sure laws are being followed. You can contact your field auditor for questions.

Future Ready Iowa is an initiative to build Iowa's talent pipeline.  Please visit our website: https://www.futurereadyiowa.gov/

Click here for a brochure explaining the initiative

(Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request for individuals with disabilities.)

A schedule of classes is posted monthly. Give us a call and let us know what class you are interested in and we can get you signed up!

• Typing Certification
• National Career Readiness Certification
• A Game Certification
• Assessment Testing

Services available to eligible Veterans.  All Veterans receive Priority of Service. www.iowaworkforce.org/veterans 

• Resume Assistance
• Veteran’s Benefit assistance
• Job Search
• Placement Services to Federally funded employment and training programs.
• Employment Consultations
• Testing and Career Exploration
• Home Base Iowa.  Click here for more information!