Work Experience

· A work experience program is designed to improve the employability of household members through actual work experience or training, or both, and to enable people employed or trained under such programs to move promptly into regular public or private employment. Work experience assignments may not replace the employment of a regularly employed person and they must provide the same benefits and working conditions provided to regularly employed people performing comparable work for comparable hours. Work experience is a planned, structured learning experience that takes place in a workplace for a limited period of time. Work experience may be paid or unpaid, as appropriate, and consistent with other laws such as the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Work experience may be arranged within the private for-profit sector, the non-profit sector, or the public sector. A time-limited participant who is participating in work experience would still need to meet the 80-hour requirement with work, work program participation or a combination of work and work program participation.

Work experience may include a Work Activity (WA) or Work-Based Learning (WBL), see definitions below.

The ESP must ensure that no work assignment results in:

· Termination, layoff, or reduction of work hours of an employee for the purpose of hiring a work experience participant.

· The hiring of a work experience participant if any other person is on layoff, including seasonal layoff, from the same or a substantially equivalent job.

· Any infringement of the promotional opportunities of any currently employed individual.

· The impairment of an existing contract for services or a collective bargaining agreement.

· A participant filling an established unfilled position vacancy.

The employer must provide the same or equivalent working conditions to work experience employees as it does to similarly situated employees. The job slot cannot involve political or partisan activities.

Participation in a work experience work site is voluntary for all participants. No participant shall be required to participate in a work experience work site. Priority for work site placement should be given to participants who cannot “earn” additional months of SNAP benefits in another way. Within the limits of program funding, participants must be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket costs of participating.

It is recommended that job seeking be continued in addition to the work experience placement so that suitable employment is located early.

The participant's ESP must include the length of time needed in the work experience program, the need to continue job seeking activities while participating in work experience, and the participant's employment goals. After each 6 months of a person’s participation in a work experience job placement, and at the conclusion of each work experience assignment under this section, the ESP must reassess and revise, as appropriate, the participant's employment plan.

The ESP must maintain records of hours worked, work sites, and hours assigned.

Work experience participants who are in an ESP-approved work site qualify for the Injury Protection Program (IPP). This state-funded program provides payment for medical treatment, permanent partial disability compensation, and compensation for injuries resulting in death for people who are injured while performing work under the work experience program.

Compensation under the IPP is limited to reimbursement for reasonable medical expenses and permanent partial disability compensation in amounts comparable to those allowed under the state’s Workers’ Compensation program. Payments made by the IPP are reduced by any proceeds received from any insurance policy covering the loss (excluding Health Care payments).

The IPP does not provide payment for pain and suffering, lost wages, or other benefits provided under Workers’ Compensation.

Complete the Injury Protection Program Participant Information and Authorization to Release Medical Information (DHS-3994) (PDF) prior to placing a participant in uncompensated work experience.

Work Activity

An activity that provides a person with an opportunity to acquire the general skills, knowledge, and work habits necessary to obtain employment in exchange for SNAP benefits. The purpose of work activity is to improve the employability of those who cannot find unsubsidized full time employment. A work activity can be arranged within the private for-profit sector, the non-profit sector, or the public sector whereas workfare must take place at a public or private non-profit institution. Work activity is a training program and should have clearly defined learning goals, such as a curriculum, clearly articulated outcome goals, intentional day-to-day activities that are designed to improve someone’s skills and employability, and a planned start date and end date.

Households that include work activity participants may not work more hours monthly than the total obtained by dividing the household’s monthly SNAP allotment by the higher of the applicable Federal or State minimum wage (in Minnesota, the higher state minimum wage of large employers must be used). The ESP must round the number of hours arrived at through this computation down to the next full hour. Unlike workfare, participating in this activity for the maximum amount of hours may not meet the work requirement for time-limited participants; these individuals may need to do additional activities in order to meet the 80 hour per month requirement.

Workforce One Activity: Work Activity (Uncompensated)

Work Based Learning (WBL)

An activity comprised of structured work activities, including on-the-job training (OJT), , apprenticeship, internship, and transitional jobs, that combine in some form education and/or training and work. Unlike regular employment, this requires an additional structured activity (beyond regular work hours).

WAGE REIMBURSEMENT FOR WBL ACTIVITIES IS NOT ALLOWED AT THIS TIME. DCYF may pilot this option with select agencies in the future.

· On-the-Job Training (OJT) - A work placement made through a contract with an employer or registered apprenticeship program sponsor in the public, private non-profit, or private sector. Through the on-the-job training (OJT) contract, occupational training is provided for the participant in exchange for the reimbursement, typically up to 50 percent of the wage rate of the participant, for the extraordinary costs of providing the training and supervision related to the training. An OJT contract must be limited to the period of time required for a participant to become proficient in the occupation for which the training is being provided. In determining the appropriate length of the contract, consideration should be given to the skill requirements of the occupation, the academic and occupational skill level of the participant, prior work experience, and the participant's individual employment plan. Wages are reimbursed at a set percentage by the organization to the employer for the length of the contract. OJT also carries the expectation that the participant will be hired by the employer in a permanent position when the contract ends.

Workforce One Activity: On-the-Job-Training (OJT)

· Apprenticeship – A combination of on-the-job training and related instruction in which workers learn the practical and theoretical aspects of a skilled occupation that provides the industry-specific knowledge needed to perform highly skilled work. Apprenticeship programs can be sponsored by individual employers, joint employer, and labor groups, and/or employer associations.

Workforce One Activity: Apprenticeship

· Internship - A planned, structured learning experience that takes place in a workplace for a limited period of time. An internship must be a learning experience that applies knowledge gained in the classroom, and teaches skills or knowledge that can be transferred to other employment settings. An internship has a defined beginning and end, and a job description with desired qualifications. Internships may be paid or unpaid, as appropriate and consistent with other laws, such as the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). An internship may be arranged within the private for profit sector, the non-profit sector, or the public sector.

Workforce One Activity: Internship

· Transitional Jobs - A transitional job is one that provides a work experience for a limited period of time, that is wage-paid and subsidized, and is in the public, private, or non-profit sectors for those individuals with barriers to employment who are chronically unemployed or have inconsistent work history. These jobs are designed to enable a person to establish a work history, demonstrate work success in an employee-employer relationship, and develop the skills that lead to unsubsidized employment.

Workforce One Activity: Transitional Jobs