The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 provides federal funding for Adult, Dislocated Worker and Youth Programs for Employment and Training related activities. The Cape Fear Workforce Development Board selects contractors to operate training programs to serve citizens throughout the Cape Fear Local Area.

Access to a wide variety of programs, services and training options is available through your local JobLink Career Center in your county of residence. For a complete list of area JobLink Career Centers and contact information, please select the JOBLINK icon under the TOPICS menu at the left of the screen.

We encourage you to contact a JobLink representative who can explain the benefits and requirements of the WIA program you are interested in.*

General requirements:
To receive employment and training services under the Workforce Investment Act, one must meet certain eligibility requirements in addition to meeting local area requirements established by the Cape Fear Workforce Development Board.

Adults must be:

• At least 18 years of age or older
• A U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen
• A male must be in compliance with the registration provisions of the Military Selective Service Act.
• Low income

A variety of employment and training services may be available based on individual needs:

• Job search and placement assistance
• Career counseling
• Labor market information
• Assessment of skills and needs
• Development of individual employment plans
• Occupational skills training
• On-the-job training
• Skills upgrading
• Entrepreneurial training
• Job readiness training
• Support services, including transportation.

Based on an individual assessment, more intensive services may be developed under the guidance of an employment counselor.

Adult Programs

If you do not meet low income requirements for the adult program and you have experienced any of the following you may qualify for the Dislocated Worker Program.

Dislocated Worker Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for dislocated worker programs, an individual must meet at least one of the following criteria in addition to the adult eligibility criteria above:

1. An individual who has been terminated or laid off, or has received notice of termination or layoff from employment, and is eligible for or has exhausted entitlement to unemployment compensation, and is unlikely to return to a previous industry or occupation;
2. An individual who has been terminated or laid off, or has received notice of termination or layoff, from employment, and has been employed for a duration sufficient to demonstrate, to the appropriate entity at a one-stop center referred to in section 134(c) of the Workforce Development Act (WIA), attachment to the workforce, but not eligible for unemployment compensation due to insufficient earnings or having performed services for an employer that were not covered under a State unemployment compensation law, and is unlikely to return to a previous industry or occupation;
3. An individual who 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;
4. An individual who is employed at a facility at which the employer has made a general announcement that such facility will close within 180 days;
5. For purposes of eligibility to receive services other than training, intensive, or supportive services, You must be employed at a facility at which the employer has made a general announcement that such facility will close;
6. An individual who has been self-employed (including employment as a farmer, rancher, or fisherman) but is unemployed as a result of general economic conditions in the community in which the individual resides or because of a natural disaster; and
7. An individual who is a dislocated homemaker. A displaced homemaker is an individual who has been providing unpaid services to family members in the home and who both: (a) has been dependent on the income of another family member but is no longer supported by that income; and (b) is unemployed or underemployed and is experiencing difficulty in obtaining or upgrading employment

Dislocated Workers

Youth Programs seek to serve youth ages 14 to 21**, who may be currently in school or out of school and who are low-income eligible and have at least one of the following barriers to employment:

• Basic Skills Deficient
• A high school drop-out
• Homeless
• A runaway or foster child
• A parenting or pregnant teen
• An Offender
• Ayouth who needs additional assistance in order to successfully complete an educational program or to secure and retain employment

Youth Programs

**youth ages 14-15 may receive referral to partner programs based upon need and availability
*For information regarding specific program eligibility requirements, please contact your local JobLink Career Center and ask for the W.I.A. specialist. Each program has its own eligibility, participation and other specific requirements established by Federal, State and Local Workforce Board Policies which change from one program year to the next.