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Wisconsin Works (W-2)
Managing Agency Wisconsin http://www.wisconsin.gov

Program Description

The Wisconsin Works (W-2) program seeks to provide the necessary training, supportive services and financial incentives for low-income parents to obtain permanent and stable employment with access to further training that will lead to career advancement. Wisconsin's residents are its most valuable resource. Some residents are unemployed due to poor education, poor job skills and other barriers to employment. These problems not only limit individual achievement, but they hold back the state's economic growth.

The goal of W-2 is to provide necessary and appropriate services to prepare individuals to work and to obtain and maintain viable, self-sustaining employment, which will promote economic growth. W-2 is one of several work-based programs designed to ensure that everyone in Wisconsin shares in our economic opportunities. W-2 accomplishes this goal by providing needed services in a comprehensive fashion, including such services as job readiness motivation, job retention and advancement skill training as well as childcare. W-2 employment and training services are available to any eligible Wisconsin residents.

General Program Requirements

In order to qualify for this benefit program, you must be a resident of Wisconsin, either pregnant or the parent or primary caregiver for a child under 19 years of age, a U.S. national, citizen, legal alien, or permanent resident, have low or very low income, and be either under-employed (working for very low wages) or unemployed.

Your Next Steps

The following information will lead you to the next steps to apply for this benefit.

Application Process

You must apply at the W-2 agency that serves the geographic area in which you live. You may locate your W-2 agency via the following website:
http://dcf.wisconsin.gov/w2/resources/w2agencies.asp

Program Contact Information

To read more about the Wisconsin Works (W-2) program, please visit: http://dcf.wisconsin.gov/w2/default.htm
To ask the Department of Children and Families Division of Family and Economic Security (DCF-DFES) about the W-2 program please call:
608-267-0513 (outside Milwaukee)
414-227-4633 (inside Milwaukee only)
Or send an e-mail to DCF-DFES at: bwf_co@wisconsin.gov