Human Services Department

Jobs Work! Center

We will assist individuals and families to choose to become interdependent and empowered contributors to the City of Chesapeake family. Our strategy is supported by private and public partners and is one which values the potential and possibilities of our customers. We assist the business community by providing a pool of dependable, job-ready employees to area businesses which helps to reduce the rate of employee turnover and re-training.

The following services are provided by the Jobs Work! Center:

Virginia Initiative for Employment not Welfare (VIEW) provides Employment, Training, Education, and Supportive Services to customers receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). VIEW is the work component of the Virginia Independence Program (VIP) which combines work and work related activities with education and training. TANF recipients are required to participate in VIEW when their youngest child turns 18 months old, unless they meet an exemption.

Food Stamp Employment and Training (FSET)Program provides Employment, Training , Education and Supportive Services to customers who receive Food Stamps. Food Stamp household members between the ages of 18 to 60 who are unemployed or working less than 30 hours per week, who’s youngest child is 6 years old, are required to participate in the FSET program unless they meet an exemption.

Intensive Case Management Services provide Employment, Training and Supportive Services to customers with long term welfare dependency and significant barriers to self sufficiency.

Project: FIND (Fathers In New Directions) is a fatherhood program designed to lead fathers to self-sufficiency, active involvement in the lives of their children, to secure gainful employment and to meet their financial obligations to their children, contributing to their physical, emotional, and social development. Fathers may access this program by contacting the Jobs Work! Center directly.

What services does the Jobs Work! Center provide?

The Jobs Work! Center provides:

• Employability Assessments
• Job Counseling/Coaching
• Job Search ActivitiesJob Development
• Job Placement
• Job Readiness Training
• Job Retention Assistance
• Education and Skills Training
• Computer Lab Facilities

The Jobs Work! Center also provides “Intensive Services” for job seekers and their Families through our in-house and community partners:

• Day Care
• Project F.I.N.D. - Fathers In New Directions
• Chesapeake Adult Education Center
• GENEX Services, Inc.
• Community Services Board
• Educational Opportunity Center
• Tidewater Community College
• JobZone
• The STOP Organization

Who is eligible for Jobs Work! Center services?

• Customers currently receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
  
• (TANF) or Food Stamps, and who are required to participate in an employment program
  
• TANF customers who wish to volunteer for an employment program
  
• Certain customers who formerly received TANF or FS
  
• Non-custodial fathers of children who receive TANF

Which programs operate through the Jobs Work! Center?

• Virginia Initiative for Employment not Welfare (VIEW);
• Food Stamp Employment and Training Program (FSET);
• Project FIND;
• Intensive Case Management Services

How do I apply for services?

Customers are referred to the VIEW and FSET programs by their Benefits Case Worker. Customers interested in Project FIND may contact the Jobs Work Center directly for more information. Intensive Case Management Services require a referral from an Employment Services Case Manager.