[January 2009]

Jeneen Roach recently found herself rapidly approaching a dreaded decision that has become all too common in today’s economy: the choice between paying food, gas and utility bills or paying the mortgage.

The West Liberty woman saw her job eliminated last year by her company as a cost-saving measure. With her income gone and with her husband’s job security in doubt, Jeneen’s family was increasingly faced with tough financial decisions where all the alternatives were bad.

“You get to the point where you’re trying to figure out what you can pay and when, because you have to conserve every dime,” Jeneen said.

As the situation worsened, it increasingly looked like the mortgage might become one of those things she could not pay, raising the scary possibility of losing the family home, Jeneen said.

“It crossed my mind, sure,” Jeneen said.

Fortunately, Jeneen got in touch with the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) dislocated worker program offered by the Gateway Community Action Agency (CAA) just in time. Gateway CAA WIA was able to help her find a new job just before her unemployment benefits expired and her husband lost his job.

“The WIA program came in just in time to make a difference in whether her family ate and had a roof over their head,” said Sidney Castle, Jeneen’s Gateway CAA career advisor.

Gateway delivers WIA programs in Morgan and Menifee Counties under contract with Eastern Kentucky Concentrated Employment Program, Inc. (EKCEP). The Gateway CAA office in West Liberty is also an access point for the JobSight Network, a collaborative partnership of workforce and training agencies administered by EKCEP in 23 eastern Kentucky counties.

WIA programs provide assistance to more than just dislocated workers. WIA programs also help adults find jobs or upgrade their job skills and help economically disadvantaged young people get a good start in the job market with education, training and job search assistance.

Thanks to the help she received from WIA, Jeneen now works at the Frenchburg Job Corps in Menifee County as a program support clerk The Frenchburg Job Corps is a U.S. Department of Labor training facility where young people can complete high school educations, prepare for college and train for a variety of careers.

For most of her adult life, Jeneen had worked in a bookeeping or office jobs. She had been working for about three years with a CPA firm in West Liberty when her bosses told her that her position was being eliminated as a budget-tightening move, she said.

“They decided they could no longer afford to keep me and would just attempt to do the recordkeeping themselves,” Jeneen said. “I looked for almost six months and was unable to find anything. And luckily I heard about the dislocated worker program right before my unemployment ran out.”

When Jeneen visited Sidney at the Gateway CAA office in West Liberty, Sidney told her that because her job had been eliminated, she qualified for assistance under the WIA dislocated worker program.

Although the program often helps dislocated workers retrain for new careers, Sidney tailored Jeneen’s assistance to meet her specific needs, focusing on finding employment rather than retraining.

“Jeneen wasn’t interested in college or vocational training at that time. She had to get back into the workforce to support her family and to keep from losing everything she had,” Sidney said.

Sidney first had Jeneen complete JobFit, JobSight’s online skills survey. Jeneen said it was a painless, interesting process that taught her a lot about her own skills.

“I thought the JobFit analysis was kind of fun,” Jeneen said. “You take a test that asks you quite a few questions. It takes a while, but then at the end it comes up with all these things you would be qualified for based on the questions you answered.”

JobFit listed several jobs Jeneen would be good at, but her scores were especially high for office work positions.

Through her contacts with area businesses, Sidney knew that Job Corps was looking for a clerk. She asked officials there if they would be willing to let Jeneen try out for the job for five weeks under a WIA service called “work experience.”

The work experience service allows a job candidate to work for an employer for a trial training period during which WIA pays the worker’s salary and training costs. The business has the option to hire the employee after the training period if they are satisfied with the employee’s performance. It is a “can’t lose” program for the employers, Sidney said.

“It was a great opportunity for them to find out what kind of worker they are going to get, and it was a great opportunity for Jeneen to find a good job,” Sidney said.

Job Corps agreed to Sidney’s request and Jeneen started her training program there about a week after completing her JobFit survey.

Job Corps officials were very happy with Jeneen’s work and decided to hire her in February after her trial period ended, according to Orleana Perry, support services supervisor for the Frenchburg Job Corps.

“I love it here. I anticipate being here for a very long time,” Jeneen said.

Jeneen said she was impressed by how helpful the WIA program was.

“I had a wonderful experience with the dislocated worker program. The process was a lot quicker than I thought it would be. They found a job to fit me and my needs,” Jeneen said.

Now, even though the economy continues to be uncertain, things are at least looking up for Jeneen and her family. She feels secure and satisfied in her job, and her husband has found work again.

She said he would definitely encourage others who have the will to work but are having trouble finding a job that fits them to contact Gateway and ask if it can help.

“I think it’s a wonderful program. It could help a lot of people,” she said.

For more information on Workforce Investment Act services available through Gateway, contact Sidney Castle at Gateway Community Action Agency at 606-743-4141..