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Training (details about the training listed & to register can be found on IWD Agency Calendar) http://www.iowaworkforce.org/calendar/ 

Dubuque Works--A Workforce Initiative

Dubuque Works was formed to create and implement strategies focused on recruiting and retaining a qualified workforce.  It is a new collaborative approach to workforce development initiatives in Dubuque.  The Dubuque Works Executive Board identified strengths, weaknesses, existing duplication of services and opportunities for collaboration with current workforce strategies.   Individual goals and objectives were established that need to be met in order to ensure the comprehensive success of Dubuque Works as a team.  The partners on the Dubuque Works Executive Board are:  Greater Dubuque Development Corporation, Dubuque Chamber of Commerce, Telegraph-Herald, Dubuque Area Labor Management Council, Northeast Iowa Community College, Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque, and Iowa Workforce Development (IWD).  IWD has a long history of developing community partnerships and being a part of the Dubuque Works initiative is a very natural fit for the agency.  

Dubuque Works is guided by five strategies:

Strategy I:  Enhance Career Awareness

Strategy II:  Enhance College to Employment Connections

Strategy III:  Create a Skilled Workforce with focus on Unemployed and Underemployed

Strategy IV:  Change the Image and Perception of Skilled Trade Jobs in the Greater Dubuque Area

Strategy V:  Recruit and Retain a talented workforce in the Greater Dubuque Area

Iowa Workforce Development  leads strategy I’s objective  of educating teachers, counselors, students and parents on job trends and skills needed for jobs in the Greater Dubuque community.  This has included marketing and active involvement in the Pre-Employment Strategies classes, partnering with businesses to create internships/mentorships, offering career training workshops to K-12 teachers/counselors 4X/year, and educating 8th-12th grade students in the Greater Dubuque area on jobs available in IT, advanced manufacturing , and healthcare occupations. 

We also lead Strategy III with the three objectives:  1)  to create a skilled workforce through marketing, education and utilization of Iowa’s National Career Readiness Certificate )NCRC) program, 2)  to connect unemployed and underemployed individuals with employment information, opportunities, services and programs, and 3)  to raise awareness of available employment services among nonprofit providers that work with low-income individuals.  As of 6/10/09, 34 businesses and 7 human resource and economic development groups in our region have signed letters of commitment to support Iowa’s NCRC program, 379 individuals have completed NCRC assessments in Region 1 and 327 (86%) have achieved a minimum of a Bronze certificate.  30 I-JAG students have completed testing with 10 earning a certificate.  We have received Dubuque Works funding for 200 students to complete Iowa’s NCRC assessments annually.  We also continue to promote Iowa Works one-stop shop among service providers.

For further information about Iowa Workforce Development’s participation in the Dubuque Works initiative, contact Peggy Murray, Business Marketing Specialist, at (563) 556-5800 ext. 130.

Regional Workforce Partners Become Employment Network for Persons with Disabilities

Decorah, IA - The Social Security Administration recently announced that Region One (Northeast Iowa) One Stop Workforce Center is now an Employment Network under the federal Social Security Ticket to Work program. Numerous work incentives are offered by the Social Security Administration, one which is the Ticket Program, an employment program available to most Social Security beneficiaries with disability between the ages of 18-65. The Social Security Administration notifies those beneficiaries who are eligible to participate in the Ticket Program by issuing them a Ticket.  The Region One One-Stop Workforce partners include: Iowa Workforce Development, Northeast Iowa Community College, Northeast Iowa Community Action, Region One Employment and Training – Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission and ECIA, Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services, Goodwill Industries, Proteus, Iowa Department for the Blind, Iowa Department of Human Services, Job Corps, The Spectrum Network, and AARP Senior Employment. For more information contact the Disability Program Navigator at 866-520-8986 extension 114.

Public Service Announcement – Internet Claim 

Persons filing for unemployment insurance benefits may now do so at their convenience from home or at any Internet connected computer at www.iowaworkforce.org.  This service is also available at any of the 54 Iowa Workforce Development Centers. 

On-line unemployment insurance services are very popular with Iowans. Forty-four percent of all new unemployment insurance claims in May were completed on-line. Only ten percent were filed over the telephone. 

The Internet filed claim’s success comes at the same time Iowa Workforce Development is closing out the option of applying for unemployment insurance benefits by telephone.  This change will save approximately $100,000 per year in public funds.  

Starting Monday, June 19, 2006, new claims for unemployment insurance and questions about unemployment insurance will no longer be taken over the telephone, but via the on-line web application or by visiting any Iowa Workforce Development Center.   

Over 175,000 notices were sent this past week announcing the transition to persons who filed for unemployment insurance in the past 12 months.  Anyone with questions about the new process may call their nearest Iowa Workforce Development Center, or post their question at uiclaimshelp@iwd.state.ia.us. 

Here’s how to file an unemployment insurance claim on-line: 

  1. Have your employer’s name, address, & phone number and your dates of employment available.
  2. Go to this website address: www.iowaworkforce.org
  3. In the box “Online Services,” choose “File an Unemployment Insurance Claim.”
  4. Read the information, create user/password or log in.
  5. Enter basic statistical information.
  6. Follow on-screen instructions, and enter information.
  7. Click on “submit claim,” print your claim and confirmation number.

Nationwide Campaign to benefit both Employers and Veterans
http://www.hirevetsfirst.com 

DUBUQUE, Iowa – 

            President Bush’s National Hire Veterans Committee launched a national media campaign that will inform employers about the value and value-added features in hiring veterans. The “HireVetsFirst” Campaign will involve various national media advertisements highlighting the skills and competencies veterans bring to the workforce and encourage employers to hire veterans.

             One-stop Career Centers such as the Iowa Workforce Development Center in Dubuque are at the center of the campaign as the location where businesses can go to receive assistance in recruiting and connecting to veterans. The media campaign will direct interested parties to the Department of Labor Toll Free Help Line 1-877-US2-JOBS. The help line will direct callers to the supporting local One-Stop Career Centers and other available Internet resources.  

            Region 1 Iowa Workforce Development (IWD) Centers in Dubuque, Decorah, Oelwein, Manchester and New Hampton, Iowa will provide One-Stop Career Center Services. Services available to employers include Job Posting on local and state job banks plus America’s Job Bank. Iowa Workforce Development will provide Job referral services that include referral of both veterans and non-veterans. IWD may also provide candidate screening, specialized recruiting, and human resource services assistance to small and medium sized businesses without a human resource department. 

            Media advertisements will appear in business journals, such as Business Week and HR Magazine, include online advertising through Career Builder, HotJobs.com and Monster.com and will potentially include radio spots. If you have any questions please feel free to contact your nearest Iowa Workforce Development Center.

Successful Interviewing Guide

The revised Successful Interviewing Guide provides valuable information to employers and workers on the application and interviewing process. The Guide was developed by Iowa Workforce Development with input from the Iowa Civil Rights Commission and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The Guide provides information on:

  • Writing a Job Description
  • Advertising the Job
  • Discovering an Applicant’s Qualifications
  • Avoiding Discrimination During the Hiring Process
  • Summary Guide to Application and Pre-Employment Questions
  • Sample Employment Application
  • Workforce Resources for Employers

This Guide can be printed from this web site using the Successful Interviewing Guide link below. Limited printed copies of the Guide are also available through local IWD Workforce Centers.

NOTE: The Guide is designed for general educational purposes only and is not intended, nor should it be construed as or relied upon, as legal advice. Please consult your legal counsel or other employment advisor for specific legal advice.

Successful Interviewing Guide 
(Publication: 70-0006 - PDF Size - 735 KB)

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