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THE VIRGINIA INITIATIVE FOR EDUCATION AND WORK (VIEW) TANF MANUAL

APPENDIX A

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(7) An individual counts as engaged in work for a month for the overall rate if: • she participates in work activities during the month for an average of at least 30 hours per week; and • At least 20 of the above hours per week come from participation in the core activities: o unsubsidized employment o subsidized employment (FEP) o CWEP o on-the-job training o job search and job readiness assistance o PSP o vocational education and training

(8) Above 20 hours per week, additional core activities or the following non-core work activities may count as participation: • job skills training (including post-secondary education directly related to employment) • below post-secondary education

(9) Post-secondary education not directly related to employment and locally developed components do not count toward the work participation rate.

(10) An individual counts as engaged in work for the month for the two-parent rate if: • an individual and the other parent in the family are participating in work activities for an average of at least 35 hours per week during the month, and • At least 30 of the 35 hours per week come from participation in core activities. • Above 30 hours per week, non-core activities may also count.

If the family receives federally funded child care assistance, then the participants must be engaged in work activities for an average of at least 55 combined hours per week to count as a two-parent family engaged in work for the month. At least 50 of the 55 hours per week must come from participation in core work activities. Above 50 hours per week, non-core activities may also count as participation.

E. Federal Work Participation Rate Examples

Whether or not a client is counted in meeting the federal participation rate for a given month is dependent on the actual hours of participation entered into the ESP module in VaCMS. The following examples illustrate in a general way how hours count or do not count toward participation. See Appendix J, Understanding Federal Participation, for detailed examples.

Example 1: Month 1: Ms. A participates in job search for 36 hours in week 1; 33 hours in week 2; 24 hours in week 3; and 39 hours in week 4. She counts toward the participation rate for the month because she participated in core activities averaging at least 30 hours per week.

Month 2: Ms. A continues job search. In week 1, she is in job search for 33 hours. She is in job search in week 2 for 36 hours. She then gets a job and works for 30 hours each in weeks 3 and 4. Job search which counts for federal participation is limited to no more than four consecutive

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