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West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Chapter 18

West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Page 120 Chapter 18 WV WORKS Activities/Requirements

18.14 COMMUNITY SERVICES PROGRAMS (CS) Community Service Programs (CS) are those structured programs in which WV WORKS participants perform work for the direct benefit of the community through public or nonprofit organizations. This could include public or private volunteer organizations. CS is limited to projects that serve a useful community purpose in fields such as health, social service, environmental protection, education, urban and rural redevelopment, welfare, recreation, public facilities, public safety, and child care. CS must be supervised daily. The CS component is governed by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Participants assigned to this component must also be enrolled in the FLSA (FL) component. CS participation is a self-initiated volunteer activity on the part of WV WORKS participants. Participant selection of a volunteer position with a community agency is acceptable if the agency and position meet the definition of Community Service under the first paragraph of this section. The Case Manager may provide participants with a known list of local appropriate Community Service sites. However, the Case Manager must not direct or “place” participants at any particular volunteer site. The Case Manager is responsible for contacting the community agency selected by the participant in order to confirm what tasks the volunteer work entails, how the placement will enhance the participant’s job skills and experience, the days and number of hours of work which will be completed each week, and what service is being provided to the community. The Case Manager must then complete a Volunteer Job Description which will include the information above in addition to the expected length of time of participation for the participant and how the participation will enhance the ability of the participant in his transition to employment. A copy of the Volunteer Job Description must be placed in each participant’s case record. Volunteer positions should be reviewed on a monthly basis to determine the usefulness of the participant’s participation and if placement in another activity may be more appropriate. A template of the Volunteer Job Description is in Appendix E. Under no circumstances will Community Service participation be allowed at active Community Work Experience (CWEP) and Job Opportunities for Independence Program (JOIN) contract sites, nor at a site which has employees in layoff status.