Organization

• The Ohio Workplace Investment Act is administered by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS). It has 31 full-service offices located across the state and 59 satellite offices. The full service offices are designed to be one-stop facilities that provide comprehensive training, skill development and funding for Ohio residents who are eligible for the program. Individuals can get help tailoring their skills for the Ohio job market, while businesses can be matched with students in the program.
  
  

Adults

• One facet of the Ohio WIA targets adults who are looking for work. To be eligible for the program, an individual must be an Ohio resident and over 18 years of age. The goal is to get adults in the program gainfully employed in unsubsidized private sector employment. In 2010, over 21,000 adults found jobs through the program and had a job retention rate of 81 percent. Adults can receive help with building resumes, employer matching and vocational training.
  
  

Dislocated Workers

• The state of Ohio defines dislocated workers as individuals who lost their job through no fault of their own. Targeting these workers helps reduce workplace risk for conscientious employers and acts as a stabilizing mechanism for Ohio communities in economic downturns. Eligible candidates are displaced homemakers, self-employed people who lost their businesses due to general economic conditions, employees who have received notification of a pending layoff, and those who have already lost their job and have exhausted their unemployment benefits.
  
  

Disadvantaged Youth

• Disadvantaged youth are defined as Ohio residents between the ages of 14 and 21 who have low incomes and came from troubled backgrounds such as living in foster homes, dropping out of high school or having an early pregnancy. The Ohio WIA provides troubled youth with tutoring services, secondary education opportunities, internships and summer schooling for those who have not finished high school. In 2010, over 14,000 adolescents were enrolled in the program, and more than 2,500 students received educational certificates.