The Bay Area Workforce Development Board, in conjunction with its partners, operates American Job Centers and resource centers within the 11-county area of Northeastern Wisconsin. These job centers provide services to both job seekers and employers and include both comprehensive and affiliated sites. They are strategically located and open to all, regardless of residence. Services may vary by site. Click on the link below to find the site closest to you.
Interactive Map of Wisconsin Job Centers
Job Seeker Resources
Our mission is to help create a quality workforce and that effort involves you. This section is intended to assist you, the job seeker. Whether you are new to the workforce and are seeking help in landing your first job or you’ve been around for a while and your circumstances have changed, we are here to help.
Each of our American Job Centers have resources available for the job seeker. Computers for job search, resume development, and software tutorials are available at no direct cost. Contact your local center for more details, and select from the list to the right, or see the information below, to select the ones you need to meet your goals.
Unemployment Benefits
Unemployment Insurance (UI) is an unemployment benefit that provides temporary financial assistance to qualified individuals who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own and who continue to meet eligibility requirements of state law.
Do you need to learn more about the UI system, and what it can and cannot do? If that’s the case, click on the following link: http://dwd.wisconsin.gov
Already know what you need to know and you want to login to the UI system? The link below will take you to the correct location: https://my.unemployment.wisconsin.gov
Individualized Services
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) brings together, in strategic coordination, the core programs of Federal investment in skill development:
- Employment and training services for eligible adults, dislocated workers, and youth administered by the Department of Labor (DOL) through formula grants to states. Contact your local AJC and ask to speak with a WIOA Career Services Specialist; and
- Adult education and literacy programs and Vocational Rehabilitation programs that assist individuals with disabilities in obtaining employment administered by the Department of Education (DoED) and state grants. Contact your local AJC and ask to speak with a WIOA Career Services Specialist
- WIOA Tuition Assistance Opportunity (17-24 year olds) – Contact your local AJC and ask to speak with a WIOA Youth Career Services Specialist
Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA)
The Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program focuses on workers who lose their jobs as a result of increased imports or shifts in production out of the United States. Eligible workers may receive one or more program benefits and services.
Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS)
The Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS) is committed to helping eligible veterans of the United States Armed Forces through a nationwide network.
The U.S. Department of Labor has implemented Priority of Service for veterans and eligible spouses in all qualified job training programs. This page offers resources for both the veteran job-seeker and employment and training program providers.
Resume Reviews
Meet individually with an Employment Specialist to review your résumé. Sign up in our Resource Room to get feedback on content and format. Learn to present yourself in the best light, working with a professional to highlight your skills while paying attention to fonts, layout and effective use of space. Contact your local job center for an appointment or stop by (staff available on a first-come, first-serve basis). Workshops also available.
Mock Interviews
Meet with an individual or a small panel of Employment Specialists to train or practice for employer interviews. Gain the experience and confidence to present yourself well in person and get insight into questions that might be asked. Following the interview, you will receive feedback directed at what you’re doing well and what might need improvement. Contact your local job center for an appointment.
Education & Training
Individuals who need the training to acquire new skills or who need to upgrade their current skills may be eligible for financial assistance. Training must be in a high demand occupation and provided by an approved educational institution. Funding is dependent on availability and program qualification (e.g. Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, Department of Vocational Rehabilitation, VETS, etc). Contact your local job center for more information or an appointment.
Apprenticeships
An Apprenticeship is training that combines structured on-the-job training with related classroom instruction. Typically this type of training is sponsored by employers, employer associations, or labor/management groups that have the ability to hire and train in a working environment. More information can be found at the following link or by contacting your local job center. http://dwd.wisconsin.gov/apprenticeship/
High school students interested in pursuing an apprenticeship can find more information at the following link: https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/youthapprenticeship/
Need your GED?
High School completion programs are available as well. Contact your nearest American Job Center for more details.
Workshops & Classes
Contact your nearest American Job Center for more information and class/workshop dates and times. Most workshops and classes are free of charge, but pre-registration is required. Below are overviews of the workshops we offer for job seekers:
Resumes, Cover Letters, and Job Search
This workshop provides an overview of the process for creating an effective resume and cover letter. Attendees will also learn about job searching tools and gain networking ideas.
Looking for Work in All the Wrong Places
Searching for employment but finding it difficult to find the “perfect fit?” In this session, we will discuss common mistakes in job searching and solutions to finding the best job for you.
Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act (WIOA) Orientation
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) was signed into law on July 22, 2014. WIOA is designed to help job seekers access employment, education, training, and support services to succeed in the labor market and to match employers with the skilled workers they need to compete in the global economy. Learn more by contacting a Career Services Specialist at an American Job Center nearest you!
Opening Doors
This workshop discusses the special challenges facing a job seeker who has been incarcerated. Participants will network and learn job-seeking strategies to get them back on track for employment.
Ability Profiler Assessment
The Ability Profiler is an online assessment designed to help you understand the relationship between your aptitudes and abilities and the careers that match your interests. It is composed of six timed sections that measure your ability in areas that are essential to success in most occupations.
Red Flag
Trying to figure out how to tell your story/situation, but worried about how an employer will respond to it? In this session, we will discuss common red flag issues, such as gaps in work history, being let go from a job, criminal background, etc., and how to deal with these questions positively.
LinkedIn/Social Media for Job Seekers
In this workshop, job seekers will learn how to use social media to connect with the people who can hire you, so you can find employment faster!
Over 50 and Job Searching
This workshop focuses on challenges older job seekers face in their job search, identifies ways to overcome those challenges and provides tips for working in a multi-generational workplace.
Interviewing: Sell Yourself
In this workshop, job seekers will learn essential interviewing skills, how to prepare for questions and learn how to present themselves to employers.
Computer Basics for Job Seekers
Learn how to use a mouse to navigate the computer, save files, create and send an email, and how to use the internet to find and apply for jobs.
Mock Interviews
Job seekers can practice common interview questions and receive feedback for improvement.
Re-Employment Services Orientation
Learn how to effectively market yourself in today’s job searching climate. We will cover networking, effective framing of your résumé, interviewing tips, along with a review of the abundant resources available at your local Job Center.
Resume Reviews
Receive a valuable half-hour of feedback on your existing résumé. This expert advice helps job seekers create a great “personal commercial”.
Elevator Speeches
Learn how to make a great first impression and develop an elevator speech that grabs an employer’s attention.
Successful Job Interviewing: How to Get That Job Offer
Ensure all of your communication demonstrates how you will bring value to an organization. Focus on your strengths and how to be an asset to an employer.
Effective Job Searching Strategies for the 40+ Job Seeker
Learn how to stand out in a younger workforce.
Overcoming a Challenging Work History
Learn how to overcome your job search barriers and redirect your communication to the positive things about hiring you.
Computer Basics for Beginner Computer Users (2-1/2 hours)
Never used a computer before? Come learn about computer basics. You can’t look around these days without noticing computers. They line the walls of schools, libraries, hospitals, offices, stores, and governmental agencies. Computers have become a daily presence in our lives even for those of us who have not used one before. Computer Basics will provide instruction from turning the computer on to using the mouse, and performing basic computer tasks.
Intro to Word (2 hours)
This class is designed for those interested in the use of Microsoft Word. Would you like to know how to create a word document, save it and find it again? You will learn how to create a document, save it to a device, insert various images or shapes, change the document layout, and learn how to conduct a spelling or grammar check.
Navigating the Internet (2 hours)
Are you new to using the Internet to find a job? Let’s learn the basics of navigating the World Wide Web. We will look at the functions of the Internet Browser and review the common vocabulary used when browsing the internet. You will learn how to narrow down internet searches, navigate websites useful in a job search, and learn how to troubleshoot internet problems.
All About E-mail (2 hours)
In this class, you will learn how to create an e-mail account, personalize your e-mail account settings, create an e-mail signature, send e-mails to your desired location, and learn how to attach documents to an e-mail. We will also learn how to troubleshoot e-mail account problems that may come up and learn problem-solving techniques related to your e-mail account.
Intro to Excel (2 hours)
This spreadsheet program can be simple to use when you know the difference between a row and a column. We will identify the features and possibilities of Excel. Learn how to sort and print data, solve mathematical equations, combine data from more than one spreadsheet, and how to format your Excel spreadsheet.
Intro to Google Docs & Google Drive (2 hours)
Get to know what Google has to offer. There is an alternative source for creating a document, and it’s free. Access files anywhere through secure cloud storage and backup for your photos, videos, and more with Google Drive.
Intro to Job Center of WI: www.JobCenterOfWisconsin.com (1 hour)
Learn what the Job Center of Wisconsin website (jobcenterofwisconsin.com) can do for you. Create a résumé, search for a job, find labor market information, and so much more.
Job Fairs & Onsite Recruiters
A job fair is an event where groups of employers, recruiters, and schools give information to potential employees. Job seekers attend these while trying to make a good impression to potential coworkers by speaking face-to-face with one another. Contact your local job center for upcoming events.
Employers will often send recruiters to job center locations to meet individuals at a central location and connect with job seekers receiving assistance from job center staff and partnering organizations. Contact your local job center for upcoming events.
High Demand Jobs
WisConomy
WisConomy provides information on high demand occupations (jobs), current wage trends, local job outlooks, occupational skills and other occupational statistics throughout Wisconsin.
Skills Explorer
Match your skills with new career (job) opportunities at Skills Explorer. Locate current job openings in your area based on your current job title and match it with other job titles you may have the skillset for.
On-the-Job Training (OJT)
On-the-job training, as allowed by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), is a viable training tool for eligible WIOA participants. This is an employer-lead training opportunity that allows qualified individuals to receive a paycheck while learning new skills on the job! Employers benefit due to lower training costs associated with new-hires; employees benefit because they have an opportunity to learn new skills and a chance at landing a job they may not have had otherwise. Contact your local job center to learn more about OJTs.
Job Search Sites
Bay Area American Job Centers use the Job Center of Wisconsin as its premiere labor exchange system. New jobs are posted daily. You can browse through the job postings in east-central Wisconsin and throughout the state of Wisconsin. Powerful technology using word match systems will help you find your next job.
Types of Job Centers
What is a Comprehensive Job Centers (CJC)? A CJC provides a full array of employment and training related services for workers, youth and businesses. These locations include the mandatory Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) partners on-site.
What is an Affiliated location? Affiliated locations provide limited employment and training related services for workers, youth, and businesses, but will work in connecting you to the more extensive CJC services.