Eligibility for WIOA training funds

The following are eligibility guidelines and documentation required for adults (18 years+).

If you are having issues with completing the form or would like to speak to a counselor regarding the eligibility requirements, please call us at 508-799-1600.

You must currently reside or have worked in our Service Delivery Area. If not, please contact your local MassHire Career Center by clicking HERE. The following cities and towns are eligible for the MassHire Central Career Center area:

Auburn, Boylston, Brookfield, East Brookfield, Grafton, Hardwick, Holden, Leicester, Millbury, New Braintree, North Brookfield, Northborough, Oakham, Paxton, Rutland, Shrewsbury, Spencer, Upton, Warren, Blackstone, Hopedale, Mendon, Milford, Millville, Northbridge, Uxbridge, West Boylston, West Brookfield, Westboro, Charlton, Douglas, Dudley, Oxford, Southbridge, Sturbridge, Sutton, Webster and Worcester.

You must be legally authorized to work in the United States of America. Any of the following documents can be used to show this authorization:

Birth certificate (for US citizens), US passport, voter registration card, alien registration card indicating right to work, foreign passport stamped eligible to work or naturalization certification.

For more information or to Request Employment Authorization, click HERE.

You must possess one of the following: birth certificate, driver’s license, DD214 (veterans only), baptismal record, federal/state/local government identification card, Selective Service card, hospital record or passport.

Males 18 or older who were born on or after January 1, 1960 must be in compliance with the Military Selective Service Act (draft registration). Acceptable forms of documentation include: DD214 (veteran’s status), Selective Service card, Selective Service registration form, stamped post office receipt of registration.

To register for Selective Service or to verify your Selective Service registration status, please click HERE.

You must be a registered member of the MassHire Central Career Center. If you have attended a Career Center Seminar in-person or virtually within the past 12 months, you are a member.

If not, you must register to attend a Career Center Seminar. You can click HERE to create a profile on JobQuest and schedule the seminar yourself. You can also call your local career center to be scheduled over the phone.

1. Dislocated Worker – an individual who has been terminated or laid off, or who has received a notice of termination or layoff from employment and is eligible for or has exhausted entitlement to unemployment compensation. *Documentation of unemployment insurance (UI) records required.

2. Displaced Homemaker – an individual who has been providing unpaid services to family members in the home and who has been dependent on the income of another family member but is no longer supported by that income. Documentation required to determine “Displaced Homemaker” status would be tax returns, Social Security documents, death certificate or divorce decree.

3. Economically Disadvantaged – status based on family size and income which includes gross wages and salaries (before deductions), pay received while serving in the Armed Forces, pensions, Worker’s Compensation, interest and dividends, net rental income and fixed term or lifetime winnings. It does not include unemployment compensation payments, child support, savings, food stamps and some forms of public assistance such as SSI, TAFDC or EAEDC. The income guidelines for program year July 1st, 2024 – June 30th, 2025 based on family size and previous 6 month allowed income are:

You will be asked to document your family income and your family size for eligibility purposes for the last 6 months.

A family is defined as:

1. The prospective program participant, their spouse and any dependent children

2. a parent or guardian and dependent children

3. An individual not meeting the above definition of family is considered to be a family of one. A single individual 18 years or older living apart from family, as defined above, is a family of one. An individual with a disability or living in a recovery home is also considered a family of one. Acceptable forms of family size verification are birth certificates statements, medical cards or most recent tax return supported by IRS documents (e.g. Letter 1722).