Employer Services Menu

Browse our unique service offerings to see how we can be of assistance.

Grow Your Business

Hire & Recruit

Work in Texas

WorkInTexas.com is a free, online applicant recruitment and matching tool brought to you by WFS Capital Area and the Texas Workforce Commission.

Work in Texas offers employers:

  • Access to thousands of local and statewide workers
  • Unlimited free job postings
  • Real-time applicant matching
  • Viewing of applicant resumes
  • Email notifications of matches

Business Solutions provides training and one-on-one assistance to all employers interested in making the most of their Work in Texas job postings.

Job Fairs & Hiring Events

We offer no-cost virtual, in-person, and hybrid hiring events for local Austin employers. We offer single-employer events for focused recruiting as well as large-scale, multi-employer industry job fairs.

View our upcoming events here.

Candidate Screening & Testing

We offer a variety of nationally-certified skills assessments to help you gauge job candidates. Topics include: occupation-specific skills, interests, aptitudes and work ethics/values.

Offered at no charge, each assessment includes a consultation which is designed to gather information about your hiring needs and to identify an assessment package that is right for you. Our certified vocational evaluation specialist will then administer the assessments and evaluate the results for you.

Request Labor Market Information

Workforce Solutions Capital Area analyzes local and regional labor market data to provide businesses with the real-time, in-depth knowledge they need to make the right decisions for their workforce. See regional insights and make a request here.

Career Promotion & K-12 Engagement

Workforce Career Education & Outreach Specialists raise awareness of career possibilities to students and job seekers. Our work connects with five Austin area school districts including: Austin, Del Valle, Elgin, Manor, and Pflugerville

Participate in WFS opportunities to promote your careers to qualified and emerging talent through job fairs, webinars, teacher externships, promotional videos, and more. Learn more.

Fidelity Bonding

The fidelity bonding service helps at-risk job applicants get and keep a job. TWC and the Workforce Development Boards offer free fidelity bonding services to reduce employers’ concerns about hiring at-risk job applicants who cannot be bonded through other sources. For this bonding, Travelers Property Casualty Insurance Company issues an insurance policy that protects the employer against employee acts of dishonesty such as larceny, embezzlement, and theft. Learn more here.

Work Opportunity Tax Credit

WOTC is a federal income tax benefit administered by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) for employers who hire individuals from specified target populations, including veterans. WOTC reduces a business’s federal tax liability, serving as an incentive to select job candidates who may be disadvantaged in their efforts to find employment. Learn more.

Fair Chance Hiring

City of Austin’s Fair Chance Hiring Ordinance

The City of Austin’s Fair Chance Hiring Ordinance, which took effect April 4, 2016, aims to reduce recidivism and unemployment and increase re-integration for qualified job applicants with criminal histories. The law places restrictions on certain private employers on when they can ask about a job applicant’s criminal history and how that information can be used.

For more information on the City of Austin’s ordinance and how it might affect your hiring process:

Hiring Assistance

Employers who hire qualified applicants in the Austin/Travis County area with a criminal record may be able to utilize:

  • Work Opportunity Tax Credits (WOTC): A federal income tax benefit administered by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) for employers who hire individuals from specified target populations, including ex-felons
  • Fidelity Bonding: Free insurance protection services to reduce employers’ concerns about hiring at-risk job applicants who cannot be bonded through other sources

To learn more about these programs and services, please contact us.

Upskilling

Train & Retain

On-the-Job Training

WFS Capital Area’s On-the-Job Training (OJT) Program is a great way for employers to develop new hires into the skilled workers they need.

Through OJT, eligible employers directly hire employees, train them while they work full time, and could receive reimbursement for up to 50% of new employee straight-time wages for up to six months. Interested employers must commit to hiring and retaining the individuals who successfully complete their training programs.

Subsidized Employment / Work Experience

Through the Subsidized Employment program, WFS Capital Area can cover new employee wages and liability insurance for 30 to 90 days at a pre-approved worksite. This program can support many part or full-time roles with wages typically set according to prevailing wage.

How to apply and participate:

Upskilling Consultation

Upskilling is assisting incumbent workers in acquiring skills to advance into middle-skill jobs, particularly those in high demand for their employers.

Upskilling looks like:

  • providing your employees with tuition assistance
  • offering onsite training to build their skill sets and their value to your company
  • sponsoring an apprenticeship that allows employees to earn while they learn and skill up for your high-demand roles.

For more info, contact us at upskilling@wfscapitalarea.com.

Check out our free upskilling toolkit.

Upskilling HEREOS & Upskilling Survey

With the impacts of COVID, it’s becoming more challenging for companies to hire, maintain, and develop their workforce. But for our local economy to thrive, Austin must hire local and grow their employees. By understanding the landscape of existing upskilling efforts, we can demonstrate return on investment and advocate for additional funding to support your efforts.

By completing the Upskilling Survey, you’re helping to increase and improve community efforts to support and effect local change. You’ll also nominate your company as an Upskilling HERO to show that you’re building a higher-skilled workforce and more competitive economy through upskilling strategies. Get started.

Incumbent Worker Training — Applications Now Open!

Incumbent Worker Training (IWT) provides funding assistance to qualifying employers to provide skills training to current full-time, permanent employees.

Training can include, but is not limited to, industry or employer-specific work skills, basic job skills, technical computer skills, new manufacturing technologies, equipment operation training, and changes in production processes. You determine and select the types of training and training provider(s) that meet your business and training requirements before submitting an application for consideration.

Applications are now open for Incumbent Worker Training! Click the button below to learn more and apply today.

GET STARTED

Apprenticeships

Apprenticeship is an industry-driven, high-quality career pathway where companies can develop and prepare their future workforce, and individuals can obtain paid work experience, related classroom instruction, and a nationally recognized, portable credential. Workforce Solutions can help you join an existing apprenticeship or develop your own. Schedule a meeting to determine the best option for your company and get connected to a new talent pipeline. Learn more.

Texas Workforce Commission Programs

If you are interested in applying for one of these opportunities in the Capital Area and would like more information, please contact us.

The Skills Development Fund (SDF) assists employers by financing the design and implementation of customized job training projects. The SDF successfully merges business needs and local customized training opportunities into a winning formula to increase the skills levels and wages of the Texas workforce.

As a part of the Skills Development Fund, the Skills for Small Business Program assists employers with less than 100 employees by financing training for full-time employees. Training through the Skills for Small Business program increases business competitiveness, upgrades the skill of current employees and prepares newly hired employees for job requirements.

The Self-Sufficiency Fund Program assists businesses and trade unions by financing the development and implementation of customized job training projects for new and current workers. Self-Sufficiency Fund grants deliver businesses customized training solutions that support workforce hiring efforts and skills upgrading for current workers. The goal of the Self-Sufficiency Fund is to assist recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), or a parent, including a noncustodial parent whose annual wages are at or below $37,000 to obtain training, get jobs, and become independent of government financial assistance.

Save Jobs

Layoff & Outplacement

Unemployment Claims & Appeals: For Employers

The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) holds responsibility for the state unemployment compensation program. However, Workforce Solutions Capital Area works closely with TWC and can act as your local navigator to resources.

The Mass Claims program streamlines the unemployment benefits claims process for employers faced with layoffs (permanent or temporary) of 10 or more employees at one time and takes some of the burden off the employees filing. For information on how to file a Mass Claim, go to the TWC website and download the User Guide.

Layoff Aversion

Whenever possible, we want to explore early interventions such as layoff aversion opportunities. Please view some strategies below to help you retain your workforce.

Shared work allows employers to reduce the work hours of employees rather than laying them off. TWC pays shared-work employees partial unemployment benefits to supplement the wages lost to working reduced hours. For information on how to apply for Shared Work, go to the TWC website and download the User Guide.

Incumbent Worker Training (IWT) provides funding assistance to qualifying employers to provide skills training to current full-time, permanent employees. Training can include, but is not limited to, industry or employer-specific work skills, basic job skills, technical computer skills, new manufacturing technologies, equipment operation training, and changes in production processes. You determine and select the types of training and training provider(s) that meet your business and training requirements before submitting an application for consideration.

More COVID-19 Resources

Find additional COVID-19 resources for employers here.

Interested in our services?

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