Purpose

The Community Work Adjustment Program provides a supportive, realistic work experience at a community employment site to persons who need minimal adjustment and work experience in order to enhance their potential for competitive employment.

Community Work Adjustment should improve a client’s work speed and quality as well as provide an opportunity to test vocational potential in the open labor market at a site transferable to the client’s stated vocational goal.

The participating job site donates, under contract to Goodwill Industries, the work site and the supervisor.

Persons are referred by first or third party referral to this program and must have first or third party funding.

Expected Client Outcomes

  1. The client clarifies vocational goals
  2. The client is referred to placement services
  3. The client obtains employment

Clients Served

  • Emotionally disabled
  • Physically disabled
  • Developmentally disabled
  • Severely disabled
  • Those with multiple disabilities
  • Unemployed; underemployed; inappropriately employed
  • Those needing minimal adjustment services
  • Those lacking work experience

Services Provided


  • Full or part-time work experience
  • On-site training, observation, and evaluation by employer and program manager
  • Vocational counseling
  • Job slot development
  • Job Coaching/Mentoring

Admission Criteria

In addition to meeting facility admission criteria, the individual referred to the Community Work Adjustment Program should be unemployed; underemployed; inappropriately employed, have verified potential for competitive employment (work quality and speed of 75% of competitive norm), need minimal work adjustment services or work experience, have reliable transportation, and first or third party funding.

How can you access this service?

For more information, call Ashtabula Goodwill, Inc. Serving NE Ohio & NW Pennsylvania at (440) 954-3565.

Program Procedures

Step #1: Clients are referred to the program manager and the program is presented to them. They will discuss mutual expectations and benefits, develop an Individual Vocational Rehabilitation Plan and discuss potential work sites aligned with the client’s stated vocational goal. A decision to admit the client will be made at this time.

Step #2: A typical CWA placement lasts 10 days. The program manager will make arrangements to start the client with the job site and notify the referral source. The program manager will then negotiate an initial interview time prior to the client’s start date so that the client and the job site supervisor may meet, and any areas of concern are discussed and rectified at this time. It is during this period that the outline of the program is made clear to the employer. The employer is made aware of the 40-hour per week limitation; he is also made aware that there is no responsibility to retain the client at the end of the program.

Step #3: The client participates in 10 days of community work adjustment not to exceed 80 hours. During this time visits and contacts with the job site and client are made by the program manager to gather the necessary feedback and services requested by the referral source. During this time observations are reported to the program manager by the supervisor and by the client as well.

Step #4: Upon total completion of Community Work Adjustment a final staffing is held, results of the program are reviewed, and a final report is written.

*Special Note*
Should a client be hired by the job site employer while still in the Community Work Adjustment program and the employer cites no need for continuing support services, that client automatically is terminated from the program.

A final staffing is held at the program’s end and the client is considered employed. If at the end of the 10-day period the employer is committed to hiring the client but expresses a need for additional services, CWA may be extended at the discretion of the referring counselor.

Discharge Criteria

  1. Client will demonstrate ability to work in competitive community site
  2. Client will interact appropriately with employer/supervisor
  3. Client will demonstrate good worker traits of punctuality, good attendance and ability to follow rules
  4. Client will provide input on further recommendations

Assurances and Responsibilities

The Client Shall:

  1. Not work for more than 40 hours per week and shall participate for more than four weeks or 160 hours
  2. Cooperate to the fullest extent to meet the objectives of the treatment plan

Goodwill Industries of Ashtabula Shall:

  1. Provide all technical assistance, client counseling, and job station assistance
  • Be responsible for client wages
  • Be responsible for program continuality and correct operation

    • The Job Site Shall:

    1. Donate to Goodwill the client job station
    2. Donate supervision and/or “stand-back” supervision to Goodwill for client adjustment/exploration
    3. Provide useful, transferable job experience for the client
    4. Not have regular employees laid-off or on “reduced hours”
    5. Not terminate or reduce the hours of a regular employee or reduce the pay scale of any employee due to client participation.
    6. Not establish an employer-employee relationship with the client for the duration of this program
    7. Not utilize more than one job station at one time for this purpose

    Pursuant to the nature of this agreement, neither Goodwill Industries nor its cooperating and sponsoring partners shall be required to retain the client or an employee.

    Should the above mentioned employer wish to retain the client, it shall be the sole responsibility of that party and the client to negotiate such an agreement.