State of Maryland

A Workforce Development Specialist IV is the advanced or lead level of work in the field of workforce development. Employees in this classification perform the more complex and difficult workforce case management duties that deliver a wide range of career services to special and targeted populations of job seekers to increase and enhance their job seeking skills and lessen their duration of unemployment or function as a lead worker.  Employees performing as advanced workers do not supervise lower-level Workforce Development Resource Specialists but may supervise support staff.  Employees assigned as lead workers assign, review and approve the work of and train lower-level Workforce Development Specialists, and may supervise support staff.

Employees in this classification receive general supervision from a Workforce Development Specialist Supervisor or other designated supervisor. The work may require travel to various employer work sites in order to promote use of public workforce development services.

Positions in this classification are evaluated by using the classification job evaluation methodology. The use of this method involves comparing the assigned duties and responsibilities of a position to the job criteria found in the Nature of Work and Examples of Work sections of the class specification.

When functioning at the advanced level:

Performs the more complex and difficult workforce case management duties that deliver a wide range of career services to special and targeted populations of job seekers to increase and enhance their job seeking skills and lessen their duration of unemployment;

Facilitates statewide and/or local events related to Trade Readjustment Activities, Rapid Response, Layoff Aversion, etc.;

Assists with completing federal reports and forms;

Communicates with the U.S. Department of Labor and the Maryland Department of Labor Administration to extrapolate information and prepare periodic reports and/or grant packages;

When functioning at the lead level:

Assigns, reviews, and approves the work of lower-level Workforce Development Specialists;

Trains lower-level Workforce Development Specialists;

Provides advice and guidance to lower-level Workforce Development Specialists in delivering a wide range of career services to job seekers;

When functioning at either the advanced or lead level:

Provides case management services to ensure proper training opportunities are available;

Understands various petitions and regulation differences as they apply to the assigned caseload;

Guides and assists participants with enrollment within specified timeline according to regulations;

Assists participants with training, job search (LMI) and potential training institutions;

Responds to statewide events including Trade, Rapid Response, job fairs, etc.;

Provides guidance with composition and meeting requirements for local foreign labor job orders;

Conducts wage surveys and completes housing inspections understanding regulatory requirements;

Maintains knowledge of federal, State and local employment laws;

Promotes special programs such as WOTC, State discretionary grants, enterprise zone etc.;

Provides services to job seekers to expedite their entry or re-entry into employment;

Assesses the skills and needs using the automated system to complete, review and update customer registration;

Conducts informal assessments in resource areas and provide initial options for program and partner referrals;

Identifies potential job matches of customer skills with job qualifications;

Refers qualified customers to job openings utilizing the automated workforce system;

Assists customers by facilitating and demonstrating the usage of self-service workforce resources;

Shares labor market information with customers using appropriate resource materials and automated systems so they can make to enable informed decisions on labor trends and economic conditions;

Refers job seekers to training and/or supportive services to improve their job readiness by utilizing community, training and educational resources;

Provides basic information and referral to federal bonding or other hiring incentive programs;

Assesses veteran Significant Barriers to Employment (SBE) eligibility and referral to DVOP staff;

Provides screening and letters for the purpose of issuing a federal bonding letter;

Answers basic Unemployment Insurance inquires as directed by UI;

Demonstrates online tools including assessment and external employment resources;

Identifies customers for referral for advanced business services;

Provides informal Resume consultation;

Facilitates the engagement of job seekers and businesses with employment resources by providing comprehensive information on the local workforce system;

Provides information on basic business services, take job orders and referrals to  businesses;

Identifies the greater employers' needs and facilitates a warm handoff (referral to business services) to a higher level Workforce Development Specialist or other designated staff;

Works with businesses to create workforce accounts;

Enters job orders into the automated system according to employer specifications;

May provide eligibility review after unemployment insurance workshops;

Performs other related duties.

Knowledge of the workforce development programs in the Department of Labor;

Knowledge of local workforce development policies, procedures and techniques;

Knowledge of interviewing principles and techniques;

Knowledge of a wide variety of occupations and their required qualifications or those of an industrial occupational category;

Knowledge of current local and Statewide employment practices, trends and opportunities;

Knowledge of the principles and techniques of career guidance;

Knowledge of community resources including training and employment facilities;

Knowledge of the Unemployment Insurance Law of Maryland;

Ability to analyze work qualifications of applicants and evaluate job work requirements;

Ability to work with employers in developing jobs;

Ability to motivate applicants to improve their employability;

Ability to communicate effectively with agency staff and the general public;

Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with the general public, applicants, employers, and representatives of other agencies;

Ability to perform and resolve the most complex and difficult workforce case management issues;

Ability to assign, review and approve the work of lower-level Workforce Development Specialists.

Education:   Graduation from an accredited high school or possession of a high school equivalency certificate.  

Experience: Four years of case management experience in the field of workforce development delivering a wide range of career services to special and targeted populations of job seekers.  Case management duties are defined as taking job orders, conducting job-ready interviews, registering job applicants, verifying job referrals, conducting vocational placements, performing unemployment adjudications or appraising job applicants for employability.

Notes:

1. Candidates may substitute education at an accredited college or university, at the rate of thirty credit hours each year of the required experience.

2. Candidates may substitute U.S. Armed Forces military service experience as a non-commissioned officer with active-duty military recruiting experience or career counseling experience on a year-by-year basis for the required education and experience.

Class specifications are broad descriptions covering groups of positions used by various State departments and agencies. Position descriptions maintained by the various State departments and agencies. Position descriptions maintained by the using department or agency specifically address the essential job functions of each position.

This is a Skilled Service classification in the State Personnel Management System. All positions in this classification are Skilled Service positions. Some positions in Skilled Service classifications may be designated Special Appointment in accordance with the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 6-405, Annotated Code of Maryland.

This classification is assigned to Bargaining Unit F, Social and Human Service Professionals classes. As provided by the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 3-102, special appointment, temporary, contractual, supervisory, managerial and confidential employees are excluded from collective bargaining. Additionally, certain executive branch agencies are exempt from collective bargaining and all positions in those agencies are excluded from collective bargaining.

Employees in this classification are eligible to receive overtime compensation. An employee who works more than the normal workweek is entitled to be compensated for that overtime, as provided by the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 8-305.