Robin Sessions Cooley

There’s a common belief that the Department of Workforce Services (DWS) is just the unemployment office. But did you know that here at DWS, we manage more than 55 programs that help the people of Wyoming? Through those programs, DWS emphasizes the following nine core functions:

Employee Career Guidance and Training — Helping individuals establish solid career pathways.

Employment and Recruitment — Connecting individual job seekers with employers.

Employee Development and Retention — Connect employers with professional development opportunities to increase employee skill attainment through various grant opportunities.

Rehabilitation — Helping individuals with disabilities acquire and retain employment.

Regulatory and Compliance Enforcement — Investigation of wage claims and fair employment assurance; workplace safety.

Communication and Education — Collect data to provide accurate labor market information and monitor labor trends.

Benefit Payments — Assistance with financial and social stabilization.

Revenue Collections — For employer registration with Workers’ Compensation and Unemployment Insurance programs.

Collaboration — Communicate and collaborate with internal and external stakeholders.

DWS administers Wyoming’s One-Stop system, and through our 18 workforce centers located throughout the state, we’ve developed strategies to facilitate referrals between programs to further assist our clients. These centers are a point of service for those seeking employment, training, and other related services. I maintain that DWS is not just the unemployment office; we are the re-employment office. We’re the office that can help you start your career; we can help you develop and upskill yourself; we can help you transition into other employment. We have direct connections with the Wyoming Workforce Development Council,  Wyoming’s community colleges, the University of Wyoming, Adult Education (AE) centers, and AE specialists who can help you create that pathway to a new career. 

Our One-Stop system makes information accessible to the public, businesses, and Wyoming’s workers, with everything at your fingertips. This winter, we’re on track to roll out our new job search site; it will be a more straightforward, intuitive interface, which will include a training section with life skill modules, professional development modules, and industry exploration modules – all geared to help build job seekers’ skills.

Additional tools for job seekers include:

Resume builder.

Cover letter builder.

Budget calculator.

Mock job application.

Thank you letter builder.

Business plan builder.

An interview simulation trainer will allow the job seeker to virtually interview in a recorded session, allowing them to improve their interview skills to help them land a new job. Job seekers will also have the ability to create an e-portfolio, which will have an individualized link to share with potential employers. In that e-portfolio, job seekers can include resumes, transcripts, letters of recommendation, awards, and more!

In addition to our new job search site, DWS will soon be implementing a number of other initiatives, including:

Talent Transition Initiative — A marketing campaign that will inform job seekers, counselors, and others about opportunities to make a career transition to emerging and growing industries in Wyoming.

WyHealthTrain — Provides funding for healthcare-related training costs for Wyoming citizens that will result in a certification or degree within a 2-year timeframe; participants must meet income and eligibility requirements.

Pre-Apprenticeship — Focuses on career pathways for in-school youth (16-24 years), designed to prepare individuals to enter and succeed in a registered apprenticeship program for participants who meet income and eligibility requirements.

Upskilling Wyoming —  This program offers upskilling opportunities that provide longer-term career investments for individuals to increase their knowledge and skills to advance their careers or to maintain careers with self-sufficient wages. 

If you haven’t had a chance to visit one of our 18 workforce centers, please do! We’re working hard to help Wyoming’s workforce and the businesses that hire them. We’ve got exciting things coming to Wyoming — and we want you to be part of it.

(Robin Sessions Cooley, J.D., is the Director of the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services.)