Committee hears presentation on Marshfield Job Center partnership; no action taken

Jane Spencer, executive director of the North Central Wisconsin Workforce Development Board, described the services offered at the Marshfield Job Center and asked the committee to continue the existing partnership that supports a part-time resource-room assistant.

The presentation outlined that the job center provides open access to the public labor exchange under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). “We operate and we're here based on the Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act,” Spencer said, noting the center connects businesses and job seekers, offers computer access and helps people with online state resources that can be difficult to navigate without assistance.

Spencer said the Marshfield resource room is open Tuesday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and that last year the center recorded 405 foot-traffic events; she cautioned that count reflects visits and not distinct individuals. She described how some visitors move from general resource-room use into eligibility-based programs (Title I employment and training programs) where case management and individual service tracking begin.

Committee members questioned costs and cost-effectiveness given the city’s budget constraints. A committee member calculated that if all 405 visits were distinct individuals, the implied cost would be roughly $37 per visit; Spencer said the board could provide historical trends but did not have multi-year visit counts at the meeting. Spencer said business-facing services also occur, including job fairs and employer outreach; she reported 22 employers physically visited the office in 2024.

On staffing and funding, Spencer said the resource-room assistant is a single position filled through a staffing/leasing company (ABR). The current worker’s pay rate was stated as $16.50 per hour and the committee heard an approximate agency cost of about $21–23 per hour; Spencer estimated the combined annual cost for the position and associated overhead at roughly $23,000. She said partners, including the workforce board and other local entities, share costs, and the Department of Workforce Development provides training for the resource-room worker. Spencer said the board is exploring alternate locations in Marshfield because another organization has expressed interest in the current space; she added partners were meeting to seek solutions.

Vice Chair Tompkins and several council members pressed for historical usage data and asked whether phone and mobile usage have reduced in-person traffic; Spencer replied that some services (for example, unemployment-insurance tasks and certain reemployment services) still drive in-person visits because they can require more assistance or use systems that are not mobile-friendly.

Committee Chair (on Zoom) and other members thanked Spencer and the city staff for the briefing. The committee formally decided not to take action on an extension of the partnership at this meeting and closed the item for tonight.