FoodShare: Basic Work Rules and Work Requirement Information

If you have an exemption, you do not need to follow FoodShare basic work rules to keep getting FoodShare benefits.

You are exempt from following FoodShare basic work rules if any of the following are true:

• You are 16 or 17 years old and are not the primary person in the FoodShare household.
• You are 16 or 17 years old and are the primary person in the FoodShare household but are enrolled in school or in an employment and training program at least half-time.
• You are found to be unfit for work. This applies if you get temporary or permanent disability benefits from the government or a private source.
• You are found to be mentally or physically unable to work by your agency.
• You are verified as unable to work by a statement from a health care professional or social worker.
• You are enrolled in W-2 and complying with the W-2 work requirements.
• You are the primary caregiver for a dependent child younger than age 6 (whether the child lives in your home or out of your home). However, if you and another person both have parental control of the child, only one of you can be exempt from FoodShare basic work rules as the primary caregiver of that child.
• You are the primary caregiver for another person who cannot care for themselves (whether the person lives in your home or out of your home).
• You have applied for or are receiving unemployment compensation.
• You are regularly taking part in an alcohol or other drug abuse (AODA) treatment or rehabilitation program.
• You are working 30 or more hours per week or earning weekly wages of $217.50 or more.
• You are enrolled at least half-time in a recognized school, training program, or institution of higher education.

Note: You may need to provide proof that you have an exemption. You will get a letter from your agency if proof is needed.

If you think one of these exemptions describes you, call your agency to see if you are exempt from the FoodShare basic work rules.

If you lose an exemption, you must follow FoodShare basic work rules. If you lose the exemption and do not meet the basic work rules, you will not be able to get FoodShare benefits for a specified sanction period, unless you have another exemption or good cause.

Good cause means there is something you cannot control that stops you from being able to follow FoodShare basic work rules. If you have good cause, you may be able to get FoodShare benefits even if you are not following FoodShare basic work rules or you do not have an exemption.

Some examples of reasons for good cause are:

• You did not accept a job offer, or you quit a job, because the job was not a good fit.
• You were fired or quit at the employer’s demand.
• You were discriminated against by an employer based on your age, race, sex, gender, color, disability, religious beliefs, national origin, or political beliefs.
• You left your job for another job that is a good fit, training, or school.
• You were not able to continue a job because you moved.
• Your personal health problems, or the health problems of others in your household, did not allow you to continue your job.
• Your job hours were reduced by your employer without your permission.
• You quit a job to join a volunteer program such as AmeriCorps or AmeriCorps VISTA.
• You did not have transportation to get to the job.
• You did not have child care for a child younger than age 12.
• There were other things you could not control that the agency determines was good cause.

If you have something that stopped you from following the FoodShare basic work rules, call your agency. Your agency will determine if there was good cause.

If you do not follow FoodShare basic work rules and you do not have an exemption, you will not be able to get FoodShare benefits for a specified sanction period.

The length of a sanction period depends on how many sanctions you had:

• The first sanction is for one month.
• A second sanction is for three months.
• A third or more sanction period is for six months.

You can end a sanction period early if you become exempt from FoodShare basic work rules.

You will need to reapply for FoodShare benefits. If you are part of a household that is already getting FoodShare benefits, you will need to contact your agency to have them update your case.

• More information about FoodShare and the FoodShare Employment and Training (FSET) program can be found on the FoodShare or FSET webpages.
• Job and training opportunities are available through Wisconsin’s Job Centers, by going to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development’s website.
• More information about education and training opportunities is available through the Wisconsin’s Technical College System's website.

For more details about FoodShare basic work rules, you can refer to your Enrollment and Benefits Handbook, P-00079. You can also call your agency.

You need to start meeting the FoodShare work requirement in the first full month of getting FoodShare benefits. When your FoodShare application is approved, anyone in the household who needs to meet the work requirement is referred to the FSET program. If you are referred to the FSET program, you will get another letter explaining more about the program.

You may be exempt and not need to meet the FoodShare work requirement if any of the following are true:

• You are the primary caretaker for a person who cannot care for themselves (whether the person lives in your home or out of your home).
• You are the primary caretaker for a dependent child under age 6 (whether the child lives in your home or out of your home). However, if you and another person both have parental control of the child, only one of you can be exempt from the FoodShare work requirement as the primary caregiver of that child.
• You are living with a child who is under age 18 who is part of the same FoodShare household, even if the child is not eligible for FoodShare benefits.
• You are physically or mentally unable to work.
• You are homeless. This includes people who are in a temporary housing situation, such as transitional living arrangements and shelters, or a staying temporarily (up to 90 days) at another person’s residence.
• You are pregnant.
• You are receiving or have applied for unemployment compensation.
• You are taking part in an alcohol or other drug abuse (AODA) treatment or rehabilitation program.
• You are enrolled at least half-time in a recognized school or institution of higher learning.
• You are age 18 or older attending high school at least half-time.
• You are enrolled in W-2 and meeting W-2 requirements.
• You are working 30 or more hours per week or are earning weekly wages of $217.50 or more.
• You are an 18—24-year-old who was in foster care, a subsidized guardianship, or court-ordered kinship care, when you turned 18.
• You are a veteran, defined as a person who served in the United States Armed Forces (the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard, National Guard, or Armed Forces Reserve) who has been discharged or released under any condition.

Note: You may need to provide proof that you have an exemption. You will get a letter from your agency if proof is needed.

If you think one of these exemptions describes you, call your agency to see if you are exempt from the work requirement.

The federal government approved a waiver allowing FoodShare members living in some areas of Wisconsin that have a high unemployment rate to not have to meet the work requirement.

As of October 1, 2023, members do not need to meet the work requirement if they live in:

• The cities of Milwaukee and Racine.
• Menominee, Forest, Iron, and Adams counties.
• Tribal lands and reservations belonging to the: 
  • Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians
  • Forest County Potawatomi Community
  • Ho-Chunk Nation
  • Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians
  • Lac Du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians
  • Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin
  • Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians
  • St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin
  • Sokaogon Chippewa Community Mole Lake Band
  • Stockbridge-Munsee Community Band of Mohican Indians

Through additional federal flexibilities, members living on tribal lands and the reservations of Oneida Nation and Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians also do not have to meet the work requirement.

This policy will last until at least September 30, 2024.

FoodShare members who have to meet the FoodShare work requirement must do so each month. You can get FoodShare for three total months within a three-year period that began on January 1, 2022, and continues until December 31, 2024, without meeting the work requirement or having an exemption.

The time limit clock will then reset and start over at the end of the three-year period. A new three-year period will begin on January 1, 2025.

If you need to meet the FoodShare work requirement and do not meet it, you may only get three months of FoodShare benefits within a three-year period that began on January 1, 2022, and continues until December 31, 2024. To keep getting FoodShare benefits after the three months, you must meet the work requirement or have an exemption.

Good cause means there is something you cannot control that temporarily stops you from being able to meet the FoodShare work requirement.

Some examples of good cause related to the work requirement are:

• Your personal health problems, or the health problems of others, caused you to miss hours.
• You missed hours because of bad weather.
• You did not have transportation to get to your job or work program.
• You had a crisis or emergency (death, domestic violence, temporary workplace shutdown).
• You had legal issues or a required court appearance.
• You stopped attending a job or work program activity due to discrimination or unreasonable demands.
• Your jobsite or work program site closed due to a site-specific holiday.
• You missed hours to observe a religious holiday.
• You were terminated from a job or work program assigned activity due to reasons you could not control.
• You cannot get paid by FSET for reasonable expenses needed to participate in an FSET activity that was on your FSET employment plan.
• Your work program or activity was cancelled.
• There were other things you could not control that the agency determines counted as good cause.

Your agency may be able to count the hours you had good cause for not working toward meeting the work requirement. If something stopped you from working hours to meet the work requirement, contact your agency. Your agency will determine if there was good cause.

You will be referred to the FSET program when you renew or apply for FoodShare benefits if you need to meet the FoodShare work requirement and are not already working, participating in a work program for at least 80 hours each month, or a combination of both.

FSET can help you meet the work requirement. FSET offers free services to help you build job skills and find employment. FSET works with you on your goals and you can complete activities that fit within those goals to meet the FoodShare work requirement.

FSET can pay you back for expenses that are reasonable and necessary to participate in the program. Some examples include transportation, registration fees, and cost of uniforms.

Anyone in your household who gets FoodShare and is over age 16 can take part in the FSET program, even if they do not have to meet the FoodShare work requirement. If you or someone in your household have not yet been referred and would like take part in the program, contact your agency.

More information about FoodShare and the FoodShare Employment and Training (FSET) program can be found on the FoodShare or FSET webpages.

• More information about FoodShare and the FoodShare Employment and Training (FSET) program can be found on the FoodShare or FSET webpages.
• Job and training opportunities are available through Wisconsin’s Job Centers, by going to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development’s website.
• More information about education and training opportunities is available through the Wisconsin’s Technical College System's website.

For more details about the FoodShare work requirement, you can refer to your Enrollment and Benefits Handbook, P-00079. You can also call your agency.