Under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and Trade Assistance Act (TAA), staff obtains personal and confidential information from individuals as part of eligibility determination and continuation of services. WIOA, TAA, and other federal and state regulations governing information sharing stipulate implementation of confidentiality policies and procedures. 

It is the responsibility of all workforce professionals to protect the privacy of all applicants for program services, as well as the privacy of all participants receiving program services. The purpose of this policy is to describe the protections that must be in place to protect all personally identifiable information (PII) on applicants and participants including the requirements for the use, storage, and security of sensitive and confidential information, and the consequences for not adhering to these safeguards.

Personal information will be treated in the strictest confidence and will not be shared without written authorization, except for monitoring, auditing, or other grantor-imposed information-sharing requirements.

This policy applies to all WIOA and TAA service provider staff, contractor staff, grantees, subgrantees, and any other individuals or groups involved in the handling and protecting of personally identifiable information per governing guidelines including federal law, Uniform Administrative Requirements (see 2 CFR 200.303), U. S. Department of Labor (USDOL), Employment and Training Administration regulations (see 20 CFR 683.220 for WIOA and 20 CFR 618.852(b) for TAA), Training and Employment Guidance Letter 39-11, Guidance on the Handling and Protection of Personally Identifiable Information (PII), as well as any relevant state and local requirements (see the Attachments tab for Federal and State Laws on Personally Identifiable and Sensitive Information).