Employer Pathway
Talent Recruitment
Grant
Help prospective employees understand the opportunity to relocate to Wisconsin.
Relocation incentive
For eligible households through the Employer Pathway. Employer and household requirements apply.
Employer Guide
To the Talent Recruitment Incentive Program
Employer Pathway
Family Friendly Workplaces (FFW) administers a Talent Recruitment Grant (TRG) incentive program funded by a grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC). Households relocating to Wisconsin can qualify for a relocation incentive of $10,000 through the Employer Pathway if their employer meets certain requirements.
This guide explains what your organization needs to do for a prospective employee to be eligible to recieve an incentive payment, and prepares you to communicate with prospective employees about this opportunity.
What Your Organization Must Have
For a prospective employee's household to qualify under the Employer Pathway, your organization must be, at the time of the household's application and again at each disbursement:
- A Certified Family Friendly Workplace, current on all conduit payments and your matrix; and
- A member in good standing of your local county Economic Development Corporation (EDC)
Both conditions must be true. If either lapses before a disbursement, the household's Employer Pathway eligibility fails for that disbursement (though they may still qualify through the Young Family pathway).
Three steps for employers
Step 1: Be (Or Become) a Certified Family Friendly Workplace
If your organization already holds a Certification as a Family Friendly Workplace, this requierment is satisfied.
1. Review the Certification Matrix.
The FFW Certification Matrix lists every question and point value in the application, so you can preview requirements and estimate your certification level. There is no connection between your certification level and eligibility for this incentive program.
Certification points are only awarded for benefits that are a documented company policy or a consistently implemented practice. The certification levels and point values are:
- Gold — Distinguished Employer: 140+ points
- Silver — Strongly Supportive Employer: 90–139 points
- Bronze — Supportive Employer: 50–89 points
2. Submit your application online.
Visit www.familyfriendlyworkplaces.org and click "Join Today." Watch for a confirmation email after submitting. FFW staff will review your application and award certification at the appropriate level. Certification is valid for three years, after which re-certification is required. Once certified, your organization may use the trademarked FFW logo in recruiting, marketing, and communications.
3. Make your annual Conduit Contribution.
Following receipt and approval of your application, FFW will invoice you for your conduit contribution. This contribution serves as your certification dues and is required to maintain good standing.
The minimum conduit contribution is $10 per FTE employee, and you earn one matrix point per dollar donated (up to 20 points). The recipient must be a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit supporting families or children. FFW passes through 100% of the contribution. Unless you request a change, FFW will direct future annual contributions to the same nonprofit and in the same amount each year.
Step 2: Confirm EDC Membership in Good Standing
Your organization must be a current member of the Economic Development Corporation (EDC) serving the Wisconsin county where your business is located. Eligible EDCs are Burnett, Polk, St. Croix, and Pierce.
FFW will contact your local EDC directly to confirm this status as part of verifying each household's application. No separate submission is required from you, but you should confirm your membership is current with your local EDC before your employee applies for an incentive payment. If you are not a member of your local EDC, become one.
Step 3: Provide a Formal Written Job Offer
For an employee's household to use the Employer Pathway, you must extend a formal, written job offer that includes:
- The position title
- The applicant's name and current out-of-state address
- The applicant’s start date
- The name and contact information for the person at your organization who should be contacted to verify the offer.
The employee does not need to have started work before the household receives its first incentive payment. FFW will verify this job offer directly with your organization as part of the household's application review.
What Happens During Verification
When an employee's household applies FFW staff will, as part of their review:
- Verify the written job offer directly with your organization.
- Check your organization against FFW's current certified employer registry, recording the date of that check.
- Contact your local EDC to confirm your membership is in good standing, recording the EDC contact name, date, and confirmation method.
FFW re-verifies both your certification status and EDC membership again immediately before each of the two incentive disbursements (at the signed lease/mortgage stage and again at the six-month residency stage). Maintaining active certification and EDC membership throughout this period helps ensure your employee's household receives both payments without delay.
Ongoing Responsibilities
- Keep your FFW certification current (i.e., renew before your three-year certification expires).
- Remain current on your annual conduit contribution.
- Keep your EDC membership in good standing in the county where your organization operates.
- Respond promptly if FFW contacts you to verify a job offer for an employee's TRG application.
Employee Considerations and Responsibilities
It is incumbent upon you, during your conversations with your prospective employee about this incentive program, to make clear that reciept of the incentive payment is dependent on them succsessfully completing FFW’s application process and responding to requests for information from FFW. If they do not provide information, or do not qualify for the incentive program for any reason, FFW will deny their application for an incentive payment. FFW’s decisions are final, and are not subject to appeal.
Relevant eligibility rules include:
- The employee must live outside of Wisconsin at the time of the application to FFW, and cannot have an active lease or mortgage in Wisconsin at the time of their application to FFW;
- The employee must relocate to one of the following counties: Burnett, Polk, St. Croix, Pierce, Douglas, Washburn, Barron, Dunn, or Pepin.
- The employee’s household must make, at the time of application to FFW, more than $55,000 per year as shown on their previous year’s federal tax return.
Attached to this guide is a ready-made flyer you can give to a prospective employee which educates them on the incentive opportunity and provides additional instructions.
Questions
For questions about this program, contact Neil Kline at Family Friendly Workplaces at
For questions about a specific employee's TRG application status, direct the employee to contact Neil directly at the information above.