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The Work Number (TWN)
The Work Number (TWN) is a consumer report service database that retrieves verification of income and hours worked, providing employment and wage verification when necessary to determine initial eligibility, ongoing eligibility, and program integrity for the CalWORKs and CalFresh benefit programs. Equifax Workforce Solutions, LLC and Experian PLC are the two vendors used by TWN.
Note: Refer to the respective Program Policy Handbooks for specific regulations regarding TWN.
TWN employment verification may be used in the same manner as information provided by the employer for the following programs:
CalWORKs Employment Services (CWES), Welfare-to-Work (WTW), may use TWN to verify income and employment information for Work Participation Rate (WPR) purposes. TWN may also be used to verify income when transitioning clients from Stage One Child Care to Stage Two Child Care.
Important: TWN must not be used to obtain income verification for Medi-Cal (MC) only cases. It may, however, be used for the combination of CW/CF and MC cases.
The eligibility worker (EW) must contact the applicant or recipient to request additional information when there is a discrepancy or when incomplete employment information is received. To assist in this effort, TWN can be used as a secure wage verification source, provided appropriate written authorization has been obtained in advance.
Written Authorization
Written authorization from an applicant or recipient must be obtained before obtaining information from a consumer credit report ( e.g., The Work Number). By signing the SAWS 1, SAWS 2 PLUS, CF 285, or CF 37, the client authorizes the county to access their records from federal databases and all consumer reporting agencies. A signature in writing or electronically on any of these forms has been revised to include language giving consent to use TWN to verify income at initial application, during the Semi-Annual Report (SAR), at Re-evaluations (REs) periods, or for completing program integrity reviews.
Note: For CF, a signature on these forms only allows for the TWN to be obtained for the individual(s) who signed these forms and not for all household (HH) members.
Written authorization for additional HH members can be obtained by:
- Completing the Authorization for Release of Information page found in the Request for Verification (CW 2200) form, or
- Applicant`s Authorization for Release of Information (ABCDM 228), or
- A written client statement.
Written authorization must specify the county can obtain its consumer credit reporting information from Equifax Workforce Solutions, LLC and Experian PLC. Authorization can be accepted via electronic signature.
Accessing The Work Number (TWN) Interface Online
Running a report is only authorized for the necessary information to determine eligibility and only if the report has not been previously saved to the case file. Before utilizing and accessing TWN interface, it is required that the case file be checked for an existing report.
Important: A new report must NOT be requested if a report has already been imaged in the case record.
The Interface will have options for specific date ranges of 3-months, 6-months, 1-Year, and 3-Years.
Important: Once the report is generated, if Additional Records are found, the Order Now button must NOT be selected.
The 3-month option must be used when determining initial or ongoing eligibility, for instance, at the initial application, Semi-Annual Report (SAR), or at RE. If another option other than a 3-month time frame is selected, then the reason for this must be substantiated in the case journal. Each case may have different reasons for running a report other than for a 3-month time frame. The following are examples of case journals.
Due to a delay in application processing, a 6-month date range was selected for this client to establish eligibility for benefits being applied for.
Due to a review period beyond 8 months, a 1-year date range was selected for this client to determine correct eligibility was established.
Due to an eligibility review period of two years, a 3-year date range was selected for this client.
TWN may be accessed online at www.theworknumber.com. Steps to follow when using The Work Number Internet site:
- Enter the site within the Social Service Verification portion of The Work Number.
- Click the Log-In button.
- Enter your User Name to log in and press Continue.
- Enter your password and click Log In.
- Select the appropriate time frame needed to determine eligibility (i.e., 3 Months) and click Order Report.
- Complete applicable fields (i.e., entering the client's information).
- Review the verification information obtained and refer to Utilizing Information Obtained From TWN.
Reminder: TWN report must be imaged in the case file anytime a report is completed.
TWN interface has usage types to assist CDSS in tracking verification usage and funding sources. Staff must select one of the following usage types listed below:
| Program(s)/Usage Type Selection | Description of Usage Type |
| CalWORKs and CalFresh (Select Both) |
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| CalFresh |
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| CalWORKs |
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| CalWORKs - Welfare to Work Participation |
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Recipient Income and Eligibility Verification System (R-IEVS) |
Recipient Income and Eligibility Verification System (R-IEVS) |
| Fraud Investigation (SIU use only) | CalWORKs and CalFresh Fraud Investigation (SIU use only) |
Reminder: Any time that more than 3 months is selected, this must be substantiated in the case journal as to why more than 3 months was needed.
Utilizing Information Obtained From TWN
The information obtained through TWN is not considered verified upon receipt (VUR). The applicants or recipients must be contacted and informed of the income information obtained through TWN before this information can be used in determining eligibility so that they may evaluate the accuracy of the information. The type of contact can be any kind, up to and including verbal contact. A case journal entry must indicate the outcome of the type of contact.
If the information provided by TWN is confirmed by the applicant or recipient as accurate or if the information provided by TWN is not discrepant with what was provided by applicants or recipients from any source (e.g., an application, SAR 7, renewal forms, etc.), then the information from TWN can be used to verify the income.
When an applicant or recipient confirms that the information provided by TWN is inaccurate or incomplete because of additional income from another income source or a new employer not included in TWN, additional documentation must be requested and used in conjunction with the information provided by TWN to secure a complete verification of all income. In doing so, only new verification is required to be provided by the applicant or recipient. This will avoid duplicative verification.
If the information provided by TWN is not discrepant with written information provided by the applicant or recipient from any source e.g., an application, a SAR 7, or an RE, then verbal contact is not necessary. The requirement to contact the applicant or recipient has been fulfilled by submission of the forms alone. The information from TWN can be used to verify income, but a case journal must be entered in the case file indicating the reason for using the income and for not contacting the applicants or recipients.
The following are methods available to the EW to reconcile a discrepancy in wage verification received:
- Contact the recipient to request additional information or records.
- Contact the employer for the missing information.
- Accept wage information from TWN, if provided by the employer, and contact the client to confirm the information is accurate.
- Contact TWN directly.
- Only after all efforts have failed and the information is unavailable can a Sworn Statement (GEN 853) completed by the recipient be accepted. It must state that to the best of their knowledge, the information is true and correct. This declaration is signed under penalty of perjury. Accepting a GEN 853 does not prevent the EW from completing a referral to the DA Investigators, Welfare Fraud Division, when fraud is suspected.
Note: Applicants or Recipients who are employed with a company that contracts with TWN may have a problem obtaining their employment or income verification if they lose their payroll check stubs in a reporting month.
Avoiding Duplicate Verification
When information obtained from a consumer credit report is used to determine benefits, the applicant or recipient must not be required to submit hard-copy duplicate verification. However, if the applicant or recipient does not agree with the information provided by TWN, or the EW determines the information received is questionable, additional verification may be requested from the applicant or recipient. The applicant or recipient is only required to provide new or additional verification that is not a duplicate of what has already been obtained through TWN.
Reminder: For CalFresh purposes, the information received from TWN is not considered verified upon receipt (VUR).
Adverse Actions
If the EW takes any type of adverse action based on information received from TWN, the EW must notify the applicant or recipient in writing by sending the GEN 1390 as well as the appropriate NOA.
Adverse actions are defined by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) (MPP section 20-005)and include all business, credit, and employment actions affecting consumers that can be considered to have a negative impact as defined by section 603(k) of the FCRA. However, before any adverse action, EWs are reminded that they are tasked with reviewing an AU's circumstances and contacting the AU to provide them with an opportunity to clarify or resolve any discrepancies or errors.