There was a significant drop in the number of people on Hastings County Ontario Works benefits during 2018.
The report was presented to a meeting of the Hastings County Community and Human Resources committee meeting on Wednesday.
It includes Belleville and Quinte West.
The yearly caseload summary showed a 9.2% drop in cases last year.
Department director Erin Rivers tells Quinte News this meant a staff reduction of two case workers.
Rivers says there are a number of reasons for the decrease in caseload.
Rivers says 19% of the caseload reported earnings from employment which is nearly 6% higher than the provincial average.
Forty-three cases left the program last year due to employment.
Rivers indicated compiling the annual caseload data helps identify trends or gaps in service.
