Welfare to Work
... Ray Paper 1: Difficult Choices Mario Machado State governments became responsible for moving people off of the welfare program and into jobs, according to new legislation enacted in 1996. ... There are three main choices on how to approach these challenges and assist in the problem of transitioning people off of welfare and placing them in jobs. The first perspective is that “Everyone should work.” The second perspective says we should “help those who can’t work,” and the third viewpoint is in favor of attempting to “Prepare productive citizens”. Supporters of Choice One suggest that to end the dependence on welfare all that is needed are jobs. They believe that we should create jobs for people who once received welfare, no matter what their skills and abilities are, and that everyone should play a part in this process. ... Every individual should work to the best of their capacity and the dignity gained by working is more valuable than any handout. When everybody is working it is good for business, it eliminates those who would take advantage of the system, and it restores the work ethic. ... Cessna executives believe that providing these services and putting people to work isn’t charity, it’s good business. While most of the people who receive welfare are not committing fraud, studies show that some people will take advantage of a system that hands out money. A University of Wisconsin study found that 20 percent of all welfare recipients in that state had unreported jobs. Wisconsin’s program uses multiple job-search and job training efforts to move welfare recipients or applicants into work with non-profit and for-profit employers. If someone misses time at work or in job training, their benefits are reduced accordingly at a per-hour rate, called “pay for performance”, thus reducing the number of people taking advantage of the system. In addition supporters of this first idea see welfare and its attack on self-reliance as part of this process, robbing its recipients and our nation of energy, creativity, and ambition.