14 Comments for Do you think people should get welfare money for being unemployed or should it be sink or swim and they work?

• 1. djajr  |  April 29th, 2008 at 3:29 am

  Wow. That’s a loaded question.

  I beleive services should be available to those that need it, but with that comes some responsibility to get off it as soon as possible. I beleive that if they can’t be bothered to keep their appointments, or look for work, (or disability if applicable), or do any other assignment, then you shouldn’t “bother” to send them their check.

  I understand that some people abuse the system, but that doesn’t mean the system is at fault.

  I know your frustrated, but remember there are those that you are actually helping.

• 2. Debbie V  |  April 29th, 2008 at 4:21 am

  i can certainly see why burnout is imminent. Some people are just plain lazy. Others want to work, but can’t. Some find the job doesn’t work for them, and sounds to me like they all have to pass your desk.

  If a person can work, I believe they should. If a person desires training, I believe they should have it. There are so many jobs that need doing–like look at New Orleans. Instead of welfare, why are we not paying people who want to work to clean up that mess? And yet, I have friends who cannot work because of mental illness who cannot get enough money from the government to live on and get almost nothing from food stamps. She’s going to be homeless, soon.

  I probably dont’ even understand the variety of people you deal with, but I can understand your feelings. Work as long as you can work without damaging your soul. At that point, you’ve done your best. Walk on.

  TX Mom
  a great admirer of vets, nurses and social workers

• 3. fredrick z  |  April 29th, 2008 at 5:17 am

  Providing welfare is a requirement that has been recognized since Roman times.

  We do it too, for the same reasons the Romans did it. If you don’t provide welfare to the indigent they will burn down the cities, and that will cost far more than giving them a few dollars to live on.

  Additionally, what if you have people who really want to work ad who will work as soon as they can find employment that pays a living wage but who are unable to find that work because the local economy stinks?

  Do you punish those people because there are no jobs?

  I would suggest you get out of Social Services. Its bad for your health to stay there.

• 4. Patrick B  |  April 29th, 2008 at 5:45 am

  I have read the previous answers and I would say your opinion would be the most valuable-you have to deal with it everyday. No one who has answered, at the time I am writing this, works in your field (or at least has said so).
  I work in healthcare and have had some experience in working on charity applications. Though I did not deal with as many people as you do, the same was true.
  I would go over applications with patients before sending them on for approval/denial. In this process, there were those with real concern and need. Others, for instance, would respond to questions half heartedly, and when I followed up, would say they weren’t paying attention or whatever. The interview could be the difference between them owing tens of thousands of dollars or not, but to them attention just wasn’t necessary- you just wanted to scream at them!!!
  I don’t work on that anymore, but my advice would be to do what I did. Try to focus on the true needy, and on how much you are helping them. The others think they are entitled to handouts and you will never change them. If one system stops the handouts, they find another to carry them.
  Just remember, there are people who are greatful for your help!!!

• 5. chrisvet  |  April 29th, 2008 at 6:21 am

  Welcome to reality.
  I’ve studied this for years and understand the very roots of these problems. Instead of helping the vast majority of these people, the policy in your office (of money handouts) creates dependant mindsets.

  Here in Canada we have 3rd and 4th generation welfare, and the problem is growing. If you want to understand a deeper concept of what’s going on: read the 1 hour free online book called the “garbage generation.” It will change your view on current political systems forever.

• 6. American Avatar  |  April 29th, 2008 at 7:06 am

  Sink or swim….let “Natural Selection” cull the non-performers from the useful.

  P.S. Takes fortitude to succeed,something that seems missing with those content to be on assistance as a lifestyle.

• 7. Bekka  |  April 29th, 2008 at 8:04 am

  Will Rogers said it best, “As long as we pay people to be poor, there will be poor people.”

  Please keep in mind that welfare and unemployment benefits are TWO different things…

  I paid unemployment insurance from MY paycheck to insure that, if I should ever be wrongfully terminated, I would have benefits to cover me until I found another job. You are not “paying” me to be unemployed, you are giving BACK to me the premiums I paid for the last 30 years of my work life…

  What gets me is that our welfare program pays people who are not legal to even WORK in the United States. That is MY tax dollars at work…

  But I sense your frustration is not with those of us willing to work… indeed, there are many people out there just looking for the free handout. And I think our welfare system as well as our I-9 (proof of legal right to work in the US) program is in serious need of an overhaul.

  Maybe you are the person to move up the company ladder and address this issue in the future.

• 8. Andrew  |  April 29th, 2008 at 8:38 am

  I don’t have much to say, but yes people who have problems getting jobs should be able to get welfare.

• 9. macky_rash  |  April 29th, 2008 at 9:30 am

  Wow, talk about controversy!
  I think that people who have problems with PSTD or other emtional issues (such as some of our troops when they return), or physcial problems.

  On the other hand, people who use the system, who have “secret” incomes on the side, home businesses and the like, or people that take in foster kids for the money, that needs to stop.

  But please don’t turn you’re back on the emotionally/mentally ill, or those who struggle with chronic disease. They need all the help they can get and have enough to worry about.

• 10. The Mrs.  |  April 29th, 2008 at 10:19 am

  I think people who need help should have help. Like the single mom who busts her butt with two jobs or the person who is HONESTLY between jobs. People who keep jobs and work hard.

  But I agree. There is a SERIOUS problem with a large part of our government assistance program and you don’t have to be in social services for 6 years to see it. You just have to have worked a few hard days in your life and not make excuses for people.

• 11. slvrfox14  |  April 29th, 2008 at 10:46 am

  I think there are occassions when it is ok, and reasons where it isn’t. If a person isn’t working through no fault of their own(laid off, sick child, physical handicap etc.,) then they deserve support until they get on their feet. For those who just won’t work, I believe in workfare, if you want the money we will find you something to do in the public sector,street cleaning, graffitti removal, painting, shoveling sidewalks etc.

• 12. falsumnomen  |  April 29th, 2008 at 11:15 am

  The majority of people on welfare are women with children, and welfare is mainly used as a sort of emergency insurance plan. During difficult times, such as after divorce (esp. if husband was the sole breadwinner) or in a bad economy, it can be very difficult for these women to provide for their children. Welfare reform in 1996 was created under the assumption that lazy people (women) who bear children out of wedlock should go to work and pay their own way. The system was originally intended to help widows and their children survive after the husband’s death (think 1935, post and pre war, women were not as prevalent in the workforce). As women began to enter the workforce, policy focus became clear: women should work like everyone else. Interestingly, before 1996 welfare reform 2/3 of women were already exiting welfare through work. The problem with not having welfare as a safety net is that many of these women have lower-income jobs (usually more than one at a time) and they are one step away from poverty. The child poverty rate is currently at 17% (46% in single mother families) , which is quite high for an industrialized nation. It is the children who desparately need the additional funds, and this is often overlooked when we focus only on the “lazy” adult. Our society is growing old, and we need strong, capable children who have food in their bellies and good educations to ensure that our future producers bring prosperity to the U.S., however they are often left behind in policy.
  Indeed, there are some people who are overly dependent on welfare–I’ve talked and worked with them and yes, it can be frustrating. Try to remember that what you may think of as their indifference can stem from multiple sources; because they are impoverished they’ve had to go through the system time and time again, dealing with caseworkers and the like, some of whom may be tired, overworked, and bitter–attitudes which transmit to the recipient. Overtime, the recipient learns to go through the motions without much emotion. Also, these people have other constraints in their lives, such as children, family, bills, lack of transportation (big one if you want to get to work) lack of education, substance abuse, violent neighborhoods, etc. which are likely on their minds.
  It seems to me that you may need to leave social services for awhile because you are not able to remove yourself from your work, and it is taking a toll on you. Conversely, you could try to change your perspective, work with people as best you can, and realize that people will slip through the cracks. It’s a difficult profession and it’s definitely not for everyone. Perhaps you could look at non profit work? Find a non-prof that helps people to build better communities or that helps to shape policy decisions. You know the population now, and you could work to otherwise change their lives, without dealing with them directly on a day to day basis. Good luck!

• 13. The Last Voice of Reason  |  April 29th, 2008 at 11:54 am

  I absolutely think people should be able to get help when they need it, but I agree that sometimes the system isn’t what it should be. I remember a time when I needed an job badly. I went down to the unemployment office and told them I didn’t want to collect. I told them I just really wanted a job. They looked confused. The sent me to one desk or office after another until I finally got to the right person. He got me into what they used to call the CETA program (Jimmy Carter was President). I started work the next day. Eventually that situation led to a better one and things worked out well for a long time. We need people like you because our economic system has a history of creating economic hardships even for people who really want to work. Yeah, I know. Some people abuse the system or don’t appreciate the help. Let me say something you probably don’t hear anywhere near enough…THANK YOU!

• 14. Lady M  |  April 29th, 2008 at 12:25 pm

  I think there should be a limit of time in which applicants for welfare can receive payment. I think there should be guidelines for their participation in seriously looking for work. If it is deemed that they are not seriously participating in the job search, they should be taken off the roles immediately. If the allotted time period elapses, they should be taken off the roles.

  We educate people to act in the way they do. If they knew they had to “get with the program”, they would. It is the mambe pambe treatment of those on welfare that has kept them in the position of expecting the government to support them and their children FOREVER!

  That kind of well meaning treatment is a disgrace. It undercuts a person’s self respect and encourages them to live a lazy lifestyle. They never get to know how it feels to EARN their own way. The pride of working, and building their own life. We as a society are actually ROBBING those we have tried so desperately to help.

  To your second question, “Should you stay involved in a system like this?” If there is nothing you can do to change it, and you are burned out, get out. If on the other hand there is a way that you can change your attitude, get some renewed energy by finding a way to help the system change. Then RISE UP, and be a part of the solution to this monumental problem of waste of taxpayer dollars, and even more importantly, waste of POTENTIAL in the lives of the over served.

  .

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