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Welfare Reforms Have Hurt Poorest Americans

Photo courtesy of MLive.com.

Welfare reform has benefited poor families who are able to find jobs but has had made it harder for some of the nation’s poorest families to get benefits, according to recent study from social workers.

Phys.org recently published this article about research from Marci Ybarra, DSW, assistant professor at the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago, and lead author H. Luke Shaefer, assistant professor at the University of Michigan School of Social Work.

Recipients who are able to get jobs and become the near poor ($23,051 to $34,500 annual income for a family of four) get several benefits, including tax breaks, the study said. However deeply families who often live in places where there are fewer jobs have seen available benefits decline.

“This is the first study to use nationally representative survey data to compare the material hardships of deeply poor households with children to other low-income groups of lower-income households with children, before and after the 1990s welfare reforms,” wrote Ybarra, who is a National Association of Social Workers member.

Social workers are devoted to equal treatment for all, including the poorest members of our society. To learn more visit National Association of Social Workers’ Diversity and Equity Website by clicking here.

 

Shaefer

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