Welfare was established by the Social Security Act of 1935, and administered by
individual states and territories for the government to help poverty stricken children and
other dependent persons. Wicipedia defines welfare as ” money paid by the government to
those who are in need of financial assistance, are unable to work, or whose circumstances
mean the income they require for basic needs is in excess of their salary” (Welfare
(financial aid)). This program helped many families survive during The Great Depression
and still helps families survive today. Welfare, which was once meant to help individuals
reenter society, has been abused and manipulated. The abuse of the Welfare System has
become a serious problem. Many dependent persons rely mainly on welfare for their sole
source of income to support their family, rather then finding a job and supporting their
family with earned income. This abuse of the Welfare System spans generations, enabling
families to abuse the system instead of using the system how it was meant to.
The Welfare System is not flawless and often people depend on the welfare checks and
food stamps to live their life on, abusing what is keeping them alive. Welfare is ill treated
in many ways. Often someone will live in poverty collecting government issued checks
because welfare benefits are better then working benefits. Other times one is forced to live
unemployed because of their situation. These situations include giving birth,
out-of-wedlock, to children and benefiting from them. Another form of abuse on the
welfare system is just plain laziness and not obtaining a job that will provide a source of
income.
While working and earning an income is a great feeling, the benefits are not as good as
receiving welfare. Many people receiving welfare cannot find a job that could replace the
checks. Some individuals on welfare take part time jobs, thus causing their situation to be
not as severe and reducing the amount their welfare check is for. For example, Robert
Lerman states in Welfare Reform: An Analysis of the Issues, “If a mother and child on Aid
to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) have no income of their own, they may
qualify for an average of $500 a month in cash benefits. If that mother takes a part-time
job, say at $300 a month, her family becomes “less needy” and her welfare check is
reduced (to offset the increase in her income).”(Sawhill). Lerman then goes on to state
“The higher the benefit reduction rate (equivalent to a tax on earnings), the weaker the
incentive to work. This incentive is further weakened because other earnings benefits
(notably food stamps, housing assistance, and Medicaid) are also reduced as earnings
increase.”(Sawhill). So if someone can receive more money and benefits from welfare then
a job, they usually pick welfare. Benefits such as food stamps and Medicaid also cause
welfare receivers to not want to work. Not only do they receive food stamps, but also they
sell them for money. James C. Ohls states in Welfare Reform: An Analysis of the Issues
“there is undoubtedly some trafficking (clients exchanging stamps at a discount for
cash).”(Sawhill). Abusing the food stamp benefit can only cause the government to
abandon the idea. This form of abuse is causing one to take away from society rather then
add to it.
Also, people are abusing the welfare system, not by being in a situation to receive welfare
but by having out-of-wedlock children and benefiting from them. This often causes those
children to become poverty stricken and to continue this chain. As stated in “Welfare
System Abuses Children,” “[the welfare] system that encourages children to have
children.”(Welfare System Abuses Children), this is causing teens to start having children
to receive more money from the government, which not always goes to the children. It is
common for a woman on welfare to give birth to their first child as a teen (Sawhill). Also
stated in Welfare Reform: An Analysis of the Issues “Young mothers and pregnant women
are slightly less likely to marry in states with higher benefits.”(Sawhill) Jesse Handy writes
in “Is the welfare system fair? Reform needed for those who refuse to help themselves,”
“While growing up, I had known two types of welfare recipients: those who received it
short term and were embarrassed about it, and those who treated it as their primary source
of income. I knew one woman who had a small mob of children and paid all of her bills
via the welfare system”(Handy). This is just one example of how single mothers (or
fathers) can abuse the welfare system to gain more benefits.
Lastly, some people on welfare are just to lazy to go get a job. Some people are contempt
with sitting around watching daytime T.V. and collecting taxpayers money. While not all
welfare receivers are lazy some abuse welfare such as this example, “I know a welfare
recipient who has two kids and is currently enrolled in college (last semester she made the
deans list), who couldnt really make it without some assistance. But on the other end of the
spectrum, I know of women who have never held a job and have survived on welfare since
Ive known them, and I think if I can work 35 hours a week and take a full course load, they
can at least get one damn job”(Handy). The system seems too easy to abuse in the first
place. As long as one is unemployed and meets all the qualifications one can receive
welfare and if one maintains this status with the intent to get a get a job then he or she
remains on the list to receive government money and benefits. Welfare isnt bad, its the
moochers and abusers that make it bad. “I only get two complaints about Financial
Assistance. One of them is that were paying out too much money to the wrong
people”(Burgess).
Welfare is a great program as long as it is used correctly. If a person collects welfare
during financial trouble, then that is great. But when someone abuses welfare and receives
government money because he or she can make more money this way, it becomes
corrupted, and when people abuse the system by having kids out-of-wedlock to receive
more benefits or is just to plain lazy to work and receives welfare it begins to become a
serious problem.
(A bibliography was not needed for the paper just all the research done)
Welfare system deals with increasing burden
http://www.bermudasun.org/issues/Jan10_97/welfare.html
By Don Burgess
HARD TIMES have caused more people to seek help from the government. A decade ago,
Social Assistance only had 300 people on its case load and there was no such thing as
government sponsored Housing Allowance.
But with the downturn of the economy in the late 80s, government was flooded with
people hurt by the loss of jobs in the tourist and construction sectors of industry.
In 1989 government created the Housing Allowance, and the number of people who were
getting help from that department and from Social Assistance jumped nearly 600 per cent.
With that came complaints that people were abusing the system, or that government was
turning its back on the people.
While there may be occasion fraud in the system, department officials insist, the vast
majority of people getting help are hard-working.
Director of Social Assistance Allan Robinson and the Director of Housing Allowance,
Olga Scott, sat down with the Bermuda Sun to talk about their programmes. Health and
Social Services minister, Harry Soares, also spoke about these two services.
Mr. Robinson said his department “is to provide financial assistance to persons with
insufficient income who require the basic necessaries of life.”
In the 80s, the number of people on Social Assistance was around 300 “but with the
economic downturn in the 90s that number went from 300 to 1,200 and its more than that
when you combine the programmes; then its around 1,700.
“Weve seen a steady fall-off as the number of jobs and work opportunities have increased
over the past two years. Its gone back down, but I dont think it will ever go back down to
its original number.”
There was a structural realignment with the threatened economy and people looked at
ways of streamlining their business he said.
Mr. Robinson knew of one hotel operator who used to carry a staff of around 60 but now
carries a staff of 40.
He added: “Also, what happens, whenever there is a stress on an economy businesses have
a tendency to get rid of the least productive members of their organization. So in times of
plenty, many employers support less than optimum employees,. But when things get
rough, theyre the ones that have to go.”
UNDER-EMPLOYED
And these people turn to the government for help. Of the roughly 1,200 people getting aid
from Social Assistance, Mr. Robinson said they fall into three main categories: pensioners
and senior citizens, single parent head of households, and the under-employed and
unemployed.
He defined the under-employed as “people who are working but dont make enough money
to acquire food, clothing and shelter.”
The large influx to the department has caused a change in the way it handles cases. “When
