A Modest Proposal To Reduce Unemployment

Imagine John person has lost his job, has not found one in months, and his unemployment is running out. Millions of people are in this same situation; if that is not bad enough, the person has now used up all of his savings and he is not sure how he will provide for his family. There are just not enough jobs to go around. He is then forced to go on government assistance, such as welfare and disability. Most people on government assistance do not end up back in the work force, leaving the tax payers to pay the bills. “This country has reached the tipping point where about 52% of US households receive some sort of government assistance (Matthews).” There are more people on some kind of government assistance than not. The problem is that

This can possibly lead to a disability claim. “Being out of work for six months or more is associated with lower well being among the long term unemployed, their families, and their communities (Nichols).” In the past there have been attempts to correct the unemployment crisis. “Many congressional ‘job bills’ attempt to solve the problem of low private hiring by increasing government hiring. This approach has historically failed (Sherk).” One of the reasons that it has failed is because there is no incentive for people to start their own business which could lead to a better economy overall and a decrease in unemployment. Also, the money used to increase jobs must come from somewhere and where it comes from would then be left

“Once people go on disability, they almost never go back to work. Fewer than 1% of those who were on Federal programs for disabled workers at the beginning of 2011 have returned to the work place (Lloyd).” Every person should have a job, period. Once unemployment benefits are exhausted and the person is still unable to find a job, the government should then step in and offer a job to that person. This would be a temporary job until that person finds a permanent solution. Job training and education would be provided to those who wish to learn a new job skill and work in a different field. The person would need to maintain a certain grade level to be allowed to continue with the education program. These jobs are not meant to be a “career” but rather a transitional job in order to assist in the permanent placement. It is important that support is there from the beginning so the person does not fall through the cracks and end up on welfare. The result could lead to financial and emotional devastation. Most people would prefer to earn enough money to support themselves and strive to do better. Rather than the government handing out money in the form of welfare and disability, they should supply jobs to anyone who needs one. The government can offer many types of jobs including rebuilding of infrastructure; for example, repairing