Transition from Welfare to Work: TANF Program

695 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essay on welfare reform

: The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program provides temporary relief and financial assistance for pregnant women and families. The state-operated program was designed to move mothers from welfare to work. It was created and implemented in 1996, and before this, there was not much help for families who needed it. Aside from the Social Security Act of 1935, state governments did not intervene until the 1960’s when they contracted with local nonprofit agencies to provide social services. This program was a fundamental change in the social welfare system because the government became stricter about welfare, and the requirements that needed to be met to maintain the aid. Clients were pressured into seeking steady employment, meanwhile …show more content…

I have experienced firsthand the weight that the program puts on its workers and how it affects the delivery of services for the clients receiving aid. From the paperwork, to the constant miscommunication about the services, my clients had a difficult time staying afloat while in the program. The idea behind welfare reform is to assist clients with receiving new skills and employment to help provide stability for their family. This idea is great and could be beneficial for clients, but there are many barriers that the government fails to consider when implementing the policy. The aid is helpful, but it is not impactful enough to help families rise above poverty. Abramovitz (2005) describes how welfare reform has had an adverse effect on the quality of life on the low-income communities. Studies found that women could not make ends meet on aid, and due to the demand of the program, workers had reduced time available to address the needs of their clients. There is a constant lack of support in the welfare system; the workers and the clients have trouble meeting the demands of the program. It is a vicious cycle of miscommunication where workers cannot keep up with their clients, and the clients are not listened to, understood, or supported. When I would help my clients renew their aid, the office was always packed with people, had very

Show More
Related

  • Linda Gordon's Welfare System

    303 Words  | 1 Pages

    Linda Gordon's article is thoughtful, insightful and highly relevant. As governments slash poverty relief programs at all levels and as welfare-bashing reaches an all-time high, it is instructive to take a step back and look at how the current system developed.

    Read More

  • Flat Broke with Children: Women in the Age of Welfare Reform

    1129 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hays found that initially most welfare workers were optimistic and even excited about the changes. Most workers felt that the Act represented real progress and allowed for positive changes which would positively impact the lives of their clients. Hays spoke to one welfare who said that welfare reform “offered the training and services necessary to 'make our clients' lives better, to make them better mothers, to make them more productive.'” But as she was soon to find out, welfare reform, while it did have a positive impact on the lives of some welfare clients, made the lives of most clients more difficult, not to mention the stress that it caused for the welfare workers who had to deal with the often confusing and illogical new rules.

    Read More

  • Flat Broke with Children by Sharon Hays

    993 Words  | 2 Pages

    It seems like the Welfare system treats its recipients with disrespect and shame to discourage them from joining the system. The people who made and run Welfare in the 1990s made Welfare into a blame game and forces recipients to solely blame themselves for their poverty. The moral prescriptions in individually getting rid of poverty according to TANF are the Work Plan/Family Plan. The focuses on work and family are contradictory because of how little time there is to get both goals done and each goal perpetuates the idea that it is the most important part of ending poverty. It seems like Welfare is more about getting people off of Welfare than eradicating poverty. There is a difference in the goals and that is reflected in how the recipients are treated and how Welfare is run.

    Read More

  • The Pros and Cons of Welfare Reform

    2400 Words  | 5 Pages

    There have been numerous debates within the last decade over what needs to be done about welfare and what is the best welfare reform plan. In the mid-1990s the TANF, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Act was proposed under the Clinton administration. This plan was not received well since it had put a five year lifetime limit on receiving welfare and did not supply the necessary accommodations to help people in poverty follow this guideline. Under the impression that people could easily have found a job and worked their way out of poverty in five years, the plan was passed in 1996 and people in poverty were immediately forced to start looking for jobs. When the TANF Act was up for renewal earlier this year, the Bush administration carefully looked at what the TANF Act had done for the poverty stricken. Bush realized that, in his opinion, the plan had been successful and should stay in effect with some minor tweaking. Bush proposed a similar plan which kept the five year welfare restriction in place but did raise the budgeted amount of money to be placed towards childcare and food stamps. Both the TANF Act and Bush's revised bill have caused a huge controversy between liberal and conservative activists. The liberals feel that it is cruel to put people in a situation where they can no longer receive help from the government since so many people can not simply go out and get a job and work their way out of poverty. They feel if finding a job was that easy, most people would have already worked their way out of poverty. The conservatives feel that the plans, such as the TANF Act, are a surefire way to lower poverty levels and unemployment rates as well as decrease the amount o...

    Read More

  • The Pros of Welfare Reform

    364 Words  | 1 Pages

    In the summer of 1996, Congress finally passed and the President signed the "Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996", transforming the nation's welfare system. The passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act sets the stage for ongoing reconstruction of welfare systems on a state-by-state basis. The combined programs will increase from nearly $100 billion this year to $130 billion per year in 6 years. Programs included are for food stamps, SSI, child nutrition, foster care, the bloss grant program for child- care, and the new block grant to take the place of AFDC. All of those programs will seek $700 billion over the next 6 years, from the taxpayers of America. This program in its reformed mode will cost $55 billion less than it was assumed to cost if there were no changes and the entitlements were left alone. The current welfare system has failed the very families it was intended to serve. If the present welfare system was working so well we would not be here today.

    Read More

  • Should Welfare Recipients Be Drug Tested?

    571 Words  | 2 Pages

    Welfare is a federally funded program that provides health care, food stamps, child care assistance, unemployment, cash aid, and housing that is under the umbrella of TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families). Per Welfare Information, eligibility is determined by net income, family size, and any crisis situation such as: pregnancy, homelessness, and unemployment. TANF also requires the recipient to obtain employment within two years of receiving help (2014). A majority of the monies that support Welfare come from taxes paid by the working class and donations from private companie...

    Read More

  • Argumentation on TANF a form of Medicaid

    959 Words  | 2 Pages

    North Carolina’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program is one of the primary forms of Medicaid. TANF is also called Work First, which is based on the premise that parents have a responsibility to support themselves and their children. Through Work First, parents can get short-term training and other services to help them become employed and self-sufficient later on, but the responsibility is theirs to find the actual job. Most families have two years or less to move off Work First Family Assistance and after that they are completely on their own. According to a document found on Civic Report, the sixty percent of the rise employment among single mothers is due to the fact the money they are given is not enough to support their families.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Welfare Reform

    1609 Words  | 4 Pages

    In today’s America, there are many people who would either be disgusted at the very mention of Welfare or be highly grateful for its existence. I believe that in order for welfare to be more effective in America, there must be reform. From the time of its inceptions in 1935, welfare has lent a helping hand to many in crisis (Constitution Rights Foundation). However, at present many programs within the system are being abused and the people who are in real need are being cheated out of assistance. The year after the creation of welfare unemployment was just about twenty percent (Unemployment Statistics). The need for basic resources to survive was unparallel. Today, many people face the same needs as many did during the 30s. Some issues with

    Read More

  • The Temporary Assistance For Needy Families

    1110 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program was developed to help needy families become self-sufficient.¹ The TANF program was created by Congress and signed by President Bill Clinton in 1996.² TANF was created by The Personal Responsibility and Work Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) out of the preexisting Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program, which itself was created by Congress in 1935 as part of the Social Security Act.² There were some notable differences between the PRWORA and the TANF when it was created, the most noted differences were that the TANF allowed states to use TANF dollars to support child care, for job search support, social services,etc. and there were no requirements on how much could be spent on cash aid directly.² Also, the entitlement aspect of the PRWORA ended and states were not required to serve all eligible families/individuals.²

    Read More

  • Should Welfare Recipients Be Drug Tested?

    1056 Words  | 3 Pages

    Welfare assistance itself is provided from monies managed by a federally funded program that provides health care, food stamps, child care assistance, unemployment benefits, cash aid, and housing to citizens in need. It is categorized the governmental umbrella of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). According to Welfare Information, eligibility is determined by net income, family size, and any crisis situation such as: pregnancy, homelessness, or unemployment (2014). TANF also requires the recipient to obtain employment within two years of rec...

    Read More

  • The Welfare Reform Law

    1054 Words  | 3 Pages

    Since the Welfare reform law was introduced in 1996 it has impacted American society greatly. The new welfare policy, named the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), replaced the Aid to Family and Dependent Children (AFDC) program; they have five known differences that only affect the ones who need the assistance. Critics argue that the TANF has negatively impacted the society while some argue that it has not. Linda Burnham, author of “Welfare Reform, Family Hardship & Woman of Color,” asserts that “welfare reform has increased the hardship faced by many women leaving welfare for work and their movement into low-wage jobs, exposes them to higher level of housing insecurities, homelessness, food insecurity, and hunger.” She also argues that women of color “are especially vulnerable to the negative impact of welfare reform” (38).

    Read More

  • Essay On Welfare Reform

    887 Words  | 2 Pages

    As of 2012, roughly thirty five percent of the population in the United States was living with some sort of government assistance. The Welfare Reform Act was passed into law in 1996. Many of the country’s leaders promised to end welfare with this act. (“Welfare Reform”) This act ended the legal entitlement to welfare benefits. The bill also created time limits and work requirements for participation in the program. Welfare in the United States should be reformed because reform decreases poverty, increases independence in the country’s citizens, and increases the quality of life for former welfare recipients.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Government Welfare Programs

    839 Words  | 2 Pages

    The United States offers citizens benefit programs at every level of government to help with life’s hardships, and a considerable number of people participate. A variety of benefits are available for all Americans and some non-citizens who are in need of aid. Many Americans are aware that these programs exist, but may not be informed about how many people receive assistance, what kind of benefits are available, or who garners government relief (Welfare Info.).

    Read More

  • Welfare Reform Is Needed in New York

    1225 Words  | 3 Pages

    The issues surrounding welfare and welfare reform are controversial, political, and difficult to resolve. The debate continues today as to who deserves benefits and who does not. In 1933, President Roosevelt created Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) as part of the New Deal. This early form of welfare was available to those who could demonstrate a need and the ability to maintain minimal assets of their own. It specifically targeted aid to single women with children. It was a controversial and highly debated subject. Even now, many years later, Congress continues to debate and reform welfare programs. It still brings with it the same intensity, controversy, and conflicting opinion it did years ago.

    Read More

  • Welfare and Government Assistance Policy Recommendations

    690 Words  | 2 Pages

    Being raised in a single-parent lower class home, I realize first-hand the need for welfare and government assistance programs. I also realize that the system is very complex and can become a crutch to people who become dependent and complacent. As a liberal American I do believe that the government should provide services to the less fortunate and resources to find work. However, as able-bodied citizens we should not become complacent with collecting benefits and it is the government’s job to identify people who take advantage of the system and strip benefits from people who are not making efforts to support themselves independently. I will identify errors that exist within the welfare system and several policy recommendations to implement a change that will counteract the negative conditions that currently exist.

    Read More

More about Transition from Welfare to Work: TANF Program

Open Document