Why Don’t We Want the Poor to Own Anything? – This research paper, developed with support from the Metcalf Foundation, explores current asset limitations for government-sponsored support in Ontario and makes recommendations for their reform. Access the paper here.
The Rise and Fall of Welfare Time Limits in BC - This paper documents the fascinating story behind the first attempt in Canadian history by a government to introduce welfare time limits. Under this policy, recipients who had been on assistance two years would be cut off of benefits for the ensuing three years. This report documents the dynamics of the opposition to time-limited welfare which led the government to capitulate on this element of its welfare reforms. In addition to the public record, it draws extensively on over 1,000 pages of internal government materials obtained through a Freedom of Information request. Download the paper here. [Source: CSRL-news]
Distance Learning Can Help Low-Income Parents - Distance learning programs are particularly attractive to many nontraditional students, including low-income parents, who often must fit their classes around work and family responsibilities. This paper from the Center for Law and Social Policy identifies language U.S. states can adopt in order to maximize access to distance learning and raise work participation rates. It also highlights some restrictive and burdensome language that should be dropped from work verification plans. Learn more here. [Source: HandsNet WebClipper]
Repairing Canada's Social Safety Net - HRSDC invited departmental representatives and four outside panelists to a roundtable to consider options for repairing Canada’s social safety net. This paper summarizes the highlights from Caledon’s contribution, which made the case for the need to reform Employment Insurance and welfare in concert and in association with labour market changes. Read the paper here. [Source: Caledon Institute of Social Policy]
Welfare payments dropping - According to a new report from the National Council of Welfare, fewer people are qualifying for welfare in Canada and those that do qualify are receiving less money. The report of the citizens' advisory group, which reports to the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, found that many 2005 welfare incomes were lower than they were in 1986. Across the provinces, one-third of households experienced losses of $3,000 or more. Read the full report here. [Source: Charity Village]
Employment Retention & Advancement Project - Although much is known about how to help welfare recipients find jobs, little is known about how to help them and other low-wage workers keep jobs or advance in the labor market. South Carolina's Retention and Advancement (ERA) program, Moving Up, which operated between September 2001 and April 2005 in six rural counties, attempted to contact and assist individuals who had left welfare for any reason between October 1997 and December 2000. Compared with results for the control group, Moving Up increased participation in some employment-related services, such as vocational training, but only modestly. Read more about the project here. [Source: HandsNet WebClipper]
Social Safety Net Analysis Reveals Major Gaps - A new report prepared by TD Economics on behalf of the Task Force for Modernizing Income Security for Working Age Adults (MISWAA) highlights the need for broad-based income security reform in Canada. The MISWAA Task Force, of which TD Bank Financial Group is a member, was launched last year by the Toronto City Summit Alliance (TCSA) and Toronto’s St. Christopher House to identify failings in the present income security system and recommend a road map for change. The Task Force is composed of leaders from the business, academic, government and non-profit sectors, including those with first-hand experience dealing with income security issues. Check out the executive summary here or download the full report, From Welfare to Work in Ontario: Still the Road Less Travelled here. [Source: TD Economics]
Income Assistance Recipients in Winnipeg - This study examines the experiences of welfare recipients with the welfare bureaucracy in the city of Winnipeg. For many inner city residents some form of income assistance is a vital part of their overall income and necessary for basic subsistence (food and rent). Consequently, the decisions of welfare officials are tremendously significant for these individuals and the treatment they receive at the hands of those officials helps structure their attitudes about the state, their conception of their place in society as citizens, and their own sense of self-worth and self-esteem. Through a series of structured interviews with welfare recipients, this study attempts to provide a picture of the nature and experience of those inner city residents who make use of the welfare system. Download the report here. [Source: WIRA]
Can Work Alter Welfare Recipients’ Beliefs? - Using the Self-Sufficiency Project (SSP) as the primary data source, this working paper investigates whether employment will lead welfare recipients to revise their beliefs about how they will be treated in the labour market. This study controls for the fact that participants with more favourable attitudes are more likely to secure employment, and finds that the earnings supplement from the experimental Self-Sufficiency Project produces changes in attitudes. An electronic version of this working paper is accessible here. [Source: SRDC Announcement]
Welfare-to-Work Is Smart Business - A report by regional workforce development intermediary, San Francisco Works looks at welfare-to-work partnerships from the perspective of business, chronicling the economic costs and benefits of participation by five Bay Area employers. The report finds that partnering with welfare-to-work programs can help companies save money and realize new economic benefits. Download the report here. [Source: HandsNet WebClipper]
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