Rhetoric and reality of work-based welfare reform

The argument presented in this article is that although work is one path toward improved well-being for poor families, a successful and humane social welfare policy must recognize and respond to its limitations. The prowork rhetoric surrounding current efforts to move women from welfare to work rests on at least three propositions: Work is the norm, work is good for families, and work leads to self-sufficiency. The article reviews empirical evidence on each of these propositions and concludes that many former welfare participants will earn low wages in unstable employment and will require a broad range of supports to move from welfare to self-sufficiency and improved family well-being.