The Multiple Meanings of Work for Welfare-Reliant Women

Abstract

Based on ethnographic and interview data collected at two welfare to work offices, this paper explores the various meanings that welfare-reliant women give to paid work. Although studies show that welfare-reliant women support work requirements and believe that welfare receipt should be temporary, even Progressives often fail to see the multiple meanings work has for poor women, and how similar these are to the meanings most Americans attach to work. Not only do poor women want to work for basic economic survival, but they view paid work as a means to family security, a path to fulfilling personal aspirations, and as their civic responsibility.

Unemployment and conditional welfare: Exclusion and belonging in immigrant women's discourse on being long‐term dependent on social assistance

“…The Swedish welfare state provides subsidised childcare, which enables all women to combine paid work and motherhood (Wells & Bergnehr, 2014), unlike other national contexts (e.g., Wong & Wei-Qun Lou, 2010;Woodward, 2008). What Sweden does not provide, however, is employment opportunities for large groups of immigrants, regardless of their previous education and skills.…”

“…Stress and mental illness among immigrants may be caused by the difficulty of finding employment and providing for oneself, rather than unemployment being caused by health issues, addiction or other problems (Eastmond, 2011;Yazdanpanah, 2008; see also Zepinic, Bogic, & Priebe, 2012). Physically and mentally capable individuals show a strong desire to be self-reliant (Eastmond, 2011;Wong & Wei-Qun Lou, 2010;Woodward, 2008;Yazdanpanah, 2008). Overall, there is little research on foreign-born persons' experiences of being long-term welfare dependent.…”

Work meaning from work psychology. A historical, psychological and sociological revision

“…En este sentido, la centralidad del trabajo es la importancia que tiene para el individuo dicha actividad, a partir de la cual se pueden adquirir cosas a través de su realización, de forma instrumental (Agulló, 1998) y se hace por una finalidad (Woodward, 2008).…”

“If You Sit and Cry No One Will Help You”: Understanding Perceptions of Worthiness and Social Support Relations among Low-Income Women under a Neoliberal Discourse

“…Fineman (2004) claimed that welfare‐to‐work programs reflect the “autonomy myth” and help perpetuate cultural and political practices that stigmatize and punish those who are most in need. Work commitment has a moral dimension and serves as an indication of character; hence people who rely on official assistance and other forms of support for survival, by violating basic social norms, tend to be perceived as deviant and irresponsible (see also Woodward 2008; Morgen et al. 2010).…”

“…This neoliberal view, which implicitly assumes that individuals' ability to alter their condition and status is predominantly a matter of personal effort and willingness to adopt appropriate behaviors, overlooks the structural barriers that severely limit the poor's socioeconomic opportunities (Weigt 2006). This critique is especially applicable to women, as women more than men encounter significant barriers in their attempt to participate in the labor market because of their childcare and familial responsibilities (Korteweg 2006; Weigt 2006; Dodson 2007; Woodward 2008; Hennessy 2009).…”