TANF Recipients' Barriers to Employability: Substance Abuse and Domestic Violence

Pilkinton, Melinda

doi:10.1080/10911359.2010.494940

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…The idea that drug treatment could improve employability is given some credence by the fact that drug dependence is a recognized factor in the literature on barriers to employment (Atkinson et al 2001;Taylor and Barusch 2004;Pilkinton 2010). In one study of long-term welfare recipients, about 20% were indicated by a questionnaire to have possible drug or alcohol problems (Taylor and Barusch 2004 ).…”

Section: Is Drug Testing Welfare Recipients Likely To Meet Its Aims?mentioning

confidence: 99%

An Argument Against Drug Testing Welfare Recipients

Walker¹,

Franklin²

2018

Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal

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An Argument Against Drug TestingWelfare Recipients ABST RACT. Programs of drug resting welfare recipients are increasingly common in US states and have been consider d elsewhere. Though often intensely debated, such programs are complicated .to evaluate because their aims are ambiguous-aims like saving money may be in tension with aims like referring people to treatment. We assess such programs using a proportionality approach, which requires that for ethical acceptability a practice must be reasonably likely to meet its aims, sufficiently important in purpose as to outweigh harms incurred, and lower in costs than feasible alternatives. In the light of empirical findings, we argue that the programs fail the three requirements. Pursuing recreational drug users is not important in the light of coses incurred, while dependent users who may require referral are usually identifiable without testing and typically need a broader approach than one focussing on drugs. Drug testing of welfare recipients is therefore not ethically acceptable policy.P rograms of drug testing welfare recipients have been introduced in a number of states of the USA and in New Zealand. The practice has also been proposed but not implemented in Canada and the United Kingdom (Wincup 2014). Recently, legislation was prepared to introduce drug testing of welfare recipients in Australia, and more US states have drafted legislation. Stated aims of these programs include: to identify people with drug problems in order to refer them to treatment, with the longer-term aim of facilitating their gaining employment; to prevent welfare payments being spent on illicit substances; and protecting the children of people dependent on drugs (see, e.g., Bolen 2014, 86; Schaberg 2012, 575). Bur these different aims imply quite different responses to drug test results, and ambiguity surrounding what these programs aim to do compLicates attempts to evaluate their success.

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Section: Is Drug Testing Welfare Recipients Likely To Meet Its Aims?mentioning

confidence: 99%

An Argument Against Drug Testing Welfare Recipients

Walker¹,

Franklin²

2018

Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal

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“…Historically, intimate partner violence has been shown to be a primary barrier to employment for women who are impoverished (Brownell, 1998;Butler, Corbett, Bond, & Hastedt, 2008;Pilkinton, 2010). The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (2003) estimates that women in the United States lose 8 million days of paid employment each year due to intimate partner violence.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Women who are abused may "often "cycle" between living with abusive partners" and relying on cash assistance (Pilkinton, 2010(Pilkinton, , p. 1015. This is just one of the reasons that single mothers make up the majority of Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) caseloads for adult recipients (Falk, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

TANF Participation and Intimate Partner Violence: Exploring Barriers to Self-Sufficiency

Thomas¹,

Collier-Tenison²,

Maxwell³

et al. 2017

IJSSS

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Interpersonal Violence (IPV) is regarded as a primary barrier to employment for women in poverty. For recipients of Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), required to participate in work-related activities, experiences of IPV threatens the ability to meet work requirements, resulting in sanctions, if they do not have exemptions through a domestic violence option (DVO) waiver. The purpose of the current study was to assess the effects of IPV on self-sufficiency in a sample of TANF participants. Data for the study were collected from a mail survey instrument sent to 2,000 randomly selected TANF recipients in one state in the U.S. Findings indicate the majority of the sample (N=525) was female (96%), non-white (73%), and single (86%). One-third of respondents experienced IPV and 29% experienced IPV within the past year. Approximately half of the respondents sustained a physical injury and 29% reported trouble working due to IPV. Non-parametric correlation analysis indicated those who reported IPV were less likely to be employed (p <.002). Respondents reporting violence in the past year and were less likely to be self -sufficient (p =.01). Lastly, participants who experienced an injury from IPV were also significantly more likely to have trouble working (p <.001). Although IPV is just one of many barriers to self-sufficiency for poor women, the lack of access to employment can have dire consequences for women reliant upon TANF benefits. This study indicates a need to further explore the linkages between IPV, access to employment, and other barriers to self-sufficiency.

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Banging on a Locked Door: The Persistent Role of Racial Discrimination in the Workplace

Whitaker

2019

Social Work in Public Health

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TANF Recipients' Barriers to Employability: Substance Abuse and Domestic Violence

Cited by 4 publications

References 45 publications

An Argument Against Drug Testing Welfare Recipients

An Argument Against Drug Testing Welfare Recipients

TANF Participation and Intimate Partner Violence: Exploring Barriers to Self-Sufficiency

Banging on a Locked Door: The Persistent Role of Racial Discrimination in the Workplace

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