Wisconsin's Missing Rung: Work & Solving Poverty

Angela Rachidi Badger Institute February 11, 2020

AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell

n style="left: 102.595px; top: 158.873px; font-size: 17.5px; font-family: serif; transform: scaleX(0.945294);">Work is the key. Statistics show that if someone in your home works full time, there is only a 2% chance you are poor. Similarly, only 11% of those who are poor have full-time, year-round jobs. So how do we help poor but able-bodied and capable people experiencing temporary hurdles get jobs? And, as importantly, how do we do it in a way that does not encourage everlasting dependency on government?

These are some of a democracy’s most vexing questions, and they are more than theoretical.

States have considerable latitude to deter-mine how long people should be eligible for welfare and when they should be required to work or take part in the sort of training that leads to employment. Many states like Wisconsin also provide tax credits that often take the form of cash payments to people with low-wage jobs. Read Full Article »

Wisconsin's Missing Rung: Work & Solving Poverty

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