Should people in welfare be forced to work?

Some people DO abuse the system. BUT, its wrong to say or think that people on welfare have it made! Thats ridiculous. I also realize you said fully functional people. Which, those are usually the ones that do take advantage. BUT, most of us, would rather NOT be on welfare. I am. I want to get off of it. But, I would not be able to survive without it at this point. I have a disability which prevents me from keeping one job long term. I have a two year old child which was born BEFORE I was on aid. I didn't lay down and make my child thinking I could scam the government and taxpayers into paying me to have her. You never need any help? Right now, I do work, but I still need the aid to make ends meet. I am a single mom, that wasn't in the plans either. Her father is incarcerated, also, not in the plans.

when i was on welfare, they (the powers that be) wanted you to get retrained and would pay so much money for you to go back to school. their reasoning was that they didnt want you to get a menial job where you only would make minimum wage and still need welfare to top off your income. trust me, welfare is humilating, its not like they want to sit around all day!

Definitely think they should be working, at least after a certain time period, worst case. I've known several people (aquaintances) who have abused the system and I think it's pretty pathetic. Heck, I would rather see a little more money be temporarily put towards giving people even less of an excuse not to work, or getting them on their feet, than just letting it continue.

Our state has implemented caps on the welfare program, that for the most part seem quite logical & reasonable.We only allow 2 years of collecting in a 5 year period and for a portion of those 2 years the person collecting must be working a minimum # of hours.

I believe they should work as well. Many say they have no one to keep their children and no way to pay for child care. I think there should be special jobs with child care provided for just such people.

If a person truly needs a hand because s/he lost a job, then goes back to work in a reasonable amount of time, I have no problem. But I have a problem with someone who gets pregnant every 3 years to avoid going to work and saying in the system. We have people in my state with 8, 10, or more children. Spaced about 3 years apart because the 4th year, the person would be compelled to take a job. We have 3rd and 4th generation people who have lived like that. I had a job where I was supposed to help teenagers work after high school. The teens who saw their parents work were all for getting help. The teens that didn't see their parents work, were totally against it. They didn't see why they should work and their parents were against me helping them find work, too. They get money for the kids, and they were afraid if the kid made money, some money would be taken away from them. I have a discussion started that includes a social worker who came to my house and told me to get pregnant so I could have a rough added to my trailer. How irresponsible of her was that? I threw her out! CAn you immagine someone telling you to get pregnant because you aren't under the poverty line, but if you got pregnant you would be?

I don't know what the system is like where you live but here if you are on state assistance it is manditory that you are actively looking for work if you are phsycially capable of working. Even the lower income housing areas charge rent and utilites. The welfare system here is not set up to enbable people to sit at home and mooch off the sytem. Granted there are those that fake an injury or con the system into thinking they have a disability when they don't want to work, however the system itself is set up to keep people off it not allow more to get on.

I think if you can work work, if you have a disabitlity and you cant work that is a different story... But i also know people who can work but somehow get around the system....like haveing kids just because they dont want to go get a job. to me i think after a while the people running the system would wisen up to that one.. but then you have people who have a hard time finding a job and need the assistance to help and by gos they cant get it.. for instance my mother has epilepsy and for about the last 4 or 5 years she has had more and more seizures, she has went to the hospital and had those brain wave tests done to pin point what is triggering them they cant figure it out. She was on the medical assistance, well guess what they cut her off. when she reapplied for it they told her she did not qualify for an more help and she needs it for all of her meds, well they told her that she needed to find a job then they would look into it again, well she did making min. wage being a waitress, she filed again and they told her she makes to much money. Her meds are very costly and not only does she need the meds for her seizures she has a depression dissorder. Well she hasnt been taking her meds cuz she cant afford them.. Now i think that people like that who absolutly need the help should get it. But the way the system is you are danged if you do and danged if you dont...

I have two kids. When my ex and I were together he worked and I stayed home with the kids. We split up a year ago and I cannot bear to leave my son in daycare to go to work. I wrote a discussion on this before. If I got a job welfare would pay for my kids daycare but it would cost them more to pay the daycare then they give me to just stay home with my kids. I get a lot of things for free but right now I am really struggling. I am trying to start working from home so I can earn enough money to earn money on my own without getting cash assistance while also staying home with my kids.

I think they should have to pick up trash for 8 hours a day. If that was the option I am sure a lot of people would not choose welfare. You ask how can people live like this. Well they were always taken care of all of their life. Why change when they leave their parent's home?

The U.S. welfare system isn't set up so that people can sit and home and shoot out babies left and right. After the Clinton Welfare Reform went into effect most states had to limit the amount of time anyone could stay on welfare and how many children qualify for assistance. Considering how much money it costs to live in a decent neighborhood, utility prices, and daycare expenses, most people on assistance (children, really, but single mothers for this discussion) are not living free and easy. I'd also like to note that Federal regulations demand that able bodied welfare recipients work, seek work, or go to school a certain amount of hours per more. And once they get even a minimum wage, part-time job they're thrown off the rolls. Food pantries and privately funded charities are stretched thin because of the amount of working poor families struggling to make ends meet today. Most of those people would have previously qualified for assistance, but since welfare reform they don't. Now their children are hungry and homeless. Why should the children suffer?

I totally agree. It sickens me to know that 30% of what I EARN every year goes to welfare wh0res who laugh about the white race supporting their lazy black a*ses who milk the system and have fun doing it knowing they can get away with it b/c they are black. There should also be a strict time limit on how long you can be on welfare. I know everyone has problems. But being a lifelong welfare wh0re just because it's easier than working for a living should be illegal. You have a years' limit on welfare unless you can provide valid proof you can't work such as age, disability or other REAL reasons. "I don't want to" is not a valid reason. Being black is not a reason. McDonald's and Wal-Mart are always hiring for burger flippers and stockers.

I mean you got a free meal a brand new ride with rims and a pad to live in.. why work?? if aint got to work im not working. we been workin for yall 400 years this the least yall can do.. if it wasnt for us. the consumers who buy it wouldn't be any business or jobs.. so be thankgful. everybody happy either way. if you aint happy swallow your pride and get on it to. YOU have a choice. so dont get mad.