Do you support increased spending on welfare to work educational programs? (unemployment, solution)

[The expert]

I teach in a number of welfare to work education classes for a large adult education program in a large community. What an experience! These are programs where the long term unemployed and people on welfare are taught a trade and work skills. Most of the people in my classes have gone historically from one dead end low paid job to the next intermixed with long periods of unemployment. They have few technical job skills or knowledge of how to be an effective employee.

The school that I work at in this evening part time job does not keep records if the students are able to land and keep a job after graduation. In curiosity, I sent an email to all 215 students who had gone through my classes in the last few years asking how they had done since graduating from the program and only got 3 replies.

In an era of budget cuts the program I work for is struggling to keep funding. What do you think of welfare to work programs?

[Frank DeForrest]

Originally Posted by The expert

I teach in a number of welfare to work education classes for a large adult education program in a large community. What an experience! These are programs where the long term unemployed and people on welfare are taught a trade and work skills. Most of the people in my classes have gone historically from one dead end low paid job to the next intermixed with long periods of unemployment. They have few technical job skills or knowledge of how to be an effective employee.

The school that I work at in this evening part time job does not keep records if the students are able to land and keep a job after graduation. In curiosity, I sent an email to all 215 students who had gone through my classes in the last few years asking how they had done since graduating from the program and only got 3 replies.

In an era of budget cuts the program I work for is struggling to keep funding. What do you think of welfare to work programs?

What are we supposed to think of a program that steals the money we earn and claims no measurable benefit?

The word "theft" comes to mind.

[GregW]

Instead of training people for the work that was moved offshore we should use the money to enforce countervailing tariffs to return the need for these workers. Without the demand for the skills the money is wasted.

Maybe we should just recognize that we have created a society and economy that will always have two unemployed classes of people: those that have nothing to do for an income and those that do not have to do anything for an income.

[buddy5]

Originally Posted by The expert

I teach in a number of welfare to work education classes for a large adult education program in a large community. What an experience! These are programs where the long term unemployed and people on welfare are taught a trade and work skills. Most of the people in my classes have gone historically from one dead end low paid job to the next intermixed with long periods of unemployment. They have few technical job skills or knowledge of how to be an effective employee.

The school that I work at in this evening part time job does not keep records if the students are able to land and keep a job after graduation. In curiosity, I sent an email to all 215 students who had gone through my classes in the last few years asking how they had done since graduating from the program and only got 3 replies.

In an era of budget cuts the program I work for is struggling to keep funding. What do you think of welfare to work programs?

Did any of the three have a job? Any of the others?

If all three did land a job and keep it, that would be a success rate of .013953488372093. Divided into the money for your program, how much is that per student?

Sounds like the program is not working. Why would we want to throw more money on an idea that does not work?????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ??????????
?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ???????????

[Jadex]

I think those collecting say food stamps or whatever should be required to either get their ged or a trade program. So hopefully one day they wont need them anymore.

So yes I would be willing to fund a program that does. But no loopholes, required to attend classes. If in a certain amount of time if they have not completed the program the welfare ends

[LauraC]

Originally Posted by The expert

I teach in a number of welfare to work education classes for a large adult education program in a large community. What an experience! These are programs where the long term unemployed and people on welfare are taught a trade and work skills. Most of the people in my classes have gone historically from one dead end low paid job to the next intermixed with long periods of unemployment. They have few technical job skills or knowledge of how to be an effective employee.

The school that I work at in this evening part time job does not keep records if the students are able to land and keep a job after graduation. In curiosity, I sent an email to all 215 students who had gone through my classes in the last few years asking how they had done since graduating from the program and only got 3 replies.

In an era of budget cuts the program I work for is struggling to keep funding. What do you think of welfare to work programs?

In essence you are mopping up a flood after the public schools crank them out, uneducated. Perhaps a better use of the money is earlier down the road when the lessons should be:

1. Having a baby in high school and out of wedlock dooms you to poverty.
2. Graduate.
3. Associate with lowlifes and they'll bring you down with them.

[Booya]

Why would they continue to fund a program without providing positive results?
YOur own little survey seems to prove the point.

I'm actually curious as to what kind of skills your program teaching them that would enable them to be employable for anything other than low paying dead end jobs. Especially in todays economy.

[Booya]

I wonder why the OPs address under their name, "The Expert" says, "Not A Member" as opposed to most members it show "senior member" or whatever. Can people post on CD without enrolling? Just curious. Thanks

[Jill61]

If we are paying out welfare to people who are unemployed or underemployed, I not only think educating them in work skills is a good idea, I think it should be mandatory. Without such programs and the associated funding for them, along with an attendance requirement, these people would never, ever attend any sort of educational training program.

Although I'm somewhat surprised that your school doesn't track success (is it possible that's incorrect information?), I'm also somewhat unsurprised, since neither do public high schools or public universities. Yet we would never say it's unimportant to educate children in this country.

So yes, if people are getting welfare checks (as opposed to unemployment compensation, which is an insurance pool that has been paid into by employers for that purpose), they should be required to learn skills that will make them more capable of finding gainful employment.

[sacredgrooves]

I am not at all familiar with how the program operates, but maybe they could be learning skills in a productive manner to society or business? For example, actually performing work for a business at no cost to an employer while they collect unemployment or welfare (like an internship)? Community service type work possibly? If we got production out of the funds in some way it would be easier to accept.
The sensitive reality also has to be taken into account. Some of us simply do not have the aptitude to rise above menial labor. I wish everyone in the USA had triple digit IQ's, but we all know that is not the case. No matter the solution, be it taking away funding, or changing the way a program operates, someone will be no doubt offended.