Overview

This study examines in-depth the 'work first' Welfare-to-Work Grants program as it was implemented in a state that provided relatively generous subsides to low-income workers. The analysis engages in scholarly debates regarding persistent poverty, social welfare policies, and the efficacy of traditional theories of political economy. This study examines the real meaning and achievements of the shift in U.S. social policy for the poor away from the New Deal safety net and toward reliance on markets. Widely known as welfare reform, this policy change integrates caregivers (mostly women) of children living in poverty into the mainstream labor market by instituting a time limit on cash benefits and requiring paid work. The analysis contributes to scholarship by specifying the intersection of current politico-economic conditions and the lived experiences of those impacted by welfare reform. Findings speak to the legitimate authority of the neo-liberal grand narrative, the social embeddedness of both bureaucratic and market-based forms of organization, and the continuing risk of poverty despite relatively generous work supports. Although neo-liberal and liberal perspectives shaped welfare reform, insights from Weberian, cultural studies, and standpoint theories more adequately explain the complex and nuanced experience of the policy shift.

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"""... the results of Prof. Welch's research suggest that it is only within such a political and theoretical framework that positive movement on the problem of the underclass will be realized."" - Prof. Paget Henry Brown University ""Welch shows that, despite ingrained prejudices in American political culture, welfare bureaucracies functioned efficiently."" - Prof. Mark J. Goodman York University"""

... the results of Prof. Welch's research suggest that it is only within such a political and theoretical framework that positive movement on the problem of the underclass will be realized. - Prof. Paget Henry Brown University Welch shows that, despite ingrained prejudices in American political culture, welfare bureaucracies functioned efficiently. - Prof. Mark J. Goodman York University

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