Welfare Restructuring, Work & Poverty: Policy Implications from Oregon Authors: Joan Acker, Sandra Morgen, and Lisa Gonzales with Jill Weigt, Kate Barry and Terri Heath Policy Matters Paper #2 ©Copyright 2002 by the University of Oregon. Eugene, Oregon. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States.   Table of Contents   Acknowledgements List of Figures Executive Summary Introduction: Are the New Welfare Policies Working? PDF Versions for Download Executive Summary Acknowledgements - Section IV Section V - Bibliography Section I — A Study of Former Welfare Recipients in Oregon What did we study? Whom did we study? Who are the TANF-diverted? TANF Leavers vs.Food Stamp Leavers Section II — The Struggle for Self-sufficiency Are former welfare recipients working? What kind of wages are former recipients earning? How do wage levels fit into the bigger picture? Can families make it on low wages alone? Is “welfare reform ”helping families climb out of poverty? Who is making it? Who isn ’t making it? Section III — The Low-wage Labor Market Is welfare-to-work working? What is a good job? Will job prospects for former recipients improve? What makes a good job for single parents? Section IV — The Work of Raising Children Who has problems with childcare? How important is childcare assistance? Is daycare the only solution? Why can ’t poor mothers care for their own children? Section V — Non-employment and Unemployment Do employers care about the lives of low-wage workers? What happens when people who are poor get sick? Section VI — The Demographics of Poverty Who ’s poor in Oregon? Does the low-wage sector discriminate? Does labor have a gender divide? Section VII — Education, Training and Job Advancement Does “welfare reform ”provide a route out of poverty? Why can ’t people who are poor access education? What makes educational attainment possible? Conclusion — Setting and Meeting the Goal of Poverty Reduction Is “welfare reform ”reducing poverty in Oregon? Recommendations An end to poverty? Bibliography Access the Study To access the study, please follow the links provided above to the PDF file that includes the section you are interested in. We have separated this volume into two, readable sections to allow for quicker downloads of the PDF files, and to provide easier access to specific sections of the document. Additionally, the Executive Summary exists as an individual PDF file for an easy overview of the entire document In order to view these PDF files online, and to be able to print them, you will need to have Adobe's Acrobat Reader installed on your computer. Acrobat Reader may be downloaded for free from Adobe's website Women in the Northwest Research Initiative [Back to Index Page]