>But Brad is right that low-wage workers encounter the welfare state in
>many forms. Many have very insecure employment and never qualify for
>unemployment insurance,
unemployment insurance ain't much of a "welfare state" iyam
>so TANF is always on the radar screen whether they actually receive it or
>not.
it depends on where you are, but i'm going to guess that TANF isn't on the radar screen in the county where i live. it is for the 'hard core' poor but not really for the working poor. i would also argue that, while folks who are working poor will take advantage of some "invisible" programs, they are not especially like to apply for TANF because of the stigma attached to it. it is, as i've often worked among these circles of folks, one of the worst things to do and the last place you turn.
school lunches: in this state, when i asked to change my status because i was out of work, they gave me temporary reduced priced lunch (and that's with no income!) for six weeks and then demanded that we start paying full price.
EITC: for years i've told brad that a lot of people don't know it exists. i divorced during grad school years and realized it was available. so, i started asking low-income single moms if they knew about it --and ended up doing their taxes to show them how to do it (my sister included) because they didn't know they were eligible.
>Your sister or cousin or neighbor may be receiving it. The school system.
schools=everyone has access.
>Various health programs,
for children mainly as you note.
>especially for kids. Housing programs.
right. :) so you can get inspected once a year by a guy snooping around looking for flannel shirts and tool boxes. i guess they can't imagine that there'd be a woman under that bed helping with expenses and ripping off the state
you pay "low income" rent, btw, if you're making $8k per year for two; $8k-$17k pegs you as "median income" for two and you pay a little less than market rate (about 10%); after that my 2 br 2 ba would be running about $850 + and i could move into a decent condo rental for less.
>Child protective services.
which many folks live in fear of.
>
>All of these are both welfare and a cop -- very typical of the role of
>government to low-wage workers.
yah.
>
>Maybe Ehrenreich didn't notice these because she didn't have children with
>her on her investigation.
i think it important to look at the lives of people who are poor and without children. we can almost always stir up support for helping people with children, but getting people to worry about the working poor who are single is another issue.