Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) gives states the flexibility to design programs to help low-income families move into employment. However, the law discourages states from allowing welfare recipients to participate in education and training programs. Because the law limits the extent to which education activities count toward federal…

Discusses the benefits and limits of quick job placement and basic education strategies, and suggests ways to create more effective welfare-to-work strategies. Focuses on the challenges of helping those for whom job searches are unsuccessful, and recommends ways of helping them find and sustain employment. Contains 18 citations. (VWC)

Most welfare-to-work programs may be classified as quick employment programs emphasizing individual or group job searches or skill-building programs emphasizing basic education. Although both types of programs offer benefits, they also suffer from significant limitations. To be more effective than their predecessors, current-generation…

A study reviewed the efforts of six states (California, Florida, Minnesota, Oregon, Texas, and Washington) to create new policies and strategies to support low-income individuals as they work. The study found the following: (1) working steadily initially after leaving welfare is linked to being employed in later years but is not linked to higher…