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The capitalist democracies of western Europe and the U.S. have developed extensive social programs, based on the principle of solidarity, that provide assistance to the destitute, the unemployed, the sick, the disabled, and the elderly. Due in part to growing levels of spending on these solidarity programs that may threaten financial solvency in some of these countries and in part to a growing belief that social programs should help people work and achieve self-sufficiency, these countries have implemented "work activation" policies that try to encourage, entice, and cajole physically-able people to work. Experience implementing such work activation policies now suggests that policy can emphasize the relatively new goal of work activation while still achieving the traditional social purpose of solidarity programs by greatly reducing poverty. The aim of this paper is to review the experiences of the U.S. and selected European nations in attempting to balance solidarity with work activation by discussing both the components of an ideal work activation system and the problems these systems often encounter. The problems examined include too few jobs, recessions, low wages, and disconnected adults. The overarching purpose of the paper is to find a balance between the goals of social solidarity and work activation.

"Presents facts and factors that contribute to economic opportunity, looking at how poor, middle class, and rich have fared in recent decades. Proposes a cost-effective agenda for increasing opportunity, consistent with American values, and focuses on improving lives of the young and disadvantaged, emphasizing individual responsibility as indispensable for success"--Provided by publisher

Work over Welfare tells the inside story of the legislation that ended ''welfare as we know it.'' As a key staffer on the House Ways and Means Committee, author Ron Haskins was one of the architects of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of 1996

Government efforts toward the prevention, detection, and investigation of child abuse and neglect are carried out through the United States' child welfare system—a complex web of programs that provide family assistance and promote child safety. Most funding for these activities is split among federal, state, and local governments and comprises specific child welfare–related funding (such as Titles IV-E and IV-B of the Social Security Act) and non–child welfare funding that is spent on programs that support poor and disadvantaged families (Medicaid and TANF). I provide an overview of these funding streams that finance the child welfare system, review the federal legislation since 1970 that has led to the current funding structure, and end with a discussion of how the Family First Prevention Services Act of 2018 has the potential to create better outcomes for children and families by promoting prevention activities and program support with strong evidence of success.