Welfare programs are now trying to put into place a new qualification where any possible recipients of welfare are required to take a drug test. For the most part, welfare recipients respect the requirements of their contract with the agency. The drug testing will just be used to eliminate any persons taking advantage of the welfare program for inappropriate use and to ensure that the welfare will go to the people who are actually in need of it. While many are more than willing to take the drug tests, there are also quite a few who are very reluctant toward this new qualification.
In order to decide whether or not drug testing is a logical and fair requirement, all the pros and cons need to be laid out on the table. As for the pros of the required drug testing, there are quite a few to take into consideration. The first pro to consider is that it’s not fair to the tax payers to have to pay for others’ drug addictions. For all the tax payers in the world, all the taxes we pay out of our paychecks, pockets, etc. go to the government.
This money then in turn goes to things such as paying schools, funding clubs, and more importantly, to support those persons seeking welfare. It’s not fair to those tax payers if in fact those people on or seeking welfare are stuck in an addiction and use the welfare money to support their habit. Tax payers are obviously working to earn their money, so why should they have to work to pay off the habits of the people who are too lazy to get up and work for it themselves? On that note, drug testing could also be used as an incentive to not use drugs.
The Essay on Welfare Drug Testing
... afraid to be deny due to drug use, or confused tax payers. Confused tax payers might think that by drug testing all welfare recipients the government would have ... 7 states where pays more than $12 per hour. Hawaii’s welfare hourly rate is equivalent to $17. 50 ... unemployment) $131. 9 billion dollars. There is 40 states where welfare pays more than an $8. 00 per hour job and even ...
As some people do depend on welfare to support their habit, many of those people are just stuck in a habit they can’t kick but really do need the financial support for logical reasons other than drugs. For the people seeking welfare, the mandatory drug testing can be used for the simple fact that knowing their cash assistance is depending on their sobriety and ability to produce a clean urine sample, that will motivate them to do what they have to do in order to get clean. Going off the assumption that those people are even stuck in an addiction, the time they gain from not using drugs can be put toward something useful or productive. Studies that include people who left welfare for any reason, including sanction, found that shortly after leaving welfare, half to two-thirds (between 53 percent and 70 percent) of welfare leavers were employed at a point in time. Durational employment rates over a period of six months to a year were between 70 percent and 80 percent. ” ( By getting a job or going to school, this will eventually lead to some type of financial stability. With financial stability, there will no longer be any need for welfare. Thus, a spot is now provided for someone else who really needs the assistance.
As far as applying for welfare goes, in order to receive welfare you will only have to provide one mandatory drug test prior to your approval for assistance. Normally people who do not receive welfare have a job or are currently looking for a job. When applying for a job, almost every job you apply for will require a mandatory drug test before they hire you. Not only do they require one drug test before, but most often they also require random mandatory drug testing throughout you r employment there. So, there’s really no difference between welfare and an actual job. If anything, applying for welfare is much more lenient.
The individuals who actually work for their money are usually required to participate in the random drug testing. The only fair thing to do would to require drug testing for possible welfare recipients as well. While most people are working their life away to earn a living and be able to purchase the things they need, many others are lying around basically being handed their life and luxuries. If people are going to be lazy and accept money from a government agency, which the working class basically works for, the least they could do is be courteous enough to take the single drug test required.
The Essay on Children Or A Person With A Disability Welfare People Problems
We often read in the newspaper about a welfare family with a problem. Some of these articles identify the people on welfare with names that seem foreign, a single parent with numerous children, or a person with a disability. As I read these articles I remember comments made by some family members and friends about how we are "paying for these people' and they should "just get a job like everyone ...
As for the cons, one of the biggest concerns recipients have is the bad stigma drug testing will give against welfare recipients. Although this is a reasonable concern, it also has its plus side. For those applying for welfare, if you are not doing drugs then you have nothing to worry about. Taking the test will only prove the rumors false. If there is something to hide, again, this will only provide an incentive to do what has to be done to become clean. The new drug testing requirement could also lead to more serious personal issues as well.
Most of the time, people apply for welfare because they have children they are not able to provide for by themselves. If those people are stuck in an addiction, or just refuse to subject themselves to a drug test, it may stop those people from seeking aid that need it to properly care for their children. Of course, because of this, many people will try to use it as a valid argument against drug testing. Last but not least, a lot of people applying for assistance are offended by the assumption that the need for assistance also implies a drug addiction.
That is a completely understandable concern, although, like it was said in a previous statement, if you are clean then you will have nothing to worry about. The drug testing is also just a general precaution. The people who run the program know that not everyone filing for assistance will have a drug problem, but it is just simple used to weed out the ones who will. Regardless of the majority who are honest and clean, there is always that small bit that will try to take advantage of the system. On that note, drug testing for welfare recipients can be a very negative or very positive addition to the application process.
The Term Paper on Drug Testing for Welfare 2
United States lawmakers face one of the most pressing issues of our time-welfare reform. New screening processes, often considered a direct violation of constitutional rights, have already been enacted in many states. Strong evidence exists, asserting that the practice of administering drug testing to welfare recipients will cost the U. S. taxpayers more money in the long run, stigmatize ...
For most, it is a positive. It can be used to weed out the minority of people who take advantage of the system, so the assistance can be given to those who really need it. For those who are against it, only goes to show they most likely have something to hide or are being dishonest about something. If someone is truly in need of the assistance, why should a drug test matter? Even if you are in an addiction, the most the test can do is give you an incentive to become clean so you can get the help you need.
