Position Paper on Single Mothers Surviving on Welfare

Position Paper on Single Mothers Surviving on Welfare

In the article “Foreword: Making Ends Meet, How Single Mothers Survive Welfare and Low-Wage Work”, author Christopher Jencks addresses the issue of how single mothers are able to survive while being on welfare and having low-wage jobs. According to authors Kathryn Edin and Laura Lein, most poor single mothers supplement their income from other sources such as: money from relatives, friends, their children’s fathers, or some employment that is not reported to the IRS (1997, pp. ix-xxxiv). When they report extra earnings, their benefits get cut by the extra amount they made. I agree that they must supplement their income. According to Mr. Jencks, in 1992, 1.5 million single mothers reported an annual income of $5,000.00. That is under $420.00 a month for their expenses, even with AFDC, food stamps, and Medicaid that would be nearly impossible to survive on (2001, pp. 393-394).
Mr. Jencks brings up a good po...