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Full-Text Articles in Law
Social Welfare, Human Dignity, And The Puzzle Of What We Owe Each Other, Amy L. Wax
Social Welfare, Human Dignity, And The Puzzle Of What We Owe Each Other, Amy L. Wax
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Proponents of work-based welfare reform claim that moving the poor from welfare to work will advance the goals of economic self-reliance and independence. Reform opponents attack these objectives as ideologically motivated and conceptually incoherent. Drawing on perspectives developed by luck egalitarians and feminist theorists, these critics disparage conventional notions of economic desert, find fault with market measures of value, debunk ideals of autonomy, and emphasize the pervasiveness of interdependence and unearned benefits within free market societies. These arguments pose an important challenge to justifications usually advanced for work-based welfare reform. Reform proponents must concede that no member of society can …
The Immigration Paradox: Poverty, Distributive Justice, And Liberal Egalitarianism, Howard F. Chang
The Immigration Paradox: Poverty, Distributive Justice, And Liberal Egalitarianism, Howard F. Chang
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The immigration of unskilled workers poses a fundamental problem for liberals. While from the perspective of the economic welfare of natives, the optimal policy would be to admit these aliens as guest workers, this policy would violate liberal egalitarian ideals. These ideals would treat these resident workers as equals, entitled to access to citizenship and to the full set of public benefits provided to citizens. If the welfare of all incumbent residents determines admissions policies, however, and we anticipate the fiscal burden that the immigration of the poor would impose, then our welfare criterion would preclude the admission of unskilled …
Something For Nothing: Liberal Justice And Welfare Work Requirements, Amy L. Wax
Something For Nothing: Liberal Justice And Welfare Work Requirements, Amy L. Wax
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Welfare reform legislation enacted in 1996, which created the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, makes entitlement to federal poor relief conditional on fulfilling work requirements. The article addresses the following timely question: whether just liberal societies should require work as a condition of public assistance for the able-bodied, or whether aid should be provided unconditionally through, for example, a basic guaranteed income for all. Drawing on the work of liberal egalitarian theorists, the article investigates whether standard liberal theories of justice can help make sense of arguments commonly voiced in favor of work requirements: that unconditional welfare guarantees, …