"I work hard for no money": The Work Demands of Single Mothers Managing Multiple State-Provided Benefits

Authors

  • Sara J. Cumming
  • Martin Cooke

Abstract

The role of social assistance in structuring the lives.of women has been well-documented. However, it is only one of a number of programs used by low-income single mothers, and there has been little attention paid to how these programs interact to form a web of rules and obligations for recipients. Through analysis of in-depth interviews with a small sample of single mothers and caseworkers, this paper e~ploresth e effects of each policy on women's day-to-day lives. We demonstrate the important amount of paid and unpaid work already done by these women, but argue that receiving multiple benefits requires additional work as conditions of individual programs, as well as work to coodinate various program requirements and to avoid gaps in benefit coverage. Future research should consider both the formal and informal program requirements, as well as how the requirements of various program may be contradictory. Keywords: poverty, single mothers, social assistance, welfare reform Le r61e de l'assistance sociale dans la vie des femmes est bien document& Pourtant, l'assistance sociale n'est qu'un des programmes auxquels les m&res inonoparentales recourent, et peu d'attention a et6 portbe 5 l'interaction entre les diffkrents programmes, tels l'assistance sociale, les logements subventionn6s, les subventions pour frais de garde d'enfants et les pr&ts etudiants, bien qu'ils cr6ent un ensemble de r&gles et d'obligations pour leurs benkficiaires. Grgce 5 des entrevues de fond conduites aupr&s d'un petit Cchantillon de m&res monoparentales, nous analyserons les effets de ces obligations sur leur vie quotidienne. Nous y dCmontrerons l'imnportante charge de travail, tant r6munerC que non remunerk, que cela represente pour ces feinmes et nous soumettrons qu'une autre forme de travail doit aussi Ctre assumke par celles-ci afin de ben6ficier de ces programmes. Aussi, les feinmes doivent coordonner les besoins de ces divers programmes. Des recherches futures devraient considkrer les exigences, tant formelles qu'informelles, rattachkes 5 ces programmes et ainsi faire ressortir comment elles peuvent Ctre contradictoires. Mots clis: Assistance sociale, pauvretf', rkforme de l'assistance sociale

Published

2008-05-01

How to Cite

Cumming, S. J., & Cooke, M. (2008). "I work hard for no money": The Work Demands of Single Mothers Managing Multiple State-Provided Benefits. Canadian Review of Social Policy Revue Canadienne De Politique Sociale, (60-61). Retrieved from https://crsp.journals.yorku.ca/index.php/crsp/article/view/34207

Issue

Section

Articles