Welfare discourages hardwork

Jumping straight into this, but the first thing I want to declare is that some people can be on welfare and deserve it. That however does not change the fact that it can drastically be misused. Welfare pays just as much or more than minimum wage in some states"A combination of food stamps, temporary cash grants, WIC, and housing assistance is worth a pre-tax value more than $30,000 in 16 states. "[1]The average Per Captia income in the USA in 2013 $42,693 [2] . The average income per household varies from 39k - 55k yearly depending on the states[3]So if we look at the fact that this is a household budges, that means two people make around 50k yearly. Half of this is 25k, and that is already less than what a welfare recipient can receive. This is not the case in every scenario but on average welfare pays just as much as minimum wage. Logically this goes to show that it could discourage hard work. If you make just as much not working as you could doing a full time job, what motivation is there. Studies support that welfare discourages work. Here are some studies that support this"One thing that economists know—and the data show—is that when the net benefits to working are lower, people are less likely to find work. For instance, increasing the number of weeks that a worker receives unemployment insurance is commonly done whenever there is a recession, although 99 weeks is well beyond what was done in previous recessions. What we observe when benefits last 26 weeks, as is normally the case, is that a fair proportion of people find jobs the first month or two, a trickle of others find jobs in months three through six, and then most of the rest become employed in month seven, when benefits expire. When we extend benefits to nine months we see the same pattern, except that the magical month when the bulk of the unemployed rejoin the work force becomes month ten. Or if we extend it to 52 weeks then it becomes month thirteen. Most people would rather not work if they can afford not to, it turns out, and I include myself among that number."[4]" Low-income families often receive benefits from multiple welfare and tax programs, such as assistance with food, housing, and day care costs, help with medical costs, or cash payments to supplement earnings from work. While these programs often support and encourage employment, program ``phase-out rules'--especially when combined across multiple programs--mean certain households may not be significantly better off if they earn more from work. Economists have studied the interaction between earnings and benefits under various programs by focusing on what are called " implicit marginal tax rates,' which refers to the portion of an additional dollar of earnings effectively lost due to rising taxes and benefit reductions. Due to implicit marginal tax rates that can approach or even exceed 100 percent when individuals receive benefits from multiple programs, it is possible that some individuals will be little better off financially--and in some cases even worse off--if their earnings increase. [5]ConclusionThis is a syllogism but it explains itself[P1] If you receive a significant amount of tax benefits , along with a decent amount of money from welfare and other low income programs there is no need to work because you are already doing well. [P2] Recently the eligibility requirements have decreased for these programs, and the amount of time along with number of benefits have increased[P3} If you have more benefits from a low income program like welfare and Wic and can support your family better with that program, there is no need to get a job and actually contribute to the economy because you will be making less or just as much as you are already making.[P4} Because there is no incentive for people to work because of the benefits and money they are receiving, welfare discourages hard work. The resolution is not upheld. Welfare does discourage work, and especially hard work. [1] http://watchdog.org...[2] http://bber.unm.edu...[3] http://www.census.gov...[4] http://americanactionforum.org...[5] http://www.gpo.gov...