However, under Minnesota law, recipients are forced to take the first job offered them, no matter what the wage. This means that in emergencies they must again turn to the state for help. Politicians and those gaining from cheap labor point the finger at poor families to take the attention from the REAL problems of today. There is a severe shortage of jobs that pay living wages. There is little or no job security as corporations move their businesses to utilize the cheapest labor worldwide.
Most jobs give little or no health care benefits.
There is not enough reliable affordable childcare, or health care. The cost of post-secondary education makes it beyond the reach of most people. Increases in wages are not sufficient to cover the increases in the cost of living. In 1989 there were 66 U.S. billionaires and 31.5 million living below the poverty line. In 1999 there were 268 billionaires and 34.5 million living below the poverty line.