|
Overview
Work under way at MDRC is addressing issues at the cutting edge of several major trends reshaping the nation's economy and institutions. Globalization and fast-paced technological change are altering labor market dynamics, making jobs less secure, and requiring that low-wage workers upgrade their skills if they are to enjoy rising incomes and career advancement. Large-scale immigration is making communities more culturally diverse and increasing the need for new forms of institutional support to help reduce poverty. As jobs and economic growth migrate to America's suburbs, residents of inner-city and rural communities — including millions of former welfare recipients trying to make their way in the job market — find themselves increasingly isolated in pockets of poverty.
Trends under way since the late 1990s have brought to the forefront a new national challenge to learn what works best to improve the economic and social health of low-income workers and communities. Welfare caseloads fell rapidly while employment rates, particularly for single mothers, rose to new highs. Meanwhile, MDRC studies found that education, training, and employment programs led to important — though often only modest — improvements for the people served. Would a focus on the working poor and an emphasis on place-based initiatives lead to larger, longer-lasting gains than those seen previously? Through its work in the area of job retention and advancement, MDRC is collaborating in study designs and testing new initiatives to find ways for social services agencies, schools, and government programs to help low-income workers secure a firmer grip on a career ladder and begin to lift themselves up. On the broader community level, MDRC is working with public housing authorities and a range of local schools, training programs, and neighborhood groups, using a combination of best practices and “saturation” service strategies to develop place-based community initiatives that can transform high-poverty areas into places of high opportunity. MDRC's rigorous studies of supports for low-income workers are testing approaches that provide earnings supplements to lift household income from wages and improve low-income families’ economic well-being.
Key Documents on Low-Wage Workers & Communities
|
|
