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"Stated Principles and Real Intentions on Workfare" KOBAYASHI Hayato November 1, 2007 Gendai Shiso 35(14):206
Japanese Page http://workfare.info/kh/200704.htm

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What are the implications of gworkfareh? The term seems to have been prevalent in Japan as meaning of gwork fairsh for the unemployed, as if no welfare exists and the individuals agree with any matters relating to employment because of its substantial importance.

gWorkfareh is a composite term of gworkh and gwelfare.h In the US, workfare means policies that confer obligations of work on recipients of welfare (public assistance) who are employable. The purpose of the policy is to make welfare recipients independent or break free of welfare-dependent status through jobs. Behind the stated principle of the workfare policy, A real intention, behind this stated principle of the workfare policy, is that the government has been eager to reduce welfare costs because all the issues of unemployment and poverty are matters of individuals. Therefore, gworkfareh is a word referring to a reform policy that takes the opposite stance to welfare. Moreover, the policy can be regarded as a movement in which rights to welfare or activities on the rights-- the ultimate barriers to the welfare cost reduction-- have been hampered by introducing the obligations of work.

Workfare policies have been disseminated from the US, the birthplace of and initiative taker of such policies, to mainly the UK, along with the development of the decentralization of power and neoliberalism. In Japan, the policy was introduced in reports on Giulianifs administrative reform, which were prepared by ISHIHARAfs Tokyo metropolitan government in 2001. Since 2002, the nationfs policies for self-reliance support have defined the policy operations of local governments.

For the last four or more decades, workfare has failed to achieve the goal of realizing the recipientsf self-reliance by enabling them to be employed. However, because of success of employment of some highly employable recipients and the reduction of welfare costs and the number of recipients, the policy has received an affirmative evaluation, which has resulted in the policy transfer. On the other hand, the more have the job assistance policies after the policy transfer failed to achieve the initial objective, the more has it become a strong rationale for accelerating the reforms that lead to reinforcement of work. Even if the stated principle of job assistance is accepted and introduced in society, the workfare policy eventually forces the welfare recipients to work. Therefore, different perspectives should be taken for the situations in which job assistance programs are indispensable, or where there are issues of unemployment and poverty. This is because welfare and income security have been demanded as our rights since unemployment and poverty have been our own problems.


(KOBAYASHI Hayato, Studies of Social Policy and Welfare)

UPFDecember 4, 2009@REV:December 18, 2009/June 8, 2015
Translation by TAMURA Noriko
Workfare@KOBAYASHI Hayato
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