Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - July 30, 2002
Contact:  Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136
Alt Contact:  Ken Miller, Governor’s WorkFirst Policy Adviser, 360-902-0580
Kristin Alexander, WorkFirst Media Relations Coordinator, 360-902-9307

WorkFirst celebrates five-year anniversary with lowest welfare caseload

OLYMPIA - Five years after Washington launched its WorkFirst welfare reform strategy, placing an emphasis on work as the means out of poverty, the welfare caseload has shrunk 45 percent and is the lowest since the 1980s, according to Gov. Gary Locke.

“In five years, WorkFirst has helped 138,000 parents leave welfare and stay off,” Locke said. “Washington has provided the training, support services and incentives parents needed to find jobs, care for their children, and break free from poverty. WorkFirst has shown that in Washington, welfare reform means a hand up, not a handout.”

Washington set three straightforward goals when it initiated WorkFirst on Aug. 1, 1997:

• First, to reduce poverty by helping people get jobs and requiring all those who can work to do so;
  
  
• Second, to help people get the experience and training they need to move up a career ladder;
  
  
• Third, to protect children and other vulnerable people who cannot work and who need continuing support.

“I’m proud to say WorkFirst not only met those goals, it exceeded expectations,” Locke said. “We have revolutionized services that help people find and keep jobs, earned national recognition for our innovative and successful programs, and changed the way people think about public assistance. Today, less than 2.5 percent of Washington’s population receives welfare benefits – the lowest level since 1969.”

“At the same time, state spending on welfare grants has been cut by more than a third under WorkFirst. We’ve reinvested those caseload savings into services working families need to prepare for work and stay on the job. More money now goes toward child care than to cash grants,” Locke said.

For Veronika Hauser and many other WorkFirst participants, success has meant more than a paycheck.

Only a few years ago, Hauser fled an abusive relationship to find a better life for herself and her teenage son. WorkFirst staff helped her obtain cash and medical assistance, food stamps, clothing and counseling, and referred her to a pre-employment training program. Today, she’s a patient care technician at Overlake Hospital Medical Center in Bellevue and free from public assistance.

“When I go to work, I may get more out of it than the patients do. It’s very satisfying and gratifying for me,” Hauser said.

Businesses have also benefited from the program. Job fairs and free applicant screening have made it possible for them to reduce high advertising and recruitment costs. Plus, they save even more because WorkFirst offers tax credits for employers and training for their workers.

“The biggest advantage to recruiting WorkFirst participants is finding friendly, qualified workers to keep the business running,” said Danielle Stephenson, project manager for diversity and recruiting for Washington’s largest retailer, Fred Meyer.

When creating WorkFirst, Washington set a five-year lifetime limit on welfare cash benefits – the maximum limit allowed by federal law. However, the federal law also gives states the flexibility to extend federally funded benefits beyond five years to 20 percent of a state’s total caseload.

“For most families, five years has proven to be more than sufficient to leave welfare,” said Ken Miller, the governor’s WorkFirst policy adviser. “Those who stay on longer are dealing with some very difficult issues and we are working hard to help them become self-reliant.”

Just 1,400 families have remained on the rolls for five years – less than 3 percent of the current welfare caseload of 52,723. Most will continue to receive benefits, either because they are unable to work or because they qualify for an extension while they continue to work, look for work or prepare for work.

About 250 parents will no longer receive benefits after July 31 because they have failed to meet work requirements. However, their children will continue to be provided for through Child SafetyNet payments. The money will be given to a neutral contractor who will use it to pay for rent, utilities, and other things children need, such as diapers and school supplies.

Meanwhile, the state is strengthening work participation requirements for everyone receiving a cash grant. A new computerized tracking system will help assure clients remain active in the WorkFirst program, and will automatically trigger a process to warn those who fail to participate in required activities.

WorkFirst services are administered by the state’s Department of Social and Health Services, Employment Security Department, State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, and Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development.

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News media: Additional information about WorkFirst time limits and five-year anniversary highlights are available on the WorkFirst Web site in the Reporters section at http://www.wa.gov/WORKFIRST/reporter/index.htm.

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Related Links:
- Washington WorkFirst
- Department of Social and Health Services
- Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development
- WorkFirst - Reporters Information
- Employment Security Department
- State Board for Community and Technical Colleges

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