As we grapple with rising unemployment and a universal need for higher incomes to meet growing housing costs, the issue of finding pathways to living wage jobs for the homeless becomes pressing for me. A person experiencing homelessness is inherently starting "from behind", often facing issues such as domestic violence, mental health and/or chemical dependency issues, lack of documentation. Living wages are also important for decreasing dependence on entitlements like TANF. Benefits are designed to help close the gap between income and the costs of living in our community, but they are not intended to replace earned income; yet some homeless families depend entirely on benefits for their cash needs, and live in poverty as a result. This is a reality, not a choice; too many homeless adults experience multiple barriers to work, such as mental or physical illness, and therefore do not succeed in the workplace. Homeless families are also more likely to be headed by a single parent, who may be unable to work full time because they have young children at home. A policy shift is needed to increase supports that truly work for working families, including those experiencing homelessness. Currently, public work supports, like child care assistance, aren't able to fill the income gap for working families and we must remember that the gap is that much wider for homeless families.

More and more parents are being forced to make tough choices on a regular basis between food and healthcare for their children and themselves. As Obama's stimulus package rolls out and there is a push to create new jobs, I want to remind us all that homeless people need and want jobs too. I am encouraged by the discussion at the hearing for U.S. Department of Labor nominee, Rep. Hilda Solis from Los Angeles:

Senator Tom Harkin:  Research shows that employment is a critical tool in ending homelessness, especially when it is linked with affordable housing. Yet traditional workforce development systems are not always accessible for people who are homeless or who to those with multiple, significant barriers. What employment strategies should the DOL undertake to support the nation's commitment to end homelessness?

Secretary Nominee Solis:  The best way to prevent homelessness is to make sure everyone has a job that pays a decent wage --- which means a wage high enough to cover rent or mortgage payments.  In this era of frequent foreclosures, spreading job loss, and rising despair, the department has a critical role to play by assuring that vulnerable populations of workers --- those workers who are teetering on the edge of homeless or already slipped in --- get the services they need and deserve. I am aware from my own experience that "one-size-fits-all" approaches to the delivery of services often have the practical effect of excluding hard-to-serve-populations, including the homeless, from receiving services, and that service strategies need to be sufficiently flexible to allow services to be tailored to the specific needs of populations like the homeless who face special barriers. We need to take what we have learned from experience about how best to provide services to various underserved populations and make sure that those best practices are incorporated into all of our other programs. If confirmed, I look forward to working with you to ensure that the homeless and other hard-to-serve are able to get the help they need and to obtain training and find meaningful employment.*

I applaud Senator Harkin for asking this question and Representative Solis for her solid answer. Only time will tell what happens next ...

If you are interested in more information on living wage jobs, I suggest reading this report: The 2008 Job Gap: Tough Times for Northwest Families.

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*Solis, Hilda. (2009). Response to Senator Harkin's Question, U.S. Senate Confirmation Hearings for the U.S. Department of Labor Secretary, Washington, D.C., January 9.