What is analogous to digging ditches in social work? Working directly with families? That's the part that requires training.
There is plenty of work that is analogous to digging ditches. Go repair houses, clean up public areas, volunteer to monitor study halls. Too many possible areas to name. With proper supervision just about anyone could perform these tasks.
We have schools that are falling in, public housing systems that are disintegrating from the inside out. Put roofs on people's houses who need roofs. Etc.... Social work is labor more than anything else.
Wrangor, all that stuff isn't social work.
How would you define people who help clean up a community? I would have always defined them as social workers. I understand if you go get a degree in social work you are more akin to a therapist but for example: What field would you call someone who comes into town and starts a tutoring center (or someone who helps out at that tutoring center). Or someone. Who starts a free daycare so single mothers can work and provide for their family? I define those people as social workers. They work for the benefit of society.
Whatever you want to define people whose "product" is the betterment of society by any means necessary. We need more if them, and it doesn't necessarily take a college degree to be effective. That is my point.
How would you define people who help clean up a community? I would have always defined them as social workers. I understand if you go get a degree in social work you are more akin to a therapist but for example: What field would you call someone who comes into town and starts a tutoring center (or someone who helps out at that tutoring center). Or someone. Who starts a free daycare so single mothers can work and provide for their family? I define those people as social workers. They work for the benefit of society.
Whatever you want to define people whose "product" is the betterment of society by any means necessary. We need more if them, and it doesn't necessarily take a college degree to be effective. That is my point.
Seriously? Managing a case, having responsibilities, working with other people, time management, the inevitable paperwork and numbers work the evolves from a normal work schedule .... There are plenty of job skills to be learned by being a case worker. Stop being such a jerk. You don't have to be a software engineer to gain usable skills. Just the act of waking up at 6am and going to work is a usable skill.
How would you define people who help clean up a community? I would have always defined them as social workers. I understand if you go get a degree in social work you are more akin to a therapist but for example: What field would you call someone who comes into town and starts a tutoring center (or someone who helps out at that tutoring center). Or someone. Who starts a free daycare so single mothers can work and provide for their family? I define those people as social workers. They work for the benefit of society.
Whatever you want to define people whose "product" is the betterment of society by any means necessary. We need more if them, and it doesn't necessarily take a college degree to be effective. That is my point.
Well the fact that Wrangor doesn't know what social work is kind of explains where this post came from, I guess.
Wrangor, you want government to create jobs for poor people?
Wrangor, you want government to create jobs for poor people?
Yes. Don't always assume so much.
Despite my clear miscommunication (and error) on my intentions when using the word social work, I don't think it is a bad idea. Employ people to revitalize their own community. Would give ownership, job training, self pride, and in general would be a win for the community and the individuals. It would cost more, but it would also introduce accountability. Give people a certain time period where they have a cushion to get back on their feet. After that require 20 hours a week of investment into the community in order to continue to receive aid from the government. Lord knows we have plenty of work that needs to be done, and few people to do it. Seems like a perfect fit for everyone involved.
I think you could accomplish the same work, for the same money, and get a much better result for the participants, if you just called it a "job" instead "work to receive aid". I just think there is a vast difference psychologically in the impact on the recipient between getting a job and being required to do work to get aid.
You mean similar to the difference in views out there between unemployment (distinguished quite clearly by the Supreme Court as NOT welfare) and other forms of welfare or "social giving" by the government? When in reality anybody who receives SS, unemployment, or what is traditional called "welfare" is in fact receiving benefits from the government despite many people believing that unemployment is not welfare?