From Welfare to Work: Corporate Initiatives and Welfare Reform [Paperback]

Felice Davidson Perlmutter (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 10, 1997

From Welfare to Work focuses on the challenge of moving welfare recipients from welfare roles to working roles. It offers a detailed, in-depth analysis of how private corporations and industries can become effective partners with government in training and hiring welfare recipients for permanent positions. The core of the text offers a compelling success story using a case example of how Pennsylvania Blue Shield trained, hired, and retained several hundred welfare recipients on its work force. It proved to be an innovative training and employment program: the corporation benefited from the participants new skills and loyalty, and society benefited as welfare costs were cut. Moreover, Pennsylvania Blue Shield has increased its pool of workers while making a contribution to both its community and society, proving that, with appropriate assistance from the government, private industry can make a difference. Ideal for students of social policy and business ethics, From Welfare to Work presents a broad discussion of welfare reform, public policy, and corporate social responsibility. It offers a practical explanation of the specific steps needed to establish a welfare to work program, including corporate tax incentives, business and government collaborations, and the special needs of welfare recipients. Demonstrating that it is possible for corporate America to combine bottom-line goals with socially responsible goals, this text is essential reading for all corporate executives who combine concern for the well-being of their companies with a sense of social responsibility. It is also fundamental reading for all legislators on the federal and state levels, as it calls attention to the essential role of the public sector in making possible the involvement of the private sector.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Contains a good synthesis of issues and past program successes and failures."--Irene R. Bush, School of Social Work, Rutgers University

"Perlmutter details a positive example of private-public sector collaboration relevant to welfare reform. She helps us to identify the circumstances conducive for private companies to do "good by doing well" by employing former welfare recipients."--Thomas W. Dunfee, Kolodny Professor of Social Responsibility, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania

"Today a company's success should not be judged entirely on its profit margins, but also by its community initiatives. Dynamic companies in the 1990s are being led by executives who combine concern for the well-being of their company with a sense of social responsibility. Nowhere is this more evident than at Pennsylvania Blue Shield. From Welfare to Work details the extraordinary program designed to train and hire women making the journey from welfare to work. The Pennsylvania Blue Shield experience, as detailed by Temple University expert Felice Davidson Perlmutter, reveals that cooperation between public and private sectors can provide support for the needs of society while serving the interests of fiscally responsible corporations. All corporate executives should pay especially careful attention to the book's final chapter, and learn to apply Pennsylvania Blue Shield's strategy in achieving this goal." --Charles P. Pizzi, President,Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce

About the Author

Felice Davidson Perlmutter is a Professor of Social Administration at Temple University. She is the author of seven books and 70 articles on social administration, social policy, and nonprofit organizations. As a Fulbright Scholar, Perlmutter has extensive international experience as a teacher, consultant, and researcher.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (July 10, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195110161
• ISBN-13: 978-0195110166
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,587,589 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Informative, June 15, 2008

By 

Degrees (NJ) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: From Welfare to Work: Corporate Initiatives and Welfare Reform (Paperback)

I took a class on Poverty and Welfare. This was one of my required readings. It will help open your eyes and change the stigma you have about those on welfare and about poverty in America.

3.0 out of 5 stars Great story of corporate responsibility, October 10, 2002

By 

Patrick Ortman (Omaha, NE) - See all my reviews

This review is from: From Welfare to Work: Corporate Initiatives and Welfare Reform (Paperback)

From Welfare to Work: Corporate Initiatives and Welfare Reform, by Felice Davidson Perlmutter, was an informative book about how private corporations can collaborate with public welfare systems to train and hire employees. The book explores the need and benefits of corporate initiative to aid both the corporation and welfare recipients. The majority of Perlmutter's book details in extremity an example of a private insurance corporation, Pennsylvania Blue Shield, and their program to train and hire welfare recipients. The purpose of the case study is to explain how a large corporation can employ welfare recipients successfully and to address the issues that are critical to encourage corporations to execute a program of this nature. The program designed by Pennsylvania Blue Shield is fascinating because it shows how companies can become more dynamic by making profits and showing corporate responsibility.

Perlmutter does an excellent job of showing the extent that a company can be socially responsible and benefit financially at the same time. She uses a number of statistics to show that the costs associated with the programs are helping to reduce public spending and invest in the future success of both the individuals that are trained and the corporations implementing the programs. One noticeable aspect left out of the book is the lack of examples that illustrate poor implementation of corporate responsibility initiatives in contrast to the success stories mentioned.

Overall, this book was somewhat interesting to read. From Welfare to Work would be extremely valuable for a corporate executive to gain ideas beneficial to his or her company, but as a college student, there is not much use for this book other than opening my eyes to the fact that more than just public tax dollars can be used to help welfare recipients. It is good to know that many people on welfare want to do something with their lives other than sit around and receive government checks. If more companies would use programs such as the one described in the book, a great deal of tax dollars spent on welfare would be saved and the quality of life in our country would increase with more people having pride in their jobs.