I recently had a conversation with a friend from a Latin American country who was sure that people from his city, poor people, are poor because they don`t want to work. I suggested that if he knew more about their life and family history then he would be able to connect the dots. This is largely true, but there are often other reasons. And I have to give him credit for seriously considering my point of view.
First of all, "They just don't want to work" is a very useless catchall and such a very convenient way of dismissing people whom we don't want to understand. I'm sure that if we knew some of the extenuating circumstances that keep people from wanting to participate in the workforce, that anyone with a smidgeon of empathy would immediately back off from passing judgment.
Here is a page from my own bio:
I reentered the workforce in 1992, following three years in unpaid Christian missionary work in the downtown core of Vancouver. I was part of a community of four dedicated Christians devoted to prayer and good works and supporting in spiritual and practical ways people suffering from AIDS, low income sex workers and other unwanted members of society. We solicited no help from others and the churches we were connected with (Anglican, of course) were, despite their wealth and holdings, just too stingy and mean-spirited to want to fund us. So, we trusted God and we pooled our resources.
Eventually the funding ran out, and I was eager to get back into some sense of ordinary life. So, I reentered my former profession as a home care worker. I was hired part time, while still upholding my responsibilities with my Christian community. Three years later, the community came to an end and I ended up living on my own in a rented apartment. My employers were unwilling to increase my hours beyond twenty a week. They didn't explain why, but eventually it became abundantly clear. The following year I was afflicted with the worst toothaches I had ever suffered. The company I worked for offered dental coverage to any employee working above twenty hours a week. They didn't care how much pain I was in nor how this was affecting my ability to work with our clients. No dental coverage and no increase of hours. I was not able to pay for dental work out of my own resources because I was only working part time and everything I made went to rent and food. I couldn't even afford public transit, so I had to walk everywhere. Because all my money went towards basic survival I was unable to afford to invest in the required training program. Their other excuse for not giving me other clients was that I didn't have appropriate clothing, nor the means to buy anything, because I had no money. I was still a client of social services, but they had clawed back the funding for helping clients invest in work appropriate clothing. I was stuck.
After three years of this abusive treatment, and unable to get more than six hours a week, I quit my job. My only income came from sporadic sales of my art and a bit of housecleaning I was doing on the side. I was too burnt-out and disgusted to go back on welfare, or to seek other employment, given what a Kafkaesque nightmare getting basic assistance, or sustainable employment had turned into. I tried to rely on God to provide for my needs, and for the next year I was taken care of through eleventh hour rescues. The pressure was still mounting from other quarters, and an evil priest in my church with a vendetta against me drove me into one of the first of many breakdowns that caused my mental health situation to spiral out of control. Then, I lost my apartment. I was already suffering early symptoms of trauma and becoming suddenly homeless almost killed me. Fortunately there were people there to help me, but I was too emotionally exhausted, and confused to look for employment.
A year later I was in a couple of shared living arrangements and on welfare, while trying to find employment. The effects of trauma made it very difficult for me to absorb even the most basic training. Try to explain that to a psychopathic welfare worker who doesn't give a shit. I was also going through a series of breakdowns, leaving me emotionally exhausted and unable to function well for months.
I was not able to get help because I did not know where to look.
It was only from lucking into a compassionate and very intelligent employment counsellor that I was able to break the cycle. Another individual whom God just threw onto my lap was able to get me connected to social housing and this motivated me to seek medical help which landed me four years with a very decent psychiatrist.
Once I was decently housed, and getting other help and supports that I was needing I was much better able to focus on moving forward with my life. I soon became gainfully employed and have been off welfare for almost fifteen years and am soon anticipating retirement.
As I related to my friend, there are often many reasons that we do not know about why people end up not seeking employment and languishing in cycles of poverty. If we can spare them our personal judgment, then who only knows? We might just be able to help.
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