On Tuesday, the U.S. Census Bureau announced that there are now more Americans living in poverty than in any time since collection of the statistic began 52 years ago. This problem is especially pronounced in D.C., where the poverty rate is 17.6 percent, which is 2.5 percent higher than the national average. In response to this problem, Mayor Vincent Gray’s office has begun Sweat Equity, a new and unprecedented effort that takes homeless families on the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program and puts them to work renovating the District’s vacant buildings and apartments. When the work is done, the participant’s family can move into the residence with two years of city-subsidized rent.
Only in a pilot stage this year, Sweat Equity has put 12 heads of needy families—both male and female—to work renovating two six-unit buildings in Southeast D.C. As the Washington Post described it, the program is “a hammer, not a handout.”
Expectations for both employers and participants are strict. Contractors must employ members of the program for at least 20 hours a week for 70 percent of the construction project. Employees must be paid a wage of over $12.50 an hour. In turn, participants learn to read blueprints and other skills of the construction industry, as well as essential lessons of professionalism and accountability. They must pass drug tests, show up on time, and work just as hard as their colleagues. They are treated like normal employees, something essential for many participants who have been out of regular work for extended periods of time.
Although the two construction sites are only about halfway to completion, early results are encouraging. Sweat Equity work has already resulted in two permanent job placements for participants in the construction industry and has created a strong work ethic among other members. “This group understood what was at stake at the beginning of the program,” said Reggie Sanders, a spokesperson for the Mayor’s office. “They banded together to make it to the next stage.” Construction work through the record-setting heat of this summer is anything but easy, but Sanders attributes the high morale to the chance that participants are able to move into their renovated homes. “It’s a chance to bring their families together,” he said.
It is not clear yet whether the costs of Sweat Equity outweigh those of keeping the families on the welfare rolls, but the positive aspects of the program should outweigh monetary issues. The most compelling element is the effect it is sure to have on the children of these 12 families. They will get to see their parents do real work instead of relying on handouts. As one participant said to the Washington Post, “I get to show [my son] what a man should be doing—working. I get to show him firsthand.”
Even more important, these children will have the opportunity to grow up in stable homes instead of homeless shelters or spare rooms of relatives. Surely it is easier to memorize multiplication tables in one’s own home than to do it in a shelter. These are the kinds of things most kids never have to worry about, but they are absolutely essential when promoting equal opportunity.
Because of cutbacks in TANF earlier this year, these children’s families would have likely been forced off the welfare rolls and into societal obscurity. This is where the rubber hits the road in terms of social justice legislation with the next generations, and Sweat Equity gets it just right.
Unfortunately, the program is much too small. There are certainly more than 12 families in the District who could use the type of help Sweat Equity provides, and many of them and their children will face the same insecure fate that the participants narrowly avoided.
Still, there are reasons for hope. This program shows that government can and does have a positive impact on citizens’ lives when applied properly. With the broken value system of quasi-libertarian Republicans spreading throughout the nation, this point cannot be hammered home enough.
The Mayor’s office says it is too early for an evaluation of Sweat Equity, but a decision on whether the program will continue or expand will be made in the next six months. No matter what happens, governments of all levels across the nation should stand up and take notice. The Gray administration is proving that government is in fact often the answer to economic problems. Other communities should follow suit.
Hammer it out with Gavin at gbade@georgetownvoice.com
