A Long Term Solution for an On-Going Problem

Why Don't They Just Get a Job?
One Couple's Mission to End Poverty
in Their Community
Authors: Liane Phillips and
Echo Montgomery Garrett
Publisher: aha! Process Inc.
ISBN: 978-1-934583-37-1

No one sets out to live their life in poverty, on welfare or serially jobless. Even before the current economic crisis, there were too many Americans chronically unemployed or having no opportunity for job training. As a former Social Worker and longtime American taxpayer, I am able to see both sides of this issue. In our society, there are many people considered unemployable. There are a variety of reasons for this. Many just do not have the financial means to continue education, and are left with no real marketable skills. Some people are truly driven into the welfare system because of circumstances beyond their control and lack the support; emotional, logistical, etc., to crawl back out. The "multiple generation" welfare share does come into play, also. It's probably the area most attacked by many as an abuse of the system. But if your mother never learned from her elders about motivation, ambition, personal skills,and the personal satifaction they offer, she probably won't know how to teach them to you. It's a vicious circle, and a tough situation for those involved. We won't solve that issue overnight, but it can be addressed successfully.

Thanks to a retired corporate couple, the people of Cincinnati now have a way out of the vicious circle that poverty often becomes. When Liane and Dave Phillips retired, they were at loose ends. With lots of energy and their shared corporate talents and experience, they started a revolutionary program. Their program is called Cincinnati Works. It's a nonprofit, member based organization changing the welfare landscape. It's a program that can (and should) be available thoughout this country.

To give an example of the success of Cincinnati Works, 80% of the people trained and hired into the community have retained their positions. That's a really incredible retention rate when you acknowledge that government funded programs of this type generally average a retention rate of 20 to 25%. Thousands of families have moved from welfare and poverty to self sufficiency and the personal satisfaction it can bring. The Phillips and their groundbreaking program have won numerous awards and the recognition of the Harvard Business Review.

The authors of this book have done an outstanding job. The writing style is clear and concise, and the story is moving, entertaining and inspirational all at once. With lots of attention to detail, it's easy to see how the plan can be duplicated. If this is not enough to convince you buy this book, the fact that a portion of the profits will be donated to Cincinnati Works (a program that really DOES work) should cinch the deal for you. If I could personally afford it, I would purchase copies of this book for every welfare and poverty program in the country. Utilizing this type of program would change the way the system works or doesn't work, in many cases. Highly recommended by this reader!