CLPHA is pleased to share a suite of resources that describe the current landscape of workers, work requirements, and workforce development initiatives in households receiving U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rental assistance.
Nearly 75% of PHA residents are children, elderly, or disabled—not work-able populations. Only about 25% of PHA residents are able-bodied adults, most of whom work low-wage jobs. Public housing authorities (PHA) are focused on offering able-bodied adults workforce development and self-sufficiency opportunities with support from HUD programs and local partnerships.
In Who Lives and Works in Federally Assisted Housing, we utilize HUD data and existing research to show that:
—Most individuals living in federally assisted housing not work-able because they are children, elderly, or disabled;
—Most able-bodied individuals living in federally assisted housing are working and earning wages; and
—Able-bodied individuals living in federally assisted housing do not make enough money to rent in the private market.
In Building an America That Works for Everyone: Public Housing Authorities Pioneer Workforce Development Initiatives, we highlight several examples of PHAs from across the country who are leading efforts to connect residents to the American Dream, and to make America work for everyone. Improving life outcomes is embedded in the missions of PHAs. To this end, PHAs are supporting residents in their efforts to enter, stay, and grow in the workforce. For many years, CLPHA members have been in the vanguard of this work, connecting innovative programs to their residents that provide access to job training, apprenticeships, financial literacy education, youth programming, education initiatives, self-sufficiency programming, and more services that contribute to the development of America’s workforce.
In Work Requirement Research Shows Major Costs with Minor Impact, we examine existing research to offer several insights into the costs and effects of work requirements. While recent case studies of work requirements at PHAs demonstrate that these policies affected only a small percentage of individuals served and did little to increase employment or income among these residents, the Congressional Budget Office has found that requiring tenants who are neither elderly nor disabled to work toward leaving assisted housing by participating in a self-sufficiency program would cost roughly $10 billion if the number of assisted households was held constant. While several MTW PHAs already operate programs with work components, more data is needed on the impact of work requirements and what is required to implement them successfully.
