Rooney, Clíona and Gray, Jane (2019) Changing family dynamics and in-work benefits. Social Policy and Society, 19 (2). pp. 185-205. ISSN 1474-7464

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Abstract

Internationally, in-work benefits (IWBs) are widely adopted as a measure to assist parents transitioning to work and to ‘make work pay’ for low-income families. The family income supplement (FIS) is an Irish IWB, introduced at a time of rapid societal change. This article shows how changing family dynamics, and a shift in policy focus towards a ‘work-first’ approach, challenged the original values underlying FIS. We discuss FIS in the context of changes to family life and social policy. We then outline the results of ten interviews with experts using three themes: work-first approach; child poverty and encouraging care. Our analysis shows that policymakers faced new challenges to provide an income support for children while also promoting full-time labour participation. FIS continues to support working families, but in a manner that creates contradictions for the contemporary ‘work-first’ approach. It is necessary to re-examine FIS in relation to its wider policy context and to address requirements for caring.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This is the preprint version of the published article, which is available as Rooney, C., & Gray, J. (2020). Changing Family Dynamics and In-Work Benefits. Social Policy and Society, 19(2), 185-205. doi:10.1017/S1474746419000277
Keywords:	In-work benefits; Family change; Social policy; Low-Income families; Work-first policy;
Academic Unit:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Sociology
Item ID:	11664
Identification Number:	https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/eyrpj
Depositing User:	Jane Gray
Date Deposited:	06 Nov 2019 16:51
Journal or Publication Title:	Social Policy and Society
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	Publisher
Use Licence:	This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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