A
citywide survey of 491
PROVIDENCE,
R.I. —
Seventy percent of Providence residents favor a “living wage” in which companies receiving contracts from the city pay
their workers at least $12.30 an hour plus $1.25 an hour for health care
benefits, according to a new citywide survey conducted by researchers at
Brown University.
The
survey was conducted September 29-30, 2007, at
This survey was undertaken in conjunction with the 8th
annual Thomas J. Anton/Frederick Lippitt Urban Affairs conference on “the
Living Wage”. Scheduled for 4 p.m.
Tuesday, October 16 at Leung Gallery in Faunce House on the Campus Green, this
year’s conference examines the economic and political aspects of the living
wage and other anti-poverty initiatives with a panel of national experts. Among the speakers are Paul Sonn of the
Brennan Center for Justice at New York University, James Sherk of the Heritage
Foundation, and Oren Levin-Waldman of the Metropolitan College of New York.
Ninety percent believe the national minimum wage should
be increased from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour. Sixty-nine percent think the
government should increase cash assistance for people who are poor. Eighty-three percent believe the government
should expand subsidized daycare for people who are poor. Eighty-two percent think able-bodied
recipients on public assistance should be required to work as a condition of
the aid. Thirty-four percent believe
there should be a lifetime limit of five years on federal benefits for poor
people.
To see how city residents feel about the poor, we asked
whether they believe that most people who receive public assistance are
genuinely in need of help or are they taking advantage of the system. Fifty-two percent say the poor genuinely need
help, while 28 percent think the poor are taking advantage of system and 20
percent are unsure. Fifty-nine percent
think that most poor people could not get along without public assistance if
they tried. Fifteen percent think that
most poor people are lazy, while 77 percent do not. Seventy-four percent believe that poverty is
a big problem, 19 percent say they think it is somewhat of a problem, and 3
percent think it is not much of a problem.
Further
information on the survey can be found online at www.InsidePolitics.org. For more information, contact Darrell M. West
at (401) 863-1163.
Survey
Questions and Responses
Do you believe the national minimum wage should be
increased from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour?
90% yes, 6% no, 4% don’t know or no answer
Do you support a so-called “living wage” in which
companies receiving contracts from the city pay their workers at least $12.30
an hour plus $1.25 an hour for health care benefits? 70% support, 15% oppose,
15% don’t know or no answer
Do you think the government should increase cash
assistance for people who are poor? 69%
yes, 18% no, 13% don’t know or no answer
Do you believe the government should expand subsidized
daycare for people who are poor? 83%
yes, 11% no, 6% don’t know or no answer
Do you think able-bodied recipients on public assistance
should be required to work as a condition of the aid? 82% yes, 9% no, 9% don’t
know or no answer
Do you believe there should be a lifetime limit of five
years on federal benefits for poor people? 34% yes, 50% no, 16% don’t know or
no answer
In your view, are most people who receive public assistance
genuinely in need of help or are they taking advantage of the system? 52% genuinely need help, 28% taking advantage
of system, 20% don’t know or no answer
Do you think that most poor people could get along
without public assistance if they tried? 28% yes, 59% no, 13% don’t know or no
answer
Do you think that most poor people are lazy? 15% yes,
77% no, 8% don’t know or no answer
How big a problem is poverty in our society today: 74% a big problem, 19% somewhat of a
problem, 3% not much of a problem, 4% don’t know or no answer
Would you say that you and your family
living there are: 31% better off, 38%
the same, 28% worse off financially than you were a year ago, 3% don't know or
no answer
How often do you attend religious services: 24% never, 25% a few times a year, 13% once
or twice a month, 34% once a week, 4% don’t know or no answer
How many civic associations or community organizations
do you belong to? 46% zero, 16% one, 13% two, 10% three, 4% four, 3% five, 5%
six or more, 3% don’t know or no answer
How actively involved are you in the life of your
community? 19% very involved, 40% somewhat involved, 38% not very
involved, 3% don’t know or no answer