Effect of peers on employment and implications for drug treatment

Perspectives on barriers to employment for job seekers with mental illness and additional substance-use problems

This paper examines the barriers to employment faced by job seekers (JS) with mental illness and additional substance-use issues. Semi-structured interviews concerning barriers to employment for JS with mental illness and substance-use problems and strategies to improve employment outcomes were conducted with stakeholders associated with an employment service provider specialising in mental illness (n = 17). Stakeholders were JS, family members who provide significant support to JS [support persons (SP)] and staff [employment staff (ES)]. Data were collected between May and August 2009 at the premises of the employment service provider in metropolitan Sydney. Thematic analysis of transcribed interview data was conducted to develop a meaningful data framework. The expectations of JS and SP regarding employment outcomes were higher than those of ES. Length of time unemployed was perceived as the most important barrier to future employment associated with mental illness, and substance-use problems were associated with lower, more variable motivation, restrictions on the environments where JS could work and more negative community and employer perceptions. The findings are consistent with studies from non-vocational settings and provide direction for meeting the needs of clients with mental illness and additional substance-use problems. Ensuring alignment between JS and ES concerning service goals and expected timeframes may improve JS motivation, satisfaction with service delivery and ultimately, employment outcomes.

Welfare reform, employment, and drug and alcohol use among low-income women

In 1996 welfare reform legislation transformed income assistance for needy families by imposing work requirements, time-limited benefits, and explicit provisions allowing states to sanction recipients who fail to meet program requirements. Though they represent a minority of the welfare population, women with substance use disorders (SUDs) experience multiple, and more severe, employment barriers than other Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) recipients. This review of welfare reform, substance abuse, and employment documents the evidence to date regarding the employment patterns of women with SUDs before and after welfare reform, and proposes several topics for further research. Based on higher rates of unemployment, less work experience, and lower earnings when working, women with SUDs have worse employment records than other TANF recipients. Despite elevated employment barriers, women with SUDs left TANF after 1996 as fast as, or faster than, other women. Since the 1996 welfare reform, women with SUDs have increased their employment and earnings, but by less than similar women without SUDs. Future research should describe how specific state welfare policies relate to employment of low-income women with SUDs, how the well-being of these women and their children changes with employment, and how welfare and employment interact to affect access to health insurance among this population.