The number of those unemployed has grown as the years have passed. In 1973, the unemployment rate was 8.2%, but by in 1993 it had risen to 12.6%. The increase in unemployment has greatly affected low-skilled and poorly educated workers (Hardin,1996). With the increase in computers and more knowledge needed to run them, the poorly educated are losing their jobs. As people become unemployed, they have less money and can't pay for childcare, health care, education, food, and housing as they used to, or sometimes even at all. To try to avoid becoming homeless, the unemployed give up all their extras to keep a roof over their heads.
Families with children, people with extremely low income, disabled individuals, and the elderly are the groups most at risk to become homeless. In 1995, 36.4 million people were living in poverty (US Bureau of the Census, 1996). Children make up 40% or 14,400,000 of this population, and in 1995 the child poverty rate was 20.8%, almost two times as high as any other group. Between 1970-1988 there was a 26% increase from 25.4 million to 31.9 million poor people (Koegel et al, 1996).
People are put at risk of becoming homeless due to of the lack of affordable housing for the amount of people who need it. This causes a housing crisis. The low number of housing assistance programs is another reason many become homeless. Housing is made unaffordable for some people because of the decline in wages. In no state does a full time minimum wage job cover the cost of a one-bedroom unit at Fair Market Rent. In 45 states and in Washington, D.C. families would need to earn at least two times the minimum wage to afford a two-bedroom unit at Fair Market Rent (Kaufman, 1996). Additionally, single room occupancies or SRO's have been demolished, at an estimated total of one million between 1970-1985. Contrary to what most of us believe, many homeless people are employed. One out of five homeless people hold a full-time or part-time job, according to a survey taken in 29 US cities by Waxman and Hinderliter in 1996.
Government benefits have also affected the homeless population. Aid to Dependent Families with Children (ADFC), formerly the largest cash assistance program for poor families, was repealed in August of 1996. In every state the combined value of ADFC and food stamps is below the poverty level. In thirty-nine states, the value of the two are 75% below the poverty level. These programs do not seriously reduce poverty, but getting rid of them makes even more people homeless. In the past twenty-five years alone, ADFC has been cut almost in half. The typical state's ADFC benefits for a family of three fell 47% after adjusting to inflation between 1970-1994 (Greensburg and Baumohl, 1996). General Assistance for homeless people has been reduced or eliminated, even though it has cut down on homelessness. It has also been cut or reduced for single people living under the poverty level, which again has caused an increase in the number of homeless people (Greenburg and Baumohl, 1996). Now, in contradictory statements, a cut in aid is said not to increase homelessness while in another document another is said not to reduce it. If one loses money for housing, food, or whatever other needs one may possess, that increases one's chances of becoming homeless. If the elderly or unemployed are depending on a check that is cut, then they could and probably will lose their home, forcing them onto the streets. ADFC hasn't kept up with the increase in rent, so their allotments don't provide enough money for housing. Even if the ADFC money was doubled, it wouldn't meet the HUD (Housing and Urban Developments) guidelines stating that 30% of your income is to cover housing costs.
