Welfare Pays More than Minimum Wage in 35 States: Q&A with Cato's Michael Tanner

"If you came to me and offered to pay me what I'm making now and tell me that I could stay home I'm certainly going to think about it," says Michael Tanner, senior fellow at the Cato Institute.

In his most recent study, The Work Versus Welfare Trade-Off: 2013, Tanner reveals how welfare participants can earn more than working a minimum wage job in 35 states. 

"There's no evidence to show [welfare recipients] are any lazier than the rest of us, but they also aren't dumber than the rest of us," Tanner explains. "If you offer them the same incentives that's what they will do." 

Tanner sat down with Reason's Nick Gillespie to discuss his report, the mixed legacy of welfare reform, and his recommendations to fix the system.

About 7 minutes. Cameras by Amanda Winkler and Joshua Swain. Edited by Swain.

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