A Father’s Day Present We Should All Accept

All of us who are fathers want to be as competent and responsible as everyone else wants us to be. It is certainly reasonable for society to expect every father to measure up. It is not reasonable for society to block fathers trying hard to do what is right. Instead we should do all that we can to support responsible fatherhood.

In new legislation filed just before Father’s Day 2007, Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Barack Obama (D-IL) propose policy improvements and incentives involving tax policy, child support, criminal records, and jobs. The Responsible Fatherhood and Healthy Families Act contains initiatives attacking one of the foremost problems in fathering—generating income to support a family.

The bill has innovative proposals to help fathers become employed and earn family-sustaining wages. It would establish the first dedicated source of federal funds for Transitional Jobs. An employment strategy that cuts through the complex reasons for a person’s chronic unemployment, the Transitional Jobs program starts with the desired outcome—employment. The strategy combines a temporary subsidized job with mentoring and case-managed employment and social services to provide income and teach ways to cope with and rise above employment barriers that many chronically unemployed fathers face. Fathers in these programs quickly make the transition into unsubsidized work.

The bill also would dedicate support for “bridge” programs—an employment and training strategy aimed at equipping low-income fathers who are already consistently employed in low-wage work with the skills and credentials to qualify for careers and family-sustaining wages. Bridge programs combine employers who have needs for skilled employees with training providers who can deliver programs aimed precisely at those jobs. The bill seeds those relationships with funds for training and employment.

With the Responsible Fatherhood and Healthy Families Act, Senators Bayh and Obama offer a Father’s Day present long overdue. We should accept it as soon as possible.