Social safety net

People experiencing poverty lack more than money: they also lack autonomy and power, and they are often denied dignity and respect. Urban researchers measure poverty’s several dimensions and analyze the effectiveness of social insurance and public assistance programs designed to help struggling families meet basic needs. Policymakers, advocates, practitioners, and philanthropists rely on Urban’s timely evidence to inform poverty-reduction efforts and to shape solutions for reducing barriers families face as they strive for social and economic mobility.

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Brief

Access to Paid Leave Is Lowest among Workers with the Greatest Needs

This brief uses nationally representative data from the December 2021 round of the Urban Institute’s Well-Being and Basic Needs Survey to examine patterns in access to paid family and medical leave among workers ages 18 to 64.

Research Areas

Child welfare

Tags

Disability Insurance

Refundable tax credits

Hunger and food assistance

Families with low incomes

Poverty

Welfare and safety net programs

From Safety Net to Solid Ground

Research Methods

ATTIS Microsimulation Model

Featured Experts

Vice President, Income and Benefits Policy

Senior Fellow

Principal Research Associate

Events

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What Does It Take To Transform Persistent Rural Poverty into Opportunity?

Display Date

October 13, 2021
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How Might States’ Responses to the Pandemic Affect Safety Net Programs?

Display Date

April 29, 2021
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Restoring Immigrant Families’ Connections to the Safety Net

Display Date

April 1, 2021
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State of the States 2021: Pandemic Response and Recovery

Display Date

March 9, 2021
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State of the Schools 2020: The Educational Costs of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Display Date

August 12, 2020
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State of the States: Pandemic-Driven Budgeting Innovations

Display Date

July 8, 2020

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Senior Research Fellow
Senior Fellow
Senior Policy Program Manager
Policy Associate
Senior Research Associate
Senior Research Associate
Policy Analyst
Research Assistant
Senior Research Associate
Senior Research Associate

Chair, Urban Institute Institutional Review Board
Vice President, Income and Benefits Policy
Senior Fellow
Research Assistant
Research Analyst
Research Assistant
Principal Research Associate
Principal Research Associate
Research Associate
Principal Research Associate
Research Associate
Principal Policy Associate
Senior Research Associate
Research Associate
Vice President, Metropolitan Housing and Communities Policy
Research Associate
Principal Research Associate
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Senior Policy Associate
Research Associate
Research Analyst
Senior Fellow
Principal Research Associate
Senior Fellow
Research Analyst
Principal Research Associate
Research Associate
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Project Director for Maintenance and Development of the TRIM3 Model
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Research Analyst
Research Associate
Associate Vice President
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Affiliated Scholar
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Senior Policy Fellow
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Research Associate
Research Analyst
Institute Fellow
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Vice President for Technology and Data Science
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Vice President, Labor, Human Services, and Population

Codirector, Opportunity and Ownership initiative
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Practice Area Lead: Housing as a Platform
Nonresident Fellow
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Institute Fellow
Interim Vice President

Principal Research Associate

and Director, National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership
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Institute Fellow

Director, HOST Initiative
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President Emeritus
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Principal Research Associate
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Codirector, DYNASIM Microsimulation Model
Senior Research Associate
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Research Director, Urban–Greater DC
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Institute Fellow
Research Associate
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Research Associate
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Senior Data Scientist