The Infinite Dividend: The WPA · Episode 2 of 13 · 36 min
A Job, Not a Handout: How WPA Work Relief Worked
The WPA offered a job in place of a handout, on terms that were both a lifeline and a quiet humiliation. One worker per needy household was certified off the relief rolls and paid a security wage above relief but below private pay. The episode follows a household through the dignity, means test and stigma.
Who's who
- Harry Hopkins+10 more episodesWPA administrator who believed work preserves skill and self-respect
Timeline
- 1933-1935Hopkins runs the Federal Emergency Relief Administration and Civil Works Administration, favoring work relief
- April 8, 1935Congress passes the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act
- May 6, 1935Executive Order 7034 creates the WPA with Hopkins as administrator
- Late 1938Employment peaks near 3.3 million, far below the need
Still debated
Defenders saw the security wage as a fair balance, while organized labor saw a floor below union rates. Historians also note enrollment was only nominally voluntary and that wages varied by region.
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