Human Services Societies Conventionally Have Chalked Out

Human Services

Societies conventionally have chalked out the programs to sustain people who are not able to support for themselves especially old people, people having disabilities, people who do not have family etc. The Code of Hamurabi, devised by King Hammurabi of Babylonia in the 18th century BC is regarded as one of the oldest documents to mention about the social support. The religious and morality involved teachings in several societies have also been an incentive to assist one another via the acts of individual well-being. It is till the last few centuries that no society could have a universal social support system which is being publicly funded. The publicly financed system in form of a series of legislative acts known as poor laws which was developed in England during the 16th century is considered the oldest one. Such laws proved the local governments to construct almshouses and huge facilities for the unemployed. (Social Security)

Additionally, poor laws entailed for certain activities known as outdoor relief that offered help to the poor and the unemployed outside the realm of alms houses or that of the workhouses. The financing of the poor law programs is made through general taxes instead of from those of the people being supported. Presently the measures and kind of support extended through the poor laws have been grouped under welfare programs. The necessity for more extensive social support system felt in the United States during the mid-to late 1800s as a result of substantial variations in labor pattern brought by the Industrial Revolution. Prior to industrialization, people mostly were engaged in agricultural activities and lived in extended joint families.

The healthy working age members could support their young, older people and infirm relatives in the extended families. The growth of factory system, office and blue-collar jobs compelled the people to leave home and move far away from their extended families. The shift from extended family to nuclear family made them loose their most reliable source of support. This made a number of people to end up in poverty in absence of their capability to work and without the family members to support them at their old age. The most extensive social support system in the United States was seen to be developed during the American Civil War when in 1862 the federal government created a generous pension program supporting the Union war veterans disabled in battle and for their families. (Social Security)

This was amended subsequently to incorporate the Union veterans in their old age and to those disabled out of the battle. During the early parts of the 1900s many states in U.S. enacted the worker's compensation laws that entailed the commercial houses to extend benefits to the employees injured on the job or to the families of workers those died as a result of work related accidents or illness. The economic security for all citizens has reduced considerably in the year 1929 with the crash of the stock markets, and the Great Depression which was marked by severe unemployment through out the country. The people were thrown into poverty. It has been severe especially among the oldest members of the population. This gave rise to enactment of social security legislations during the period by many states.

During 1934 President Roosevelt formed a Committee on Economic Security to form a program of social support system for all U.S. citizens who were economically affected at the time of Great Depression of the 1930s. This was part of the many radical programs which were created to stimulate the economy. In the initial part of 1935 the Committee on Economic Security forwarded its Economic Security Bill to the Congress of the U.S. Congress later on altered the name of the bill to that of Social Security and had approved it by the mid of the year 1935 and was signed into law in the August of 1935. The core of the Social Security Act was aimed to safeguard all the citizens to deal with the economic risks of unemployment and that of the old age. During 1935, the Social Security Act since its origin has undergone major amendments for about 20 times.

During 1939 it was extended to assist the dependents of retired workers and survivors of deceased workers. In 1953 the government introduced Social Security Administration as a part of new Cabinet level agency of Health, Education and Welfare. In 1956 President Dwight Eisehower, introduced monthly benefits for disabled workers to Social Security. The 1965 amendment established Medicare program that entails the hospital insurance to the elderly, along with supplementary medical insurance for other medical costs. The amendments made in 1972 made additions to provide for the Cost of Living Adjustments -- COLAs to enhance benefit payments maintaining pace with inflation. During 1972 it included the assistance to disabled people in terms of a new program called Supplementary Security Income -- SSI. (Social Security)

During 2003 presenting a Green Paper to the Parliament of England, Prime Minister Tony Blair revealed that for most of the parents children are everything; our hopes, ambitions and our future are focused on them. However, unfortunately, some children are not lucky as they live with risk, with fear and danger in place of happiness, comfort and security of the normal family life. The paper emphasized to better the level of information sharing among the agencies working on vulnerable children, creation of a common level of assessment framework, co-locating the services which are present in and around the schools, ensuring that there are efficient methods of child protection, etc. (Every Child Matters)

The child welfare services have the objective of developing conditions of children and their families. The child welfare services incorporate a wide range of activities such as safeguard of abused or neglected children, support and maintenance of families, care provided to the homeless and the needy, support in terms of family development and providing of out-of-home care, inclusive of adoption. Services are intended to assist the family to deal with the problems or they may safeguard children while the family learns to do the suitable parenting roles. (Administration for families and Children: Introduction)