Is it sinful to receive "free" money when a job is available?

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farronwolf

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I usually find these types of questions, of is it a sin to do X or am a sinning if I do Y a bit annoying personally, but this one seems to be pretty prevalent right now.

As most know unemployment numbers are up, due to the Covid thing. Some people honestly can’t help their situation and are looking for a hand up. I have no problem with that for most in the short term.

However, there is a segment of the population that even when offered a job after being laid off or furloughed simply won’t take it right now. With the increase in the unemployment payments, some people are actually making more money staying at home and drawing unemployment than they were when working, or making nearly as much as they were.

I have customers who can’t get their workers back on the payroll due to this. They are trying to run their business and service their customers, but the employees would simply rather draw the check than go to work and earn it.

In my view these are sinful actions.

This could also be argued for companies who have applied, or applied and gotten PPP funds when their business wasn’t actually affected. But it is “free” money and everyone else is doing it, so why not.

I think both would fall under the greed category and certainly call for repentance.

My thoughts, what are others?
 
Assuming there is no compelling reason why they can’t work, like for example schools are closed so they need to be at home watching kids, then I would agree. Resources are finite and taking them from people who truly need them if you’re just being lazy is wrong.
 
Yes, there are reasons why one could not work. The lady which we hired for tax season had to quit working when this stuff started. She is a cancer survivor and has many health issues. When her doctor found out she was working he said, no way, you can’t risk exposure with your conditions.

I understand that completely.
 
Doesn’t St Paul have a thought on this … 2 thessalonians 3:11. It seems to say that people sitting around being idle and refusing to work should stop it and work for the bread they are eating. That fits in my opinion. That is if as people say it’s not necessary that they stay at home to look after children or vulnerable adults or for some other reason.
 
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It’s a sin against justice to take things that don’t belong to you or things that are not due to you. As with any moral evaluation, the real-time evaluation can be complicated.
 
Since you haven’t interviewed every employee who has chosen to not go back to work, or every company that has gotten PPP funds, and all you have is the anecdotes of a few customers of yours who are likely biased because they are upset at not being able to get their employees back to work, I think it’s better to just refrain from judging others.

If someone doesn’t go back to work out of pure laziness, then yeah, that might be a sin, but most of the time there are additional reasons why they don’t go back. In this environment, most of the people I know are concerned about either their own health or the health of a family member. Many of them also have child care issues because the schools and daycares have been closed and/or their regular babysitters (such as elderly relatives) aren’t available due to social distancing.

I have no idea why you’d assume someone’s business wasn’t affected by this shutdown unless the business is a PPE supplier or a hospital. Pretty much every other business out there has taken a hit.
 
You are not the person hes talking about. You have a valid reason not to work. Actually I dont work either cos of a disability. He means people who usually work but the gov has been paying not to work due to the virus and now measures are lifted they can go back to work but are not going cos they can get the same money for nothing. As I understand it.
 
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Why are you addressing this to me? If you are due a disability, then it belongs to you.
 
I don’t think it’s sinful. The government eased restrictions on who can receive unemployment because of the crisis we are facing.
 
farronwolf said:
but the employees would simply rather draw the check than go to work and earn it.
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That is an assumption. I would be hard pressed to return to or take a job with a place where I would have to be around people in a call center, warehouse, distribution center, or retail.

It may not be a “don’t want to work” situation but rather a risk situation.
farronwolf said:
My thoughts, what are others?
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It is not sinful to follow the rules of unemployment in the state you live in, whatever those are. If the rules allow for the person to continue to receive the unemployment payments they are doing anything wrong, let alone sining.

It is sinful to lie, or to commit fraud. So if they are doing that to continue unemployment benefits, then yes they are stealing and that is sinful.
 
I agree with you. This is a perfect example why socialism leads to communism. When people are incentivised not work due to socialism, the govt needs to turn to communism to force people to work.
 
phil19034 said:
I agree with you. This is a perfect example why socialism leads to communism. When people are incentivised not work due to socialism, the govt needs to turn to communism to force people to work.
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But one must remember the crisis and the risk of being around people right now. What is happening is a manifestation of Keynesian economics, not socialism.
 
Tis_Bearself said:
I have no idea why you’d assume someone’s business wasn’t affected by this shutdown unless the business is a PPE supplier or a hospital. Pretty much every other business out there has taken a hit.
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Really? Might check sales at grocery stores, companies with food delivery, banks, accountants. The list is pretty long.

Have some businesses taken a hit yes, but to say that every other business besides PPE or hospitals, is just completely inaccurate.
 
I live in a town with a lot of food delivery and grocery stores. While they have stayed open, all of their businesses are hurting, due to supply problems, having to spend money taking extra protective measures, not being able to use all their physical space, etc.

I suppose one could add Amazon, Uber Eats and Grubhub to the list of companies doing well, but I doubt they applied for PPP money.

Anyway, I’ve said my piece and am leaving this thread. I’m not really fond of threads where somebody starts with a premise that a whole bunch of other people are lazy sinners and then wants others to post confirming and affirming their view. It’s the syndrome someone else posted about where people like to point fingers at those they assume have “different” sins from their own.
 
1ke said:
It is not sinful to follow the rules of unemployment in the state you live in, whatever those are. If the rules allow for the person to continue to receive the unemployment payments they are doing anything wrong, let alone sining.
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So as long as they follow the rules, which most now do not require that you search for work, it is ok and not a sin?

Can we translate this to getting divorced and remarried as following the civic rules and it be ok, and not a sin?

Can we translate this to having or performing an abortion as following the civic rules and it be ok, and not a sin? Please lets not derail this into an abortion issue.

Just because they rules say you can do something doesn’t mean it is right or not sinful. Simply pointing that out.
 
Umm, no that thread was about people being worldly and not planning for their future, about what people have chosen previously as being important.
 
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