11.   If anything, competition among millions of former recipients may depress wage levels further.

12.   In particular, the finding that about two-thirds of former recipients are working is about par, he said,

13.   It is plausible that the earnings will grow and hardships diminish as former recipients settle into their new roles as workers.

14.   Most families initially land on their feet, and some former recipients even praise the cancellation of their benefits, saying it pushed them to find a job.

15.   Studies indicate that the vast majority of former recipients who earned degrees are now out of poverty.

16.   That fact suggests that, on average, former recipients who stay at work may not see their wages rise very much.

17.   The good news is that the percentage of former recipients who found jobs has remained high, even as the welfare exodus reached deeper and deeper into the caseload.

18.   The report was silent on the question of what has happened to the former recipients.

19.   They amount to more than one-quarter of former recipients.

20.   Those figures do not tell how many former recipients moved from welfare to work, or simply from dependency to despondency, he said.