The Great Wake-Up Call? Social Citizenship and Minimum Income Provisions in Europe in Times of Crisis

Abstract

When the 2008 crisis hit, social safety nets in Europe were not in the best of shape. This article examines what, if anything, governments did to adjust minimum income protection after two decades of relative neglect. In view of the hardship brought on by the crisis, this question is of importance in itself. In addition, there is a long-standing interest in the role crises play in re-shaping policies, possibly in a radical way. Building on purpose-collected data for twenty-four European countries, this article shows that many countries introduced supportive measures during the first years of the crisis, particularly in the form of additional benefit increases and more generous child benefits. Behavioural requirements imposed on minimum income recipients were not relaxed but in some countries activation efforts were intensified. Although the evidence shows that the crisis did trigger a response, there is little evidence for a structural change of course towards more adequate safety nets.

Work-related Conditionality and the Access to Social Benefits of National Citizens, EU and Non-EU Citizens

“…While access to social benefits has for long entailed some form of conditionality, the economic crisis of 2008, it is argued, critically undermined the principle that the market could be relied upon to provide adequate incomes for all -for the subjects of labour market activation policies (Marchal et al, 2014). Income from employment -the main source of household income -fell in real terms in some OECD countries (including Ireland, Italy, Spain, Sweden, the UK, the USA) in the period 2007-2009, while income from self-employment fell across most OECD countries (Jenkins et al, 2013).…”

The Welfare State and Antipoverty Policy in Rich Countries

“…In a few countries there is even evidence of a partial reversal of the declining trend, thus somewhat strengthening the income position of able bodied persons that are in receipt of social assistance benefits. During the crisis period in particular a small number of countries have taken took extra steps to increase protection levels (Marchal, Marx and Van Mechelen, 2014). Despite a number of positive developments, net incomes of minimum income recipients continue to fall well short of the EU's at risk of poverty threshold in all but a few EU countries.…”

“…To some extent, these are differences in automatic stabilisation and so vary with the generosity and comprehensiveness of social safety-nets and the structure and levels of direct taxes and social insurance contributions, as brought out in Peichl's (2011, 2012) cross-country comparisons based on simulating taxbenefit models. However, policy choices as the recession impacted have also been important (for more discussion of EU governments' initial responses, see Marchal, Marx, and Van Mechelen 2014). It is also worth emphasising that conventional income-based poverty measures may well miss some of the most important effects of 'austerity', since 'non-cash' income from government services and the impact of increases in indirect taxation are not captured.…”

Being denied and granted social welfare and the propensity to protest

“…First, austerity measures introduced in response to Europe's economic crisis, e.g. in Greece or Spain, eroded social citizenship and the growth of conditionality (Marchal et al 2014;Yerkes and van der Veen 2011), both of which mainly affected vulnerable groups of citizens. However, protective measures have also been employed, leading some scholars to claim that the welfare state has been reshaped (Vis et al 2013) or reframed (Taylor-Gooby 2009) rather than only retrenched.…”