The likelihood of a basic income in Germany

Abstract

The article discusses whether the likelihood of Germany introducing a basic income policy -that is independent of labour market participation -has increased in recent years. A brief description of the main elements of the German welfare state is followed by a critical analysis of more recent developments in guaranteeing a basic income, not least with the 2003 merger of unemployment benefits and social assistance. Since then the resulting fears of downward mobility felt even by the middle classes have reignited the 1980's debate about a basic income. Two models (the "basic income guarantee" and the "solidarity citizen's income") are used to discuss practical system design problems and the chances of realizing a basic income policy.

The political sustainability of a basic income scheme and social health insurance

“…The idea of a basic income is part of an ongoing debate on the future of the welfare state. For instance, in Germany the adoption of a BI scheme is discussed by all major political parties (Opielka, 2008). Still, neither Germany nor any other country has so far ever introduced a full BI scheme.…”

An Analysis of the Factors Influencing Public Attitudes toward Implementing Basic Income (BI) from an Individual Perspective: A Case Study of Hokuriku Region, Japan

“…An environment where people are allowed to participate in non-market activities-defined as those, such as personal hobbies [40] or volunteer activities [41] through which it is difficult to generate enough income or economic value to live on, at least in the short term-is a crucial prerequisite for arousing such social innovation. In the theoretical debate, BI is claimed to be able to enhance the engagement of such non-market activities [3,42] by reshaping the meaning of work by decoupling the work ethos from productivism [42,43]. Therefore, in the case of BI, people having interests in participating in such non-market activities may play the role of an innovator, as described in the innovation diffusion theory [25], and thus be more likely to support BI.…”

“…Entitlement to social benefits, such as pension and unemployment insurance, is also strongly tied to paid employment. It is anticipated that BI enhances engagement in non-market activities by decoupling the relationship between market-led productivity and entitlement to the income [3]. To enhance the equality of society, self-realization by exercising one's skills should be, at least partially, independent from others' judgment on what is valuable in society [43].…”

“…Basic income (BI) is defined as a periodic cash payment unconditionally delivered to all on an individual basis, without means-testing or work requirements [1]. While different proposals for BI have continuously been made in political debates on welfare reform in western countries-including, for example, the United Kingdom [2], Germany [3], Finland [4] and Spain [5]-since the 1980s, none of them has made it a national policy. Nevertheless, empirical cases of so-called BI have occasionally been implemented in some countries since the 1960s.…”

Promoting the concept of prevention in social security: issues and challenges for the International Social Security Association1

“…It is on the basis of this singular observation that some European arguments have moved in the direction of suggesting that the only way to prevent the primary social risks associated with the labour market is to purposely supplant the dominant role of paid work in guaranteeing income security through providing a basic income to all citizens (for more discussion on basic income debates, see the BIEN website: http://www.basicincome.org/bien/). As Opielka (2008: 91) outlines in relation to the German case, ‘. .…”