The Rise of the Japanese Social Protection System in the 1950s

Author(s):  
Margarita Estevez-Abe
Author(s):  
Janire MIMENTZA MARTIN

LABURPENA: Gaur egun, enplegu prekarioek ez dute gutxieneko bizitza ziurtatzen, eta etorkizunerako «lana amaitzea» aurreikusten da. Gainera, ongizate sistemen akatsen eta mugen aurrean, beharrezkoa da gizarte-babeserako sistema berraztertzea: oinarrizko errenta unibertsala aukera popularrena dela dirudi. Oinarrizko errenta gizarte-erreformaren ideiarekin bat etortzen den arren, ikerketa honen pertzepzioak aurrerapen txikien politika gidatu behar dela ezartzea du, azken batean, Gizarte Segurantzako sistema bateratze partzial bat lortuz, eta ez bera desegitea. Gaur egun, ezaugarri hauei dagozkien adibideak daude, gizarteko talde zehatzetarako (esate baterako, alemaniar adingabekoei) oinarrizko errenta bat ematen zaie. Zalantzarik gabe, adibide hau aurrerapauso handi bat da, pentsioetan belaunaldien banaketaren sistema eredua jarraitzen duten ordenamendu guztien eredu —beraien artean espainola— izan daitekeelako. ABSTRACT: At present, the precarious jobs do not assure the subsistence level, and the future forecasts «the end of work». In addition, because of the defects and limits of the welfare systems, a rethinking of the social protection system is necessary: universal basic income seems to be the most popular option. Although the basic income is usually based on the idea of social reform, the perception of this study is that its implementation should be guided by a policy of small advances, which ultimately make possible a partial reform of the Social Security system, not its dismantling. There are currently examples with these characteristics, for specific groups (e.g. minors in Germany) to which a basic income is being granted. Without a doubt, it is a big step in that direction, which can serve as a model to be followed by all legal systems —among them Spanish one— that follow a system of generational distribution (pay-as-you-go system) in pensions. RESUMEN: En la actualidad, los empleos precarios no aseguran el mínimo vital, y para el futuro se pronostica el «fin del trabajo». Además, ante los defectos y límites de los sistemas asistenciales es necesario un replanteamiento del sistema de protección social: la renta básica universal parece ser la opción más popular. Aunque normalmente la RB se basa en la idea de una reforma social, la percepción de este estudio es que su implementación debe ir dirigida por una política de pequeños avances, que al final posibiliten una reforma parcial del sistema de Seguridad Social, no su desmantelamiento. Existen en la actualidad ejemplos con estas características, para colectivos específicos (ej. menores en Alemania) a los que —en la práctica— se les está otorgando una RB. Sin duda, es un gran paso en esa dirección, que puede servir como modelo a seguir por los ordenamientos jurídicos —entre ellos el español— que siguen un sistema de reparto generacional en pensiones.


Author(s):  
Pau Palop-García

Abstract This chapter outlines the social protection policies that Spain has adopted to target Spanish nationals abroad. First, it describes the diaspora infrastructure and the key engagement policies developed in the last years by Spain. Subsequently, the chapter focuses on five social protection policies: unemployment, health care, pensions, family-related benefits, and economic hardship. The findings reveal that Spain has adopted a diaspora strategy that targets different emigrant groups such as exiles of the Civil War and early Francoism and their descendants, Spaniards that emigrated to other European countries during the 1950s and 1960s, and new emigrants that left the country due to the consequences of the financial crisis of 2008. Findings also show that, although Spain has developed a wide array of services to target its diverse diaspora, it still lacks a comprehensive scheme of social protection abroad. Moreover, the results suggest that Spain has adopted a subsidiary social policy strategy abroad that is triggered when the social protection offered by states of reception is lacking.


Author(s):  
Mel Cousins

Abstract This chapter focuses on the link between migration and social protection in Ireland. The chapter has two main goals. First, it presents the general legal framework regulating the social protection system in Ireland, paying particular attention to any potential differences in terms of conditions of access to social benefits between national residents, non-national residents, and non-resident nationals. Secondly, the chapter discusses how these different groups of individuals access social benefits across five policy areas: unemployment, health care, family benefits, pensions, and guaranteed minimum resources. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the relationship between migration and social protection policy.


2009 ◽  
Vol 43 (02) ◽  
pp. 97-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
KIM MING LEE ◽  
CHING YIN CHENG

Rising economic inequality becomes an important concern for both advanced and developing countries. Nonetheless, political and business elites around the world never question the neoliberal agenda, despite economic crises happening every now and then. The year 2007 may mark the turning point of neoliberal globalisation. As the global financial tsunami kicked off from the burst of the subprime mortgage bubble in the United States in 2007, the global economy is facing an economic hardship never heard of since the Great Depression in the 1930s. Hong Kong as a highly open economy is also severely hurt by the financial tsunami. In every economic recession, all Hong Kong people suffer, but lower classes suffer most. This raises a serious question about whether the current social protection system adequately protects people against an increasingly risky global economic environment. By examining the social policy package adopted by the HK government in fighting against the financial tsunami, we show the lack of long-term strategies and commitments of the government in protecting HK people against globalisation risks and economic insecurity. By drawing experiences from other countries, we suggest that active labour market policies (ALMPs) may be the social policy tools the government can use to reform the social protection system.


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