The Limits of Selectivity as a Recipe for Welfare Reform: The Case of Greece

2005 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 235-253 ◽  
Author(s):  
MANOS MATSAGANIS
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Welfare State ◽  
Welfare Reform ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Pension System ◽  
The Core ◽  
Policy Paradigm ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Government ◽  
Of Greece

Selectivity emerged as the core of a new social policy paradigm in Greece when a new ‘modernising’ government took office in 1996. Though it was adopted energetically, its real impact eventually proved negligible, except for an initial flutter of activity. The article argues that its failure as a recipe for welfare reform was inevitable. The nature of social protection arrangements in Greece severely constrained the scope for selectivity, while the particular version pursued was poorly designed and badly administered. Moreover, the elevation of selectivity to the status of a ‘Big Idea’ was an indirect cause of serious lateral damage: while fruitlessly puzzling over the place of selectivity in the ‘new social policy’, the government was losing the crucial battle on the reform of an unviable and inequitable pension system. The article concludes that selectivity has little relevance to the priorities for reform in a welfare state still struggling to cope with its Bismarckian, south European contradictions.

Conclusion: social policy in an era of competition

2017 ◽  
pp. 203-212
Author(s):  
Dan Horsfall ◽  
John Hudson
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Welfare State ◽  
Empirical Analysis ◽  
Welfare States ◽  
Future Research ◽  
The Core ◽  
Competition State ◽  
State Welfare ◽  
Policy Analysts

This concluding chapter highlights key arguments from across the book in order to set out an integrated agenda for future research. Theoretically rooted analyses must be at the core of such an agenda. The inter-pollination/cross-fertilisation of ideas from many disciplines is important in developing an understanding of the complex and multi-faceted ways in which competition is influencing welfare states. However, while theory is central to this agenda, it must also be rooted in detailed empirical analysis. In looking to transcend the competition state/welfare state dichotomy, this interplay between theory and evidence is key, and where theoretically rooted social policy analysts can add particular value to current debates.

scholarly journals Welfare State Policy Model as A Poverty Reduction Strategy in the West Sumatra Districts and Cities

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 227
Author(s):  
Azwar Azwar Azwar ◽  
Emeraldy Chatra ◽  
Zuldesni Zuldesni
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Welfare State ◽  
State Model ◽  
The West ◽  
Policy Model ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The Social ◽  
West Sumatra ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Welfare State

Poverty is one of the social problems that the government can never completely solve. As a result, other, more significant social issues arise and cause social vulnerability, such as conflict and crime. As a province that is experiencing rapid growth in the last ten years, the West Sumatra find difficulty to overcome the number of poor people in several districts and cities.  The research outcomes are the models and forms of social policy made by West Sumatra regencies and cities governments in improving the welfare of poor communities. It is also covering the constraints or obstacles to the implementation of social policy and the selection of welfare state models for the poor in some districts and municipalities of West Sumatra. This research is conducted qualitatively with a sociological approach that uses social perspective on searching and explaining social facts that happened to needy groups. Based on research conducted that the social policy model adopted by the government in responding to social problems in the districts and cities of West Sumatra reflects the welfare state model given to the poor. There is a strong relationship between the welfare state model and the form of social policy made by the government.

scholarly journals DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIAL POLICY IN THE CONTEXT OF HARMONIZING THE INTERESTS OF ECONOMIC SUBJECTS

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Svitlana Fimyar ◽  
Olga Shilvinska
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Economic Effect ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
The State ◽  
Economic Behavior ◽  
Social Partnership ◽  
The Government ◽  
Social Product

Economic transformations of the country due to the development of market relations lead to appropriate changes in the field of social policy, the development of appropriate mechanisms of social protection, based on the principles of self-regulation and mutual support. The scale of economic growth is largely determined by the level of motivation of the behavior of economic entities both in increasing their own financial results and the general economic effect of creating a social product. In this aspect, the social policy of the state becomes a powerful factor in economic growth, with the greatest effect is given by the use of such forms of incentives that realize the public interests of all economic entities, which are not homogeneous in nature. The implementation of these priorities should be aimed at solving major socio-economic problems in order to prevent conflicts and promote sustainable development at the level of enterprises, regions, the country as a whole, so the problem of harmonizing the interests of all economic entities can be identified as a priority. The urgency of this problem is due to the need to increase the level of social protection of the population, which is achieved through the effective implementation of social policy and improving the mechanisms for its implementation from the standpoint of harmonization of interests of all economic entities. It is proved that to form a low-conflict model in which each entity has a clearly defined mechanism for meeting their own needs through the interests of partners, possibly by expanding the scope of market methods of self-regulation in combination with government leverage to influence economic behavior. To implement a more effective social policy, the government proposed a mechanism for expanding and harmonizing the socio-economic interests of the state, business and employees, which summarizes the result of the synthesis of natural and artificial responsibilities for various actors in social policy and social partnership. The proposed mechanism is able to neutralize the problems associated with low wages in the real sector of the economy, poverty and inefficient use of GDP, ensure the transparency of this process, and create a powerful motivational environment for workers and employers.

FINANCIAL TSUNAMI, ECONOMIC INSECURITY AND SOCIAL PROTECTION: THE CASE OF HONG KONG

2009 ◽  
Vol 43 (02) ◽  
pp. 97-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
KIM MING LEE ◽  
CHING YIN CHENG
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Open Economy ◽  
Global Economy ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
The United States ◽  
Protection System ◽  
Economic Insecurity ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Government

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.

The Scandinavian Origins of the Social Interpretation of the Welfare State

1989 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Baldwin
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Working Class ◽  
Welfare State ◽  
Welfare States ◽  
Initial Development ◽  
Sufficient Power ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Welfare State

If a question can be mal posée, surely an interpretation can be mal étendue. This has been the fate of the social interpretation of the welfare state. The cousin of social theories of bourgeois revolution, the social interpretation of the welfare state is part of a broader conception of the course of modern European history that until recently has laid claim to the status of a standard. The social interpretation sees the welfare states of certain countries as a victory for the working class and confirmation of the ability of its political representatives on the Left to use universalist, egalitarian, solidaristic measures of social policy on behalf of the least advantaged. Because the poor and the working class were groups that overlapped during the initial development of the welfare state, social policy was linked with the worker's needs. Faced with the ever-present probability of immiseration, the proletariat championed the cause of all needy and developed more pronounced sentiments of solidarity than other classes. Where it achieved sufficient power, the privileged classes were forced to consent to measures that apportioned the cost of risks among all, helping those buffeted by fate and social injustice at the expense of those docked in safe berths.

scholarly journals Social Welfare Condition of Online Transportation Riders in Sharing Economy Era

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 8785-8791
Keyword(s):  
Social Welfare ◽  
Public Transportation ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Sharing Economy ◽  
Bargaining Process ◽  
The Status ◽  
On Line ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Right

The presence of the digital industry is driving changes in the modes of public transportation from conventional to modern using online applications. The positive impact of the presence of the digital industry especially on line transportation for the community is the existence of new jobs and sources of income. But on the other hand, the presence of on line transportation also presents various problems. This study uses mixed methods with a qualitative main approach and supported by a quantitative approach. The results show that there are problems in social welfare and social protection for two-wheeled online transportation riders which caused by a legal vacuum in the status of the partnership pattern. Therefore, the researcher proposes a partnership agreement model involving the government as the party that has the right to determine the regulation, and in the agreement process requires a bargaining process so that the welfare of two-wheeled online transportation riders as informal sector workers can be fulfilled

scholarly journals Mellom kjernen og periferien i den norske velferdsstaten. Idrettsbevegelsesens vekslende posisjoner

2011 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Niels Asle Bergsgard
Keyword(s):  
Social Security ◽  
Welfare State ◽  
Government Funding ◽  
The State ◽  
Social Field ◽  
Relative Autonomy ◽  
The Core ◽  
Modern Welfare State ◽  
The Government ◽  
The 1960S

Artiklen belyser prioriteringen idrætten i den norske velfærdsstat i relation til Bourdieus kapital og velfærd og diskuterer idrættens autonomi.The modern welfare state in most western countries is characterised by a stepwise expansion of government responsibilities: from the basic tasks of the state like defence and policing, via core welfare state issues such as social security, to secondary welfare state issues like leisure policy. Starting out with a brief historical presentation, this article describes sport’s pendulum movement between the core and the periphery in the Norwegian welfare state. Further it is argued that sport was constituted as a distinct social field in a Bourdieuan sense in the 1960s and 70s. The article then analyses whether the specific logic of this field is adaptable to the ever- stronger presence of the welfare logic during the last decades, or if the welfare logic is a threat to the structure of the field of sport and hence to the relative autonomy of the voluntary organised sports movement. In addition it is discussed if the voluntary organised sports movement is now at a crossroads, either becoming a balancing item for the government with preserved autonomy, or an important tool in the government’s toolbox but with less autonomy. The consequence of the choices made will change the field of sport and hence the allocation of government funding to organised sport.

scholarly journals ОКРЕМІ АСПЕКТИ ФОРМУВАННЯ СИСТЕМИ ПЕНСІЙНОГО ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННЯ ВІЙСЬКОВОСЛУЖБОВЦІВ В УКРАЇНІ

2021 ◽  
Vol 153 (6) ◽  
pp. 61-68
Author(s):  
Nataliia V. Fastovets
Keyword(s):  
Social Protection ◽  
Pension System ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Pension Plans ◽  
Social Significance ◽  
Retirement System ◽  
Social Risks ◽  
Military Retirement ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Military

The article discusses historical aspects in building a system of pension provision for military servicemen representing a specific social institution which in modern realia is of critical importance in addressing the issues of national security of Ukraine. A retrospective analysis of the historical genesis of the military retirement system demonstrates that the government efforts to ensure social protection of ex-servicemen have laid a solid foundation for shaping a common institution for social security provision to population. The study reveals the nature of economic and social significance of the military retirement system. In the context of the modern stage of military retirement system reform, pension as an economic category is understood as a cash benefit, the right to receive which is established by the government according to the current legislation for citizens who meet certain requirements of the national pension system provision. The research findings also reveal that as a social category, after retirement, the pension acts as a guarantor of economic stability of ex-servicemen and members of their families. The efficiency of the three-tier pension system has been substantiated. The study provides evidence on the existence of a normative legal framework in Ukraine regulating the pension provision to servicemen and their families, the implementation of which however is hampered by the lack of a secure comprehensive system that ensures relevant programs for retired servicemen pension maintenance. Apart from the lack of viable mechanisms for the implementation of ex-servicemen pension plans, Ukraine is currently facing a whole range of internal and external barriers to ensuring decent financial security in military retirement. Among such challenges are the high social risks of the current imbalance between the number of retirees and the number of working-age population. In addition, the replenishment pattern of the Ukrainian national pension system is based on the government subsidies by almost 50%, which in the long run may translate into further increase in the tax burden on business, and as a consequence, will lead to its further shadowing. The study suggests creating a robust regulatory system and an action plan aimed at step-by-step waiver of the solidarity-based military retirement system and shifting to a compulsory two-tier accumulation system of mandatory social contributions through the scheme of deductions from salaries and incomes, thus ensuring a relevant financial support mechanism to facilitate appropriate labor remuneration to ex-servicemen.

Ideology, Conflict and Social Policy

1975 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 243-258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek Birrell ◽  
Alan Murie
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Northern Ireland ◽  
Welfare State ◽  
Social Services ◽  
The Political ◽  
Allocation Of Resources ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
The Government ◽  
Significant Factors ◽  
The Welfare State

ABSTRACTSocial policy in Northern Ireland offers examples of social policies strongly influenced by ideological considerations. There are a number of factors which determine how susceptible services and policies are to ideological influences. Some services are particularly sensitive to ideological values and demands, for example, education. In certain areas the distribution of services and the allocation of resources has been significant in maintaining the political structure. The distribution of administrative responsibility, the absence of pressure from Britain for maintaining parity in social services, and the absence of non-secretarian pressures on the government are other significant factors. The process of analysing problems and formulating social policy reflects deep ideological divisions. This can be contrasted with the rational, empirical and pragmatic models of policy making, implicit in the development of social policy in Britain. With some minor modifications the British model of the Welfare State operates in Northern Ireland. In some areas it operates to serve ends other than those of redistribution or meeting social need. This provides insights into some of the assumptions made about social policy and the Welfare State in Britain.

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