The advantages and disadvantages of the contribution base in targeting benefits: A social analysis of the insurance scheme in the United Kingdom

This article assesses the role which social insurance plays within the social security scheme in contemporary Great Britain, and presents this analysis for comparison and assessment to an international audience. The structure of the Beveridge scheme is briefly outlined and adaptations to it discussed. The scheme's failure to provide comprehensive social protection in Great Britain is then explained and the consequent drift towards social assistance is noted. A contrast is drawn between the advantages and disadvantages of insurance protection from a social policy perspective. Finally, the prospects for social insurance are briefly appraised and compared with alternative possible models for social security. From this it is concluded that, despite its past failings, even in Great Britain the prospects for social insurance protection remain strong.     

Developmentalism in Korea: A Useful Tool for Explaining the Role of Social Security in the Reduction of Poverty and Inequality

It is conventional wisdom that universalism is more effective than selectivism in addressing the problems of poverty and inequality. In providing income security for the elderly, retirement pensions calculated on the principle of social insurance represent universalism and social assistance benefits on the basis of means-test selectivism. Korea has both a contributory pension scheme and social assistance program for the elderly. The social assistance began in 1961. The contributory scheme, the National Pension, started belatedly in 1988 and its coverage expanded to the entire population in 1999. We can, therefore, expect that the social security system, especially the universal pension scheme based on social insurance, has some positive impacts on the reduction of poverty and inequality. This paper, however, raises doubt as to the conventional wisdom and thus reviews the developmental process of the Korean social security system for the aged. It was found that the dominant ideological controversy revolved, not around universalism versus selectivism, but around the option between developmentalism and other strategies. Our empirical analysis showed that the public pension had little impact on the reduction of poverty and inequality, particularly in comparison with advanced welfare states. This is not surprising at all, since poverty eradication and redistribution were not major objectives of the Korean social security system. The controversy between universalism and selectivism was relatively unfamiliar in the policy process of the Korean social security system. Even though the redistributive effect is getting larger as the National Pension system becomes mature, the developmentalist model has been proved to be a more useful tool for explaining the limited role of Korean social security.     

The "X component" in Shanghai's social security reforms

In 2003, the Shanghai Bureau of Labour and Social Security launched the zhenbao (town insurance) programme, now widely known as 25 plus X. This scheme is regarded as an important experiment in social security reform and has been lauded for extending social security to areas where previously only segments of the population had mandatory coverage. Using data from 103,000 individuals enrolled in 25 plus X, we examine the extent to which the scheme represents an extension in social security coverage. Our analysis suggests that while it does represent an extension of benefits for some, for many it represents a considerable dilution in benefits.     

Pension insurance and the participation of private enterprise

One of the principal developments of our time in the field of social security policy has been the growing importance of the desire of individuals for greater economic security in their old age. This desire has in its turn given rise to an increasing tendency to seek benefits complementing those offered or promised by public social insurance schemes. In Europe and North America private enterprise has for many years played an active role in the field of complementary provident arrangements; but in the countries of Latin America interest in schemes of this kind has only begun to develop in recent years. A study of the present situation shows a need to establish concepts permitting an objective approach to the problem of whether — and ultimately, how — a modern State can succeed in striking a satisfactory balance between public intervention and private enterprise in the field of provision against deferred risks or, if it cannot do so, what the prospects are for the securing of a better future by present-day society and how that goal could be achieved. A reform of provident systems in Latin America is inevitable. The difficulty lies in determining how to reorganize public systems so as to ensure their continuance and to entrust them with the principal role in ensuring social solidarity while at the same time opening up opportunities for free private complementary insurance.     

Tort claims for road accident compensation and social security in South Africa

The statutory scheme of road accident compensation in South Africa encapsulates both the common law of tort or delict and the residue of liability insurance principles. The absence of meaningful interaction between the road accident compensation scheme and the broader social security system raises significant challenges. There are dissonant responses to the targeted misfortune, provision of benefits, financing, choice of remedies and socioeconomic-political priorities selected by the South African government. It is argued that the current scheme should be identified as falling squarely within a state-funded and regulated scheme of comprehensive social protection.     

Self-Employed People in the United Kingdom: Included or Excluded?

Within the United Kingdom social security scheme, self-employed people remain excluded from some of the most valuable benefits, yet there is some evidence to suggest underuse of benefits to which they do have access. There are administrative problems in dealing with applications for benefit from self-employed people, and there is considerable undercollection of the National Insurance contributions that are due. Self-employed people in the United Kingdom are not well provided for through private pensions and insurance. The author draws on her recent research, and argues that a fundamental review of social security for self-employed people in the United Kingdom is overdue.     

论土地保障与社会保障的性质和关系

当前我国农村缺乏完善的现代社会保障服务体系,以及土地天然地提供了一种综合性保障的事实,被一些学者解读为土地具有社会保障功能。他们认为,在当前农村政策政策背景下可以借助土地经营权流转等方式构建农村社会保障体系,这暗含着土地实际肩负着农村的部分社会保障职能和农民进入社会保障门槛需要以放弃土地权利为代价两个观点。土地的天然保障功能与社会保障之间具有异质性,土地流转带来的保障作用与社会保障之间同样具有异质性。应当尽量排除土地因素在农村社会保障建设中的作用,在“去土地化”的路向上似乎更有助于农村社会保障事业的发展。     

Complementary retirement pensions: Towards a definition of terms

One of the main difficulties in carrying out an international comparison of retirement systems is the task of establishing clear common terminology. Like other social institutions, welfare systems differ from country to country; confusion can arise when a given word is applied to different institutional structures because such usage can mask important differences. On the basis of a comparison of complementary pension plans in the United States, Ireland, the United Kingdom, France and Germany, this paper discusses and clarifies the meanings of some key terms. The distinction between "private" and "public" retirement plans, commonly used by Americans, can be erroneously applied to other systems, particularly that of France, where complementary retirement plans resemble American "private" plans in some respects and "public" plans in others. The terms "occupational" and "supplementary", often used in Europe, can be used interchangeably; however, each one stresses different aspects of complementary plans. The terms "funding" and "pay-as-you-go" and their equivalents in French (répartition and capitalisation) have somewhat different meanings and quite different connotations. Finally, the author discusses the concept of "social insurance", as applied to both social security and complementary pension plans, to end with some reflections on the definition of what constitutes a retirement plan.     

黑龙江农村社会保障制度的问题及原因探析

从养老保险、合作医疗、最低生活保障、农民工保障等四个方面看,黑龙江省农村社会保障制度存在以下问题:养老保险制度覆盖面广,但保费低微,难以养老;新型农村合作医疗制度、最低生活保障制度在分别经过试点之后在全省推行,但存在很大问题;农民工保障问题日益引起政府的关注。导致这些问题的原因很多,但主要的还是产力发展不足、二元经济结构制约和社会保障意识匮乏等。     

Work Accident Insurance and Prevention in Southern Africa: The Case of Zimbabwe

The paper uses Zimbabwe as a case study to depict the situation in southern Africa with respect to work accident insurance and prevention, provided by workers' compensation schemes which are among the earliest forms of social security to be introduced in the region. There has been an unfortunate tendency to concentrate on compensation issues at the expense of prevention initiatives. Zimbabwe, however, has attempted to integrate the two, notwithstanding the fact that the coverage of the scheme is narrow and the benefits inadequate.     

Reforming social security in economies in transition: Problems and policies in the former Soviet Republic of Moldova

In the Republic of Moldova, as in other former Soviet republics, a great deal of pressure has been put on the social security system by the removal of general consumer subsidies and their replacement with targeted compensation payments (assistance). The growth of assistance needs has made it difficult to reform earnings-related pension provision along "insurance" lines. There have also been adverse developments in the labour market. Large-scale open unemployment has not emerged, but insurance contributions are not being paid. Some of the measures which have been adopted to deal with the resulting financial crisis are counterproductive for the development of a social security system compatible with a market economy.     

Left to Market and Family – Again? Ideas and the Development of the Rural Pension Policy in China

The rural pension policy in China is characterized by a high degree of instability. In the past 15 years since the introduction of pilot schemes in some regions, the state has been unable to establish a stable institutional framework for rural old‐age security. This article seeks to integrate the theoretical insights from a growing body of international literature on the role of ideas in social policy reform in order to shed new light on the study of Chinese rural pension policy. I argue that the rise of the rural pension scheme and its eventual failure to make consistent progress towards a comprehensive system is directly related to conflicting ideas among bureaucrats with respect to what sort of welfare provision the rural elderly actually need. The fluctuations in this policy realm vividly illustrate the predominance of the policy idea that peasants could still rely on their land and family, supplemented by private commercial insurance, in their old age. Given this alleged self‐reliance on the part of rural residents, the state is very reluctant to set up a comprehensive rural pension scheme. As a result, the old‐age security of the peasants in rural China is standing on very thin ice, and the prospect for more active state involvement in the near future remains dim.     

不确定性防范与城市务工人员主观幸福感：基于反事实框架的研究

本文基于2007年中国家庭收入调查数据,评估了不确定性防范对城市务工人员的影响,并获得了一些重要发现：(1)不同类型的不确定性防范措施对影响居民主观幸福感存在着显著差异,参与养老保险、失业保险和工伤保险能够显著提高城市务工人员主观幸福感,但参与医疗保险对城市务工人员主观幸福感没有显著影响;(2)四种不确定性防范手段对城市务工人员之间主观幸福感差异的总贡献率接近10%,其中参与失业保险的贡献率最大。进一步研究发现,城市务工人员主观幸福感变化符合享乐适应理论,即随着不确定性防范措施的逐步实施推广,城市务工人员的主观幸福感可能会返回到未采取不确定性防范措施前的水平。     

Linking Community Initiatives to National Institutions: Ghana

The ILO has developed an innovative concept of global solidarity for social security — the Global Social Trust — which supports the development of national social protection systems through international financing. The concept is ready to be tested nationally and the present paper proposes a pilot project for Ghana. The paper considers the virtues and weaknesses of developing-country social security healthcare systems and community-based voluntary insurance schemes, their lack of informal sector coverage on the one hand and their financial disequilibria on the other. It outlines the socio-economic and macro-policy context of Ghana and the current health policy environment. It argues for a fusion of the social health insurance and mutual health organization concepts in Ghana, thus linking community initiatives to national institutions, enhancing coverage and the quality of services for all. The paper outlines a basic model that could apply to Ghana, its organizational structure, practical functioning, financing arrangements and expected outputs. In particular it seeks to develop a model for the cross-subsidization of insurance premiums for the poor. It describes a concept that would combine local ownership initiatives with national responsibility and financing, arguing for a truly interrelated network of social protection. The authors welcome feedback and comments from the wider social security audience.     

Retirement and health benefits for Mexican migrant workers returning from the United States

In the absence of a bilateral agreement for the portability and totalization of social security contributions between the United States and Mexico, this article examines the access to pension and health insurance benefits and employment status of older Mexican return migrants. We find that return migrants who have spent less than a year in the United States have a similar level of access to social security benefits as non‐migrants. Return migrants who have spent at least a year in the United States are less likely to have public health insurance or social security benefits, and could be more vulnerable to poverty in old age. These results inform the debate on a bilateral social security agreement between the United States and Mexico to improve return migrants' social security.     

近十年我国社会保障改革的历史进程与经验总结

近十年来,我国面临的国际国内形势出现了新的变化,社会保障改革在此背景下也进行了新的道路选择并取得一系列成就。2011年开展城镇居民社会养老保险试点工作,这与2009年建立的新农保制度初步构成了我国养老保障制度的基本框架,标志着我国覆盖城乡居民社会保障体系的主要制度都建立起来,是我国社会保障改革和全面建设小康社会的重大进步。总结近十年来我国社会保障改革的基本经验,有益于我们更明确的认识改革的历史与现状,为继续推进社会保障改革、发展社会保障事业奠定重要基础。     

Combining Welfare-to-Work Measures with Tax credits: A New Hybrid Approach to Social Security in the United Kingdom

The changes described in this article reflect a shift in social security away from social insurance and towards a mixture of social assistance, occupational or private insurance and tax credits. It suggests that what is new and distinctive about UK social security policy is the way in which a new strategy has been forged by linking the New Deal, which provides job opportunities for people who are not in employment but can often only offer them low-paid jobs, with tax credit schemes, which provide in-work benefits and are designed to ensure that, if necessary, people accept poorly paid employment.     

本建立健全农村社会保障体系的经验及其对我国的启示

农村社会保障是我国社会保障制度建设的薄弱环节,而日本作为一个高度重视农村社会保障体系建设的国家,一些成功的经验和做法,如：完善的养老保险制度、健全的法律制度、多层次的保障体系等,对我国都具有一定的借鉴和启示。     

Economic crisis and social policy reform in Korea

The economic crisis that broke out in Korea in December 1997 has had a chilling impact on social development in the country. Today unemployment is the highest that Korea has experienced in the past thirty years. This paper aims to examine the impact of the economic crisis on social development and the role of public policy to mitigate the problems caused by the crisis. The economic crisis has hit vulnerable groups harder, increased the proportion of part-time and daily workers, and reversed the trend of steady improvement of income distribution. The economic crisis along with the trend of aging population, globalization, and competition calls for an expanded role of social policy, which the Korean government has neglected for a long time. The main targets of social policy reform in Korea include the expansion of government programs and safety nets for the unemployed and redesigning the national pension and health insurance scheme to provide adequate income security as well as to improve the system sustainability.