Unemployment insurance in Bulgaria and other East European countries: The transition to a market economy

Unemployment places those it affects in a situation of dependency on unemployment benefits. The regulation of that dependency and the measures necessary to avert it, in Bulgaria (and also in other East European countries) during the period of transition to a market economy, forms the subject of labour and social insurance legislation relating to unemployment and introduced on a temporary basis. Unemployment insurance benefits (unemployment benefits in cash, unemployment assistance, social assistance) are provided for limited periods fixed in the light of the nature of the benefit, the causes of unemployment, the number of years of service, age, gender and other factors. The degree of dependency of unemployed persons on such benefits is also determined by the level of those benefits. The principal categories of legal instruments by which that dependency can be averted or reduced are (1) contributions by the State to the establishment of labour law relationships by providing information to unemployed persons on job vacancies, vocational training and retraining measures, job creation measures and placement; (2) incentives to employers to maintain existing jobs and to create new ones (credits, exemption from interest payments, etc.).     

Unemployment and economic security for young adults in Finland,Norway and Sweden: From unemployment protection to poverty relief

In this study, we investigated if there has been a displacement in the type and coverage of welfare services available for young unemployed adults in Finland, Norway and Sweden over the last two decades. This question is important because a number of studies have argued that the generous unemployment benefits and extensive labour market intervention found in the Nordic welfare states shield young people from the most severe consequences of economic inactivity. In this article, we instead show that during this period, less generous means‐tested unemployment and social assistance benefits have become the most important form of income protection for young people. In evidence, earnings‐related unemployment benefits now cover only 10 per cent of unemployed Swedes and Finns and 45 per cent of unemployed Norwegians aged 24 years or younger. This development marks a significant change in our understanding of unemployment protection for young people in Nordic countries.     

Financial hardship during unemployment in Norway: the impact of public and private income support

It is common to assume that long-term unemployment no longer causes financial hardship because of generous welfare benefits. It is further assumed that unemployment benefits have eroded the traditional role of the family in protecting its members against hazards. This panel study of long-term unemployed people in 1991-1992 demonstrates the inadequacy of unemployment benefits and the importance of family support in reducing the risk of financial hardship. Vulnerable household types, such as single people and families with limited economic resources, at the outset seem unable to bear the personal risk of unemployment that is built into the benefit scheme. Persons disadvantaged at the outset risk a downward spiral because of long-term unemployment. Especially during times of high unemployment, the compensation level is not optimal from a welfare point of view. Greater coverage and more generous unemployment benefits may help unemployed people to cope better financially and thus avoid applying for discretionary and highly stigmatized social assistance allowance.     

Complexities in Assessing Unemployment Benefits and Policies

Employed workers cannot access unemployment insurance as a matter of choice. Benefit periods and benefit amounts vary between groups in the population. Unemployment benefit recipients have not only rights to benefits but also obligations to meet in order to maintain eligibility. The existence of functional equivalent benefit schemes contributes to benefit transition and substitution. All these aspects are of crucial importance both for the economic well-being of families with unemployed members and for policymaking. This article illustrates some of these complex institutional aspects through an analysis of benefits for unemployment in a number of northern European countries in 1996 and by reference to recent Danish experiences.     

Longevity insurance annuities: China adopts a benefit innovation from the past

Longevity insurance annuities are deferred annuities that begin payment at advanced older ages, such as at age 80. Such annuities would benefit some older retirees who have drawn down their savings, but the private sector has problems in providing them. Originally, social insurance old‐age benefits programmes in some countries were structured as longevity insurance programmes, with 50 per cent or less of those entering the workforce surviving to receive the benefits. Over time, however, as life expectancy has improved, the benefits these programmes provide have slowly transformed into benefits that most people entering the workforce ultimately receive. This article argues that the reintroduction of longevity insurance benefits as part of social insurance old‐age benefit programmes could be an important policy innovation, in particular because this benefit is generally not provided by the private sector. China has introduced longevity insurance benefits as part of its social insurance system, offering a model for other countries, particularly those providing modest social insurance old‐age benefits.     

劳工输出、跨国生产政治与剥削关系的形成——中国赴日劳工的案例研究

在全球化背景下，发展中国家向发达国家的劳工输出形塑了一种资方与劳方之间的剥削关系。基于中国赴日劳工的案例，本研究借助“跨国生产政治”的分析框架探讨这种剥削关系的形成机制。雇主和移工围绕加班工资展开博弈，而外劳制度对移工权利的限制及其赋予雇主的权力、不同国族移工的竞争以及跨国劳务中介的选择性庇护，使移工无论反抗还是消极服从，都可能面临加班福利缩减、加班机会丧失甚至工作丢失的困境。这种跨国生产体制具有“市场专制”性质，而外劳制度限制、资方对外劳制度缝隙的利用、全球过剩的劳动力市场、拆分型劳动力再生产体制共同体现了国际合同劳工面临的跨国生产政治，成为发达资本主义国家资本强制剥削再度出现的重要机制。     

中国失业保险制度的法制化建设

中国失业保险制度正处在进一步完善阶段.借鉴国外失业保险制度的成熟经验,建立符合我国国情的多渠道保险金筹集与双重失业保障相结合的失业保险制度,是我们努力的方向.我们要在坚持受益人权利与义务相统一、对失业者适度保险和对失业者积极保障原则的基础上,逐步构建中国失业保险法体系.     

Comparing unemployment protection and social assistance in 14 European countries. Four worlds of protection for people of working age

Pfeifer, M. Comparing unemployment protection and social assistance in 14 European countries. Four worlds of protection for people of working age This article aims to show which policy responses 14 Western European countries have adopted to deal with rising unemployment levels and increased need for benefits during working age. In contrast to earlier studies, both components of unemployment benefits (UB), i.e. unemployment insurance and unemployment assistance, were taken into account in a social rights indicator that depicts the legal entitlements of the unemployed. In total, there were eight indicators of both UB and social assistance representing expenditure, generosity, problem pressure and benefit entitlements. The following cluster analysis groups countries using these indicators. The resulting typology consisted of four ways of protecting the working‐aged: an extensive safety nets type operating well with functioning labour markets; a liberal protection type dealing with low levels of unemployment; a targeted protection type combined with an insider–outsider divide on the labour market; and lastly, a patchy safety nets type facing high unemployment levels.     

我国城市农民工医疗保险发展方向与路径选择

我国各地都已建立了农民工医疗保险制度,从城市农民工医疗保险同当地其他社会保险的依附或隶属关系角度可主要分为综合模式、单独模式和混合模式三类.根据世界各国城乡医疗保障一体化的发展趋势,我国农民工医疗保险必将最终融入到城乡医疗保障一体化制度中.但由于我国二元结构短时间内难以改变,农民工医疗保险还将长期存在.目前,限制其发展的亟待解决问题是农民工医疗保险的当期参保和不可随人转移原则.我国农民工医疗保险的改革,应根据不同模式的特点,将单独模式以及其他模式中类似单独模式的部分率先进行异地转移试点,为我国城乡医疗保障、社会保障一体化制度建设提供思路和借鉴.     

Maternity and family leave policies: a comparative analysis

This article compares maternity leave data from a 1981 Columbia study, a 1992 two county survey and a 1997 revisit to the same sample of Idaho employers. The data reflect a trend between 1981 and 1997 of shifting costs for specific benefits (pension, life and health insurance) from employer to employee. The findings also indicate that, regardless of the number of employees, all responding employers have health insurance that covers maternity and allow pregnant employees to work until delivery if able to do so. Additionally, the effects of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 are considered by comparing policies reported in 1992 and those reported in 1997 by Idaho employers with 50 or more employees. The conclusions point to substantial changes in some leave benefits since the FMLA took effect but echo again the dilemma faced in the United States, that we are still out of step with most industrial societies in that we have an unpaid leave policy.     

Unemployment insurance: Theoretical approaches and empirical evidence

This article analyses the principal theoretical approaches to the effects on the labour market when an unemployment insurance scheme is introduced. The article also reviews the international data derived from such insurance schemes already in use in some European and American economies. The principal conclusion of this study is that an unemployment scheme does not necessarily affect employment decisions adversely, nor does it encourage long-term unemployment. Furthermore, to the extent that this analysis goes beyond the traditional limits of the employment-unemployment relationship and considers the institutional aspects, which can be at least as important as the individual benefits, the effects on employment and on the allocation of resources in the economy can be positive. Finally, the study identifies some criteria to be considered when designing the scheme, such as the level of benefits, the period for which they are granted, the type of beneficiary covered, the type of financing and its relationship to the quality of the information and its complementary role in the process of adapting the labour force to new demands.     

THE SOCIAL SECURITY CRISIS: AN INTERNATIONAL DILEMMA1

Social security systems throughout the world are in a dilemma. The over-expansion of the sixties has compounded the current recession's unemployment and other problems and created an “ideal” system difficult for the economically depressed countries to alter. Older workers are particularly hard hit during recessions. They are often pressured into retirement, with no financial or career alternatives, in an attempt to free up jobs for younger and hard-to-place workers. Many schemes have been devised to compensate older workers for their losses: high unemployment compensation, partial unemployment benefits and a liberal interpretation of disability insurance and other assistance programmes not specifically designed for the elderly. The author exposes many proposals for altering social security but concludes that most schemes have not yet been implemented. While international economic recovery would surely heal the ailing systems, the author contends there are remedial measures, largely ignored at present, that could be taken to soothe the systems' wounds.     

Social Security Pensions in the Maghreb: A Study of Morocco and Tunisia

Long-term pension schemes in Morocco and Tunisia, taking all elements together, are very much in decline and for the moment there is no serious option available to make up for the limited scope of the contributory model of social insurance. Furthermore, efforts to coordinate and harmonize these schemes are only just getting going. Eligibility conditions are very strict and the benefits paid — to people with disabilities, to retirees or their surviving dependants — are frugal. Privatization of pensions helps only those able to take out private insurance, benefiting a tiny proportion of the target population. Tunisia, however, has provided its people with better safeguards than Morocco, a more populous country whose rulers are less inclined to be generous in this respect. Whatever the case, those in charge of social insurance in both countries have a long way to go before their rapidly ageing populations can aspire to a relatively decent quality of life.     

Rational choice and out-of-wedlock births among African American females: The influence of AFDC and unemployment

What are the factors that influence out-of-wedlock births among African-American females? Conservatives argue that generous welfare benefits are responsible for the large number of black out-of-wedlock births. Liberals often attribute black out-of-wedlock births to high unemployment rates among black males. Using statelevel data, I employ ordinary least-squares regression analysis to test both the welfare and unemployment arguments, and find that neither variable is significantly related to black out-of-wedlock births. Also, by applying the identical model to white out-of-wedlock births, I find that white and black out-of-wedlock births are affected by different factors.     

Welfare reform and elderly immigrants' health insurance coverage: the roles of federal and state medicaid eligibility rules

Immigrants' access to federally-funded Medicaid became limited after welfare reform imposed restrictive noncitizen eligibility rules. This study used a representative sample from the Current Population Survey (N?=?105,873) and state-level data to examine the effects of these policy changes on elderly immigrants. Triple difference-in-differences analyses show that federal restriction of eligibility had a significantly negative association with elderly immigrants' Medicaid coverage, and generous state eligibility had significantly positive relationships with Medicaid and any health insurance coverage. Findings indicate the important role of eligibility on elderly immigrants' health insurance coverage. Results call for social workers' actions to expand elderly immigrants' Medicaid eligibility.     

Precarious workers' choices about unemployment insurance membership after the Ghent system reform: The Finnish experience

The literature on the Ghent system has focused on the link between voluntary unemployment insurance and union membership in terms of industrial relations. Less attention has been paid to unemployment benefits and employees' decision‐making concerning unemployment insurance, even though the core function of the Ghent system is to provide unemployment insurance. This paper examines both of the options that precarious workers (i.e., part‐timers, temporary employees, and low‐skilled service employees) choose regarding unemployment insurance membership and the change in union density after the Ghent system reform in Finland. First, the results show that the growth of the independent unemployment insurance fund was the main reason for declining union density in the 2000s and early 2010s. Second, in terms of precarious workers, we find that the emergence of the independent fund has affected their choices about unemployment insurance membership and that their choices depend on the type of precarious employment they have. Moreover, part‐timers and temporary employees younger than 35 years of age are much less likely to enroll in unemployment insurance than older employees who have the same types of employment contracts.     

Unemployment Insurance or Individual Savings Accounts: Can Chile'S New Scheme Serve as a Model for Other Developing Countries?

In 2002 the Chilean government implemented new legislation for an unemployment insurance scheme. It has been presented at both national and international levels as a model for other developing countries, because it provides protection against unemployment, avoids issues of moral hazard associated with traditional unemployment insurance systems, and has a relatively low public finance requirement. The insurance combines a system of individual savings accounts with a publicly financed contingency fund. This article examines how it will work in practice, and whether it can indeed serve as a model.     

Bringing firms on board. Inclusiveness of the dual apprenticeship systems in Germany,Switzerland and Denmark

In dual vocational education and training (VET) systems, the state and employers collaborate in order to meet a country’s needs in terms of education for youth and professional skills for the labour market. These systems are considered as effective tools to lower youth unemployment. However, since firms in dual VET systems select the apprentices, not every candidate gets access to in‐firm training. Consequently, governments develop measures that try to make their dual VET systems more inclusive. We present a categorisation of the different measures used to enhance inclusiveness in three dual collective skill formation countries (Switzerland, Germany and Denmark). We show that inclusiveness measures exist in each of the three countries but are limited in the extent to which firms are expected to play an active role in them. We conclude that the types of measures adopted are related to political economy traditions and the country’s level of macro‐corporatism.     

The ratification of ILO Conventions and the provision of unemployment benefits: An empirical analysis

This article tests the relationship between the ratification of International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions and the provision of unemployment benefits. Statistical tests focus on two related issues: why countries ratify ILO Conventions on unemployment benefits, and whether ratification influences government spending on unemployment benefits. The main findings are that democracy, region, income, and globalization are the main factors influencing why countries ratify ILO Conventions on unemployment benefits. In turn, the ratification of ILO Conventions is systematically associated with higher spending if countries have ratified more than two Conventions.     

The Rise and Fall of Unemployment Insurance in Israel

The Israeli unemployment insurance (UI) programme was adopted in 1972 but, in the three decades since, it has undergone major changes. As a result of these changes, the programme is currently far less accessible and less generous than it was in its original form. This article documents the policy process that led to retrenchment of UI in Israel. This process was justified by a professed desire on the part of decision-makers to deal with the problem of the unemployment trap caused by UI and was facilitated by a legislative manoeuvre that enabled the State to overcome institutional obstacles to change within the Parliament.