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Appendix 4
European Social
Welfare Systems
The following is a
broad overview of different European models of social welfare. While there
is a wide degree of variation between national systems, it is common to
talk of four distinct models: Nordic, continental, liberal and Mediterranean.
It can be presumed that all four models, at a minimum, provide a set of
social security and taxation programs designed to redistribute income
and reduce poverty, employment-promotion programs and a network of social
services - the extent and characteristics of these programs and services,
however, varies from model to model.
The Nordic Model
(Nordic and Scandinavian countries):
- Generally financed
through the tax system
- Builds on a tradition
of full-employment and universal welfare provision
- Focus is on promoting
equality, rather than merely reducing poverty
- Characterized by
relatively generous benefit levels
- Incorporates a
wide range of services to support families and promote full-employment
(such as child care)
- Significant state
intervention into the labour market, the family and the community
- Social welfare
is a right of citizenship
The Continental
European Model (Austria, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, France and partly
the Netherlands):
- Driven by a social
"insurance" rather than welfare model, where benefits are
primarily earned through employment over the course of a person's lifetime
- Level of income
security depends on the size of the former wage/salary
- Governance of the
system is shared between workers, employers and the public sector
- Relies to a certain
extent on the traditional model of the family, where the husband/father
is expected to be the "breadwinner", and the wife/mother is
expected to care for the family
- Focuses on guaranteeing
a level of income security over the life course
The Liberal Model
(Britain and, to a certain extent, Ireland):
- Emphasis on combating
poverty rather than promoting equality
- Incorporates the
social insurance model and residual welfare assistance
- Attempts to promote
labour market participation by limiting generosity of benefits and providing
direct incentives to work
- Generally low benefits
- Less regulation
of the labour market and fewer supports to families (e.g. child care)
than the previous two models
- Includes Canada
The Mediterranean
Model (Greece, Spain, Portugal and Italy):
- Role of family
and community in provision of welfare rivals that of the state
- Historically, the
income security system has been based on a social insurance model, with
workers paying contributions toward their future benefits
- Because of large
informal economy, many people are not adequately protected by this system.
As a result, the nuclear and extended family is of great importance
Quebec's Anti Poverty
Law
Following a community
based process to draft anti poverty legislation and present it to the
Quebec government, the assembly adopted a "National Strategy to combat
Poverty and Social Exclusion". The stated goal of the strategy is
"to progressively transform Quebec into one of industrialized societies
with the least poverty" it is more modest than the goal of the coalitions
and groups that got it going, (zero poverty) but better than most. The
three main goals of the National strategy as set out in the Government
of Quebec's policy summary are:
- To improve the
economic and social situation of people living in poverty or marginalized
by society
- To reduce inequalities
that specifically affect people living in poverty
- To take comprehensive
action by developing a sense of social solidarity
The five main components
of the strategy are:
- Prevention: Promoting
empowerment-includes access to education and training
- Strengthening the
social and economic safety net-includes a more flexible employment assistance
program and more affordable housing
- Promoting job access
and employment-includes community economic development, improving wages
and working conditions especially in relation to family responsibilities
- Promoting the involvement
of society as a whole-includes reinforcing corporate responsibility,
strengthening community organizations and supporting regional initiatives
- Ensuring consistency
and coordination of action at all levels-includes ongoing dialogue and
democratic participation, sustained support for innovative approaches
and ensuring flexibility so that programs can evolve as needs change
While there is little
to indicate what policies and programs will emerge from this, the framework
seems promising and the fact that it arose from community organizing is
inspiring. More information is available on the government of Quebec website.
How to Participate:
Email: Barb Anello at DAWN
Ontario
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