Why Trade Unions Oppose Basic Income
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Yannick Vanderborght
In most OECD countries trade unions remain key players in the field of welfare state reform. And yet, surprisingly little attention has been paid by proponents of a universal basic income (BI) to the very position of workers unions on the radical reform that they are advocating. This paper tackles this issue in three complementary ways. First, it offers a brief overview of the (scarce) literature on basic income and trade unions. Second, it focuses on plausible arguments that could be used by trade unions to oppose or, alternatively, support a basic income. Finally, empirical information collected in Belgium, Canada, and the Netherlands is used to test the robustness of the theoretical assumptions. These investigations demonstrate that trade unions are far from being natural allies of BI advocates within developed welfare states. As evidenced by the Belgian case, they can even constitute a significant obstacle to the political progression of the idea.
©2011 Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, Berlin/Boston
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Front Matter
- Content
- Launching a Basic Income Journal
- List of Contributors
- Research Article
- The Failure of Workfare: Another Reason for a Basic Income Guarantee
- Basic Income and Migration Policy: A Moral Dilemma?
- Why Trade Unions Oppose Basic Income
- A Capitalist Road to Communism
- Debate
- Notes on the Universal Grant Proposal
- Basic Income and the Value of Occupational Choice
- How Global is the Capitalist Road to Communism?
- A Scandalous Proposal: Ethical Attractions of Basic Income
- Capitalism Unbound? Peril and Promise of Basic Income
- Basic Income as a Socialist Project
- A Capitalist Road to Global Justice: Reply to Another Six Critics
- Book Review
- Review of John Cunliffe and Guido Erreygers, The Origins of Universal Grants
- Review of Tony Fitzpatrick and Michael Cahill, Environment and Welfare: Towards a Green Social Policy
- Review of Brian Barry, Why Social Justice Matters
- Review of Guy Standing, Beyond the New Paternalism: Basic Security as Equality
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Front Matter
- Content
- Launching a Basic Income Journal
- List of Contributors
- Research Article
- The Failure of Workfare: Another Reason for a Basic Income Guarantee
- Basic Income and Migration Policy: A Moral Dilemma?
- Why Trade Unions Oppose Basic Income
- A Capitalist Road to Communism
- Debate
- Notes on the Universal Grant Proposal
- Basic Income and the Value of Occupational Choice
- How Global is the Capitalist Road to Communism?
- A Scandalous Proposal: Ethical Attractions of Basic Income
- Capitalism Unbound? Peril and Promise of Basic Income
- Basic Income as a Socialist Project
- A Capitalist Road to Global Justice: Reply to Another Six Critics
- Book Review
- Review of John Cunliffe and Guido Erreygers, The Origins of Universal Grants
- Review of Tony Fitzpatrick and Michael Cahill, Environment and Welfare: Towards a Green Social Policy
- Review of Brian Barry, Why Social Justice Matters
- Review of Guy Standing, Beyond the New Paternalism: Basic Security as Equality
