Social Security

What is social security … the securing of an income to take the place of earnings when they are interrupted by unemployment, sickness or accident; to provide for retirement through age, to provide against loss of support by the death of another person. William Beveridge, 1942

Functions  Income protection at times of contingencies  Distribution of resources over one’s life time for future risks  ‘social’ – pooling of resources to share risks  Risks – short term (sickness) and long term (disability)  Targets – able-bodied (temporary) and those loss of self- dependence  Objectives – poverty-relief, income protection, redistribution?

Principles  Available to all citizens (universal / selective)?  Comprehensive in coverage of all kinds of contingencies?  High level of benefit (high de-commodification) (flat rate / varied) ?  Take-up rate?  Financing (who pays)? Government normally guarantee the benefit and support those who cannot contribute

Models  Social assistance (non-contributory, mean-tested)  Social allowance / benefit (universal for specific target group, non-contributory)  Social insurance (contributory, state managed)  Provident fund (contributory, individual account)

General trends  State gradually take up responsibility  Dominated by social insurance model covering old age and unemployment  Supplemented by social assistance scheme  Problems – retirement in aging society, inadequate in pension and unemployment payment  Responded by adjusting retirement/pension age, private insurance, privatising pension and cap government’s responsibility

Programme Summaries  Retirement / Old age and death  Disability  Sickness (Health Insurance)  Unemployment  Family allowance  Maternity