universal credit
2012
o It replaces six existing payments for working age people (Income Support, Income- Based Jobseeker’s Allowance, Income-Related Employment Support Allowance, Housing Benefit, Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit) with the linked aims of simplifying the system of working age benefits; making work pay; increasing take-up and reducing fraud and error
o the UK government believes Universal Credit will provide incentives to encourage more people to enter the paid labour market, while simultaneously offering fairness to the tax payer. It is claimed that it will simplify the benefits system by replacing six social security benefits with a single means-tested payment for those looking for work or already in paid employment on low wages
o Underpinning Universal Credit is a desire by the government to ensure that any type of paid work is more financially rewarding than reliance on benefits
universal credit - conditionality
o a) Full conditionality
This will be the default option for recipients including lone parents and couples with older children. Recipients in this group will be subject to the same requirements to actively seek work and to be available for work as they would under Jobseeker’s Allowance
o b) Work preparation
Recipients will be in this group if they are disabled or have a health condition which means they have limited capability for work at the current time. They will be expected to take reasonable steps to prepare for work
o c) Keeping in touch with the labour market
Recipients will be in this group if they are a lone parent or lead carer in a couple with a child over one but below age five. They will be expected to attend periodic interviews to discuss their plans for returning to the labour market
o d) No conditionality Recipients will be in this group if they are: disabled or have a serious health condition which prevents them working and preparing for work; a lone parent or lead carer in a couple with a child younger than one; have intensive and regular caring responsibilities. People receiving Universal Credit but earning above the relevant threshold would also not be subject to conditionality
benefit cap
- Benefit Cap: Introduced in 2013, the Benefit Cap limits the total amount of welfare benefits a household can receive, aiming to encourage people to move into work. It affects a range of means-tested benefits, including Housing Benefit, Child Tax Credit, and Universal Credit.
- around 170,000 households had their benefits capped due to the benefit cap as of May 2021.
working tax credit
- Working Tax Credit (WTC): Introduced in 2003 as part of the broader tax credits system, WTC is a means-tested benefit aimed at supporting working individuals with low incomes, including those with children and disabled workers.
new deal
Under Blair-welfare to work: The introduction of programs like the New Deal aimed to help the unemployed back into work through training and employment support
pensioner welfare
- Thatcher- The State Pension is a universal benefit paid to individuals when they reach State Pension age, regardless of their income or financial situation.
- Introduced in 1997 but expanded and continued in the 2000s and 2010s, the Winter Fuel Payment is a non-means-tested benefit paid to eligible individuals to help with heating costs during the winter months.
- In the 2000s- free TV licences to individuals aged 75 and over, free TV licences to individuals aged 75 and over,
maternity pay
- Statutory Maternity Pay is a non-means-tested benefit provided to eligible employees during maternity leave, regardless of their income or financial situation.
1986
corona measures welfare
- As the United Kingdom went into ‘lockdown’ on 23 March 2020, the government introduced three main social welfare measures to respond to the pandemic: the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) and emergency changes to the social security system
o The CJRS was launched in March 2020 to support employees temporarily unable to work due to the pandemic. Where staff were placed on a temporary leave of absence by their employer (‘furloughed’), the UK government paid 80% of wages up to a cap of £2,500 per month. Initially scheduled to finish at the end of June 2020, the CJRS has been extended twice and will now finish on 31 March 2021
o From May 2020, the SEISS allowed the self-employed to apply for a grant worth 80% of trading profits for three months, capped at £7,500 in total. A further three-month payment worth 70% of average monthly trading profits, capped at £6,750 was available from August 2020. In November 2020, the government announced a further extension of the scheme until April 2021.
o On 20 March 2020, the UK announced £7 billion additional funding for the UK’s social security system.
increased the standard rate of Universal Credit by £20 per week (£1,040 per year) for a period of 12 months.
start of child benefit
- introduction of Child Benefit by the Labour government elected in 1974. Child Benefit, a tax-free benefit paid for all children at the same rate, replaced Family Allowance and (from 1979) Child Tax Allowance. As it was put by Barbara Castle, then Secretary of State for Social Services,‘we shall have for the first time a single universal system of family support’
child benefit Thatcher
- during the Thatcher era, Child Benefit is a universal benefit paid to families with children, regardless of income. It aims to provide financial support to help with the costs of raising children.
- The new benefit, set at £4 a week in 1979, represented some 9% of mean gross income per person in the UK
child benefit new labour
- Scaling back to income tested family income support under New Labour
- By 1997 Child Benefit was less than 7% of mean income + rate for subsequent children in the family had fallen progressively behind the rate for the first child –and was little more than 5% of mean income.
- significantly: a rise of a quarter for the first child in 1999..Ten years after the Blair government was elected, the benefit for the first child was no higher than in 1997, and Child Benefit for subsequent children had fallen from 5% to 4%.
tex credit and family welfare
- income-tested tax credits have been greatly expanded: Working Families’ Tax Credit from 1999, replaced by ChildTax Credit and Working Tax Credit from 2003.In December 2009, more than four million families with an adult in work were receiving the Child Tax Credit.
- income testing works like increasing the tax rate on extra money people earn. For example, if someone earns an additional £1, they might lose some of their family benefits.
means testing and family benefit
- Also introduced in 2003, CTC is a means-tested benefit aimed at providing additional financial support to families with children. It works alongside Working Tax Credit to support low and middle-income families.
- High-Income Child Benefit Charge (Means-Testing): Introduced in 2013, this charge reduces Child Benefit for families where one parent earns over a certain threshold. This means-tested approach aims to target support towards lower and middle-income families, while higher-income families receive reduced or no Child Benefits
need for more welfare for disabled people
- We defined deprivation in the PSE-UK 2012 as lacking due to being unable to afford three or more generally agreed necessities of life. Here, 43% of disabled adults were unable to afford three or more of the 25 ‘necessities’ of life, compared to 30% of non- disabled adults.
- The overall prevalence of poverty in disabled adults was 20.7% and in non-disabled adults was 11.8%.
Stigma of claiming
- 19 per cent of Danish and 34 per cent of Finnish long-term unemployed people report feeling that ‘people looked down a little’ on them because of their claim (Albrekt Larsen, 2006)
- 1/2 to 2/3 of their samples would feel ‘embarrassed’ about claiming or do not want other people to know , or look down on claimants or don’t respect them (UK: Who Benefits?, 2013)
German covid measures
Germany - Kurzarbeit (Short-Time Work) Scheme: Germany’s Kurzarbeit scheme is a longstanding policy that was expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide wage subsidies to workers facing reduced hours or temporary layoffs. Under this program, employers can reduce employees’ working hours while the government compensates a portion of their lost wages. This measure helped prevent widespread unemployment and enabled businesses to retain skilled workers during economic downturns.
Jobseekers and Germans
Basic Social Security for Jobseekers (Arbeitslosengeld II): Introduced as part of the Hartz reforms, Arbeitslosengeld II, also known as “ALG II” or colloquially as “Hartz IV,” is a means-tested social welfare benefit provided to unemployed individuals and low-income households to cover basic living expenses such as rent, utilities, and food. It replaced the previous unemployment benefit system and aimed to provide more comprehensive support to those in need.
German minimum wage
In 2015, Germany introduced a nationwide statutory minimum wage, known as Mindestlohn, to ensure that all workers receive a minimum level of compensation for their labor. The minimum wage is adjusted periodically and helps prevent excessively low wages that can contribute to poverty and income inequality.
had been introduced in Britain in 1999
Germany and housing policy
The Wohngeld program provides housing benefits to low-income households to help them afford rental housing costs. The benefit amount is based on household income, housing expenses, and family size, and it aims to prevent homelessness and housing insecurity among disadvantaged populations.
Germany and work incentives
The Hartz reforms were a set of labor market and welfare reforms introduced between 2003 and 2005 aimed at reducing unemployment and poverty in Germany. The reforms included measures such as restructuring the unemployment benefit system, promoting job creation through labor market reforms, and introducing incentives for unemployed individuals to take up work or training opportunities
