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Minimum income protection in the austerity tide

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  • Sarah Marchal
  • Ive Marx
  • Natascha Van Mechelen

Abstract

Scholarly literature is inconclusive on how economic crises impact on minimum income protection. Earlier studies found small increases in the generosity of safety nets at the onset of the crisis. Yet an increased focus on budget austerity substantially altered the social policy context. This paper assesses how minimum income floors weathered the austerity tide following the crisis using purpose-collected data for 23 EU countries. Generally, social assistance benefit trends did not deviate much from pre-crisis growth levels. Yet retrenchment did occur through more technical measures, the combined impact of which was quite significant in some countries. Jel codes: I380 Copyright Marchal et al. 2016

Suggested Citation

  • Sarah Marchal & Ive Marx & Natascha Van Mechelen, 2016. "Minimum income protection in the austerity tide," IZA Journal of European Labor Studies, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 5(1), pages 1-20, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:izaels:v:5:y:2016:i:1:p:1-20:10.1186/s40174-016-0052-7
    DOI: 10.1186/s40174-016-0052-7
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    1. Dolls, Mathias & Fuest, Clemens & Peichl, Andreas, 2012. "Automatic stabilizers and economic crisis: US vs. Europe," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(3), pages 279-294.
    2. Sarah Marchal & Natascha Van Mechelen, 2014. "A new kid in town? Active inclusion in European minimum income schemes," ImPRovE Working Papers 14/07, Herman Deleeck Centre for Social Policy, University of Antwerp.
    3. Eichhorst, Werner & Konle-Seidl, Regina, 2008. "Contingent Convergence: A Comparative Analysis of Activation Policies," IZA Discussion Papers 3905, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    4. Carlos Farinha Rodrigues, 2012. "Minimum Income in Portugal: Changing the Rules in Times of Crisis," Working Papers Department of Economics 2012/05, ISEG - Lisbon School of Economics and Management, Department of Economics, Universidade de Lisboa.
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    6. Natascha Van Mechelen & Sarah Marchal & Tim Goedemé & Ive Marx & Bea Cantillon, 2011. "The CSB-Minimum Income Protection Indicators dataset (CSB-MIPI)," Working Papers 1105, Herman Deleeck Centre for Social Policy, University of Antwerp.
    7. Joakim Palme & Walter Korpi, 1998. "The Paradox of Redistribution and Strategies of Equality: Welfare State Institutions, Inequality and Poverty in the Western Countries," LIS Working papers 174, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
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    Cited by:

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    2. de la Rica, Sara & Gorjón, Lucía, 2017. "Assessing the Impact of a Minimum Income Scheme in the Basque Country," IZA Discussion Papers 10867, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Favero, Fausto, 2020. "The Italian "Reddito di Cittadinanza" one year later," IPE Working Papers 146/2020, Berlin School of Economics and Law, Institute for International Political Economy (IPE).
    4. David Sánchez-Teruel & María Auxiliadora Robles-Bello & José Antonio Camacho-Conde, 2020. "Assessment of emotional intelligence in adults with down syndrome: Psychometric properties of the Emotional Quotient Inventory," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(7), pages 1-23, July.
    5. Eichhorst, Werner & Bonin, Holger & Krause-Pilatus, Annabelle & Marx, Paul & Dolls, Mathias & Lay, Max, 2023. "Minimum Income Support Systems as Elements of Crisis Resilience in Europe," IZA Research Reports 137, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Luis Ayala & José María Arranz & Carlos García‐Serrano & Lucía Martínez‐Virto, 2021. "The effectiveness of minimum income benefits in poverty reduction in Spain," International Journal of Social Welfare, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(2), pages 152-169, April.
    7. Tess Penne & Tim Goedemé, 2019. "Putting inadequate incomes at the heart of food insecurity. A Study of the financial constraints to access a healthy diet in Europe," Working Papers 1910, Herman Deleeck Centre for Social Policy, University of Antwerp.
    8. Roberto Iacono, 2017. "Minimum income schemes in Europe: is there a trade-off with activation policies?," IZA Journal of European Labor Studies, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 6(1), pages 1-15, December.
    9. Luis Ayala & Elena Bárcena-Martín, 2020. "Measuring Social Welfare Gains in Social Assistance Programs: An Application to European Countries," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 151(1), pages 205-229, August.

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