Basic Income

This page is still a tentative collection of loosely related material on the theme of the basic income, but already points to key documentation on the topic.

Definition

"The Basic Income Guarantee (BIG) is a guaranteed basic level of income. Most proposals suggest that it be distributed to every adult citizen without regard to income or wealth." (http://www.fguide.org/Bulletin/basicincomeguar.htm)

A basic explanation is here, at http://www.fguide.org/Bulletin/basicincomeguar.htm

See also the related Wikipedia article on a Guaranteed Minimum Income at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaranteed_minimum_income

Discussions

Jean-Marc Ferry on the Basic Income

What is the relation of the basic income proposal, to the socialization inherent in work? This is an important point, since the critics often argue that a basic income would destroy such socialization. While this argument might appeal to the older generation of salaried workers, to the networked generation, it seems to become a moot issue, since we know from experience that we socialize in a different, and just as valid way. But this intuitive understanding needs sociological and philosophical refinement. It is this which is provided through the work of French philosopher Jean-Marc Ferry.

Report

«Le principe redistributif en question: instaurer un droit au revenu", Sécurité sociale CHSS 4/2005, special issue on 'Justice sociale - éthique et pratique', Office fédéral des assurances sociales, Bern, July-August 2005, pp.197-205.

"For many years Jean-Marc Ferry, a French philosopher from the University of Brussels (B), has been one of the most prominent advocates of basic income in French-speaking countries. In this new article, he argues again for a European basic income. According to Ferry, a high basic income can be first justified by looking at the past: the wealth which has been accumulated through the ages is a collective good which should be fairly distributed among citizens. But a high basic income can also be justified by looking forward: it is an investment which should allow for the creation of a "secteur quaternaire" (a quaternary industry). In this sector of the economy, individuals could engage in socially useful activities which are not market-related. Ferry stresses the fact that he does not defend basic income "as such", but as a way of reinforcing social integration and participation." Available in PDF at http://www.bsv.admin.ch/publikat/chss/f/2005/chss0504i.htm

Interview (french)

"Pour ma part, je considère plutôt l'allocation universelle comme ce qui renforce, non pas cette liberté négative du droit au travail, mais plutôt la liberté positive de choisir son activité et la capacité du demandeur d'emploi de se présenter sur le marché du travail en tant qu'offreur de travail.

L'argument est le suivant : si vous disposez d'un revenu de base, vous avez moins le couteau sur la gorge que si vous n'avez rien et, par conséquent, vous êtes déjà plus à même de négocier vos conditions de travail et de rémunération. D'autre part, vous avez la possibilité de définir vous-même des activités indépendantes : vous pouvez former une entreprise, tenter des activités atypiques qui ne sont pas encore reconnues socialement. Nous nous en remettons donc aux potentialités de la créativité sociale qui sont très élevées en Europe occidentale mais où, comme on le sait, l'initiative individuelle est, hélas, bureaucratiquement gênée, fiscalement entravée et structurellement bridée par la limitation des offres d'emploi et la définition, à travers celle des profils de compétence requis, de l'utilité socialement reconnue par les groupes privés et la puissance publique.

Si les individus disposaient de ce revenu de base, ils pourraient participer à la définition de l'utilité sociale et prendre des risques parce que la précarité économique serait diminuée. L'imagination productive ne fait pas défaut, sous nos latitudes, pour inventer les activités nouvelles rentables. De même, la création esthétique et l'innovation scientifique pourraient s'en trouver renforcées."

Links

• http://users.skynet.be/sky95042/mauss.html
• http://users.skynet.be/sky95042/iw_espri.html
• http://users.skynet.be/sky95042/plaidoye.html

The basic income as a form of 'rent'

The basic income as a form of rent for what the population is creating in social wealth:

“Pour l’économiste écologiste Bernard Guibert il faut trouver la justification du revenu social garanti qu’il place au centre du programme social des écologistes, dans une réhabilitation du rapport de rente. Non pas une rente parasitaire mais une rente sur ses propres qualités, sociales et productives, sur son propre corps. La régulation de cette rente comme celle du développent durable est un acte de nature politique Le but de cet article est de tenter de fonder théoriquement la revendication qui est au coeur du projet de l’écologie politique, celle d’un revenu social d’existence qui soit inconditionnel, universel et de niveau suffisant pour permettre à chacun de vivre d’une manière autonome et décente. Il s’agit de transformer tout citoyen de notre pays en rentier : il faut donc rappeler ce qu’est le concept de rente, réfuter les préjugés idéologiques dont ce il est victime et en énoncer le contenu positif et même révolutionnaire comme condition de la réalisation du projet politique du développement durable." (http://multitudes.samizdat.net/article.php3?id_article=12)

Examples

Belgium: Debate on the Basic Income

"On the occasion of the ublication of "L'allocation universelle", an introductory book on basic income by Philippe Van Parijs and Yannick Vanderborght (see NewsFlash 32), the Belgian media seem to be paying renewed attention to the idea, at least in the French-speaking part of the country. On Sunday June 12, 2005, both authors were invited to talk for one hour about basic income in a live broadcast of the public radio RTBF. On June 22, 2005, one of the main Francophone daily newspapers, "La Libre Belgique", published a double-page debate on the topic.

Van Parijs and Vanderborght restated some of the arguments presented in their essay, and tried to show their relevance in the Belgian context. Three intellectuals were asked to give their opinion on the feasibility and desirability of the proposal. Claudine Leleux (University of Brussels) argued in favour of basic income and explained why she feels most attracted by a version of the idea defended by Jean-Marc Ferry, a French but Brussels-based philosopher. The two others were much more skeptical. Jean-Marie Harribey (University of Bordeaux IV and member of the Scientific Council of ATTAC) criticized the idea of disconnecting work and income, arguing that the left should rather go for full employment. Paul Palsterman (scientific council of Belgium's main trade-union CSC-ACV) argued that basic income proponents were too skeptical about the remaining possibilities of collective action in the field of welfare.

Finally, on July 9, 2005, the picture of the front cover of the popular weekly "Télé Moustique" featured a typical manager in his three-piece suit, lounging on the beach. It ran as a title: "Tomorrow, paid to do nothing?" While in a long piece a journalist presented the basic income idea and the international debate, including a reference to the Alaskan Permanent Fund Dividend, in a short interview unionist Paul Palsterman restated again some of his main objections. "The BI proponents", he said, "might be good science-fiction authors, but they are bad philosophers."

Source: http://bien.org

Resources in English

Articles

• a good overview of the basic income debate in the U.S. and Canada, focusing on the Alaska experience.
• an interview with Philippe Van Parijs, justifying the idea of the basic income
• a critique of the basic income proposals, by Jon Elster
• Is basic income exploitation of those who work?, by Stuart White

Article by Andrea Fumagalli: http://multitudes.samizdat.net/Basic-Income-Sustainability-and.html

Article by Yann Moulier-Boutang : http://multitudes.samizdat.net/Antagonism-under-cognitive.html?

Books

Three books based on American movements are listed here at http://www.progress.org/dividend/cdbooks.html

Also:

• Arneson, Fred Block, Harry Brighouse, Michael Burawoy, Joshua Cohen, Nancy Folbre , Andrew Levine, Mieke Meurs, Louis Putterman, Joel Rogers, Debra Satz, Julius Sensat, William H. Simon, Frank Thompson, Thomas E. Weisskopf, Erik Olin Wright. Edited and introduced by Erik Olin Wright (Volume II, Real Utopias Project Series, London: Verso, 1996)

• Redesigning Distribution: basic income and stakeholder grants as cornerstones of a more egalitarian capitalism, by Bruce Ackerman, Ann Alstott and Philippe van Parijs, with contributions by Barbara Bergmann, Irv Garfinkle, Chien-Chung Huang , Wendy Naidich, Julian LeGrand, Carole Pateman, Guy Standing, Stuart White, and Erik Olin Wright (Volume V of the Real Utopias Project Series, London: Verso, in press 2005)

• WIDERQUIST, Karl, LEWIS, Michael Anthony & PRESSMAN, Steven (2005). The Ethics and Economics of the Basic Income Guarantee. Aldershot: Ashgate, ISBN (Hardback).

"Governments in the US, the UK and other nations around the world routinely consider and, in some cases, experiment with reforms of their income support systems. The basic income guarantee, a universal unconditional income grant, has received increasing attention from scholars as an alternative to the kinds of reforms that have been implemented. This book explores the political, sociological, economic, and philosophical issues of the basic income guarantee.Tracing the history of the idea, from its origins in the late eighteenth century through its political vogue in the 1970s, when the Family Assistance Plan narrowly missed passage in the US Congress, it also examines the philosophical debate over the issue. The book is designed to foster a climate of ideas amongst those specifically interested in the income support policies and more widely for those concerned with public, welfare and labour economics. Its coverage will enable readers to obtain an in depth grounding in the topic, regardless of their position in the debate." Publisher's website: http://www.ashgate.com/

Reviews

• Review of Clive Lord, A Citizens' Income: A Foundation for a Sustainable World

Documents

Two documents from Eric Olin Wright:

• Redesigning redistribution
• Basic income as a Socialist Project

A 35-page summary from Philippe Van Parijs

• [1]

Journal

Basic Income Studies (BIS)

Basic Income Studies: An International Journal of Basic Income Research (BIS) is a new international journal devoted to the critical discussion of and research into universal basic income and related policy proposals. BIS is published twice a year by an international team of scholars, with support from Red Renta Basica, the Basic Income Earth Network and the U.S. Basic Income Guarantee Network.

The inaugural issue of BIS will appear in 2006 with articles by Joel Handler, Stuart White and Yannick Vanderborght, and a retrospective on Robert van der Veen and Philippe Van Parijs's seminal article on "A Capitalist Road to Communism". The retrospective includes a reprint of the original article and a set of specially written comments by Gerald Cohen, Erik Olin Wright, Doris Schroeder, Catriona McKinnon, Harry Dahms, Gijs van Donselaar and Andrew Williams.

BIS is currently inviting contributions from academic scholars, researchers, policy-makers and welfare advocates on a wide variety of topics pertaining to the universal welfare debate. The editors are interested in publishing research articles, book reviews, and short, accessible commentaries discussing aspects of basic income or a closely related topic. BIS accepts research from all main academic disciplines, and welcomes research that pushes the debate into previously uncharted areas. BIS aims to promote the research of young scholars as well as seasoned researchers, and the editors particularly welcome contributions from non-Western countries.

For more information, please visit our website at www.basicincomestudies.org or contact the editors, Jurgen De Wispelaere and Karl Widerquist. Scholars who want to have their books considered for review or who would like to review a book for BIS should contact Sandra Gonzalez-Bailon.

Organizations

One of the best resources is the Basic Income Earth Network which covers most parts of the world, at: http://www.bien.org

the Greens on the universal wage, with many resources at http://perso.wanadoo.fr/marxiens/politic/revenus/index.htm

Resources in French

Books

• GROULX, Lionel-Henri (2005). Revenu minimum garanti. Comparaison internationale, analyses et débats. Québec: Presses de l'Université du Québec. ISBN 2-7605-1365-3

"The expression "Revenu minimum garanti" (RMG - guaranteed minimum income) has often been used by French-speaking intellectuals in Quebec (Canada), where it has often led to misunderstandings. If for some it is a synonym for "basic income", others use "RMG" to refer to means-tested minimum income schemes such as the British National Assistance or the French "Revenu minimum d'insertion". This is the case of Lionel-Henri Groulx, the author of this extremely well-documented essay, who teaches social policy at the Université de Montréal. Even if the book mainly focuses on conventional minimum income schemes, the two last chapters discuss a negative income tax (NIT) and a basic income (BI), respectively. The chapter 5 on NIT includes a thorough discussion of the American NIT experiments (1970s), as well as of the Canadian project Mincome (1975-79). Groulx also examines what he calls "the NIT's of the new generation", i.e. the US Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and related schemes such as Canada's self-sufficiency experimental project. Chapter 6 is entirely devoted to basic income, and starts with a short presentation of BIEN. Having examined various ethical and economical justifications, Groulx briefly focuses on its political feasibility." (Publisher's website: http://www.puq.uquebec.ca/fr/)

Articles

• (in french) Justification of the universal wage, short introduction by Gilbert Boss

Article by Carlo Vercellone and Jean-Marie Monnier: http://multitudes.samizdat.net/Crise-et-reforme-du-systeme-de,2581.html

Article by Carlo Vercellone and Patrick Dieuaide: http://multitudes.samizdat.net/Revenu-minimum-et-revenu-garanti.html

Article by Yann Moulier-Boutang : http://multitudes.samizdat.net/Le-revenu-social-garanti-et-la.html

Article by Yann Moulier-Boutang : http://multitudes.samizdat.net/La-Lutte-sur-la-precarite-un.html

Article by Maurizio Lazzarato and Antonella Corsani: http://multitudes.samizdat.net/Le-revenu-garanti-comme-processus.html?

Article by Jean ZIn: http://multitudes.samizdat.net/Vers-la-revolution-du-revenu.html

Very clear explanation on the universal wage, and why it is so necessary, by Philippe Van Parijs, at http://atheles.org/editeur.php?ref_livre=&main=lyber&ref_lyber=318

Websites

• A FRENCH BASIC INCOME?

Starting from a strong critique of the so-called "Modèle social français" (the French Social Model), BIEN Life-member Marc de Basquiat has developed a model for the introduction of a basic income in France. It can be downloaded via his website: www.feodalite-sociale.com M. de Basquiat welcomes any suggestion or comment at: marc@de-basquiat.com

• A FRENCH LIVING WAGE?

Jean-Pierre Baron has designed a model called "Le Salaire de Vie", which he sees as a form of a participation income. It is presented on http://www.e-monsite.com/sdviste/

Resources in German

Websites

• Netzwerk Grundeinkommen und sozialer Zusammenhalt Österreich, gegründet am 21. Oktober 2002, Austrian Member of Basic Income Earth Network

• Netzwerk Grundeinkommen Deutschland, gegründet im Juli 2004

• Initiative Grundeinkommen, Schweiz

• 2. Grundeinkommens-Kongress, 5.-7.Oktober 2007 in Basel

• grundeinkommen.tv Filme zum Grundeinkommen aus der Schweiz, Deutschland und Österreich