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The demise of universality: the politics of federal income security in Canada, 1978-1993Phillips, Stephen 05 1900 (has links)
Research by political scientists on the modern welfare state focuses on its historical
development and on the emergence of distinctive welfare state regimes. Research conducted in
the past decade has also been concerned with the implications for the welfare state of the
recurrent crises which have afflicted western economies since the late 1970's. However, while
the politics of building welfare states are now better understood, there remains little systematic
study of the politics of their retrenchment, a phenomenon which has been under way for the past
two decades in most advanced capitalist states.
This study examines the politics of retrenchment in Canada over the period 1978 to 1993.
Focusing on three categories of federal income security programmes (family benefits, retirement
income programmes, and Unemployment Insurance), the thesis describes a gradual shift in
programme design away from universality and toward greater selectivity. Concomitant with this
development was an increasing reliance on the tax system as an instrument of social policy.
Applying Gosta Esping-Andersen's analysis of welfare state regimes, the thesis contends that
the cumulative effect of programme retrenchment during this period was to reinforce the liberal-residualist
character of Canada's welfare state at the expense of its social democratic aspects.
In an effort to explain the process of welfare state retrenchment in Canada, within and
between different categories of income security programmes, the thesis tests hypotheses
associated with three major approaches to the study of public policy: class analysis,
institutionalism, and pluralism. The thesis concludes that retrenchment in Canada was broadly
facilitated by a decline in the political power resources of labour in relation to those of business.
Because of the weakness of the relevant non-class pressure groups, pluralism is of limited value
in explaining retrenchment outcomes. Insights into more specific patterns of retrenchment are
gained from two institutionalist perspectives. The first of these, a state-centred approach, draws
attention to the larger role in social policy-making that was assumed by the Department of
Finance, the chief fiscal guardian of the Federal Government. The second perspective, a rational
choice theory developed by Paul Pierson, provides insight into the manner in which certain
retrenchment measures were formulated. Based on Kent Weaver's blame-avoidance thesis,
Pierson's model provides a persuasive explanation for the reliance of Canadian governments on
arcane changes to tax rules and indexation formulae as an instrument of retrenchment.
Since each of the analyses provides at best only a partial explanation for the politics of
welfare state retrenchment, the thesis proposes the scheme of an integrated approach which
incorporates the explanatory power of class analysis and institutionalism.
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Income support programs and labour market behaviour in CanadaWhelan, Stephen Patrick 05 1900 (has links)
Income support programs constitute an integral component of modern labour markets and represent
significant fiscal commitments on the part of governments. This thesis examines two key income
support programs in Canada and their impact on labour market outcomes, namely employment
insurance (EI) and social assistance (SA). Together expenditures on EI and SA represented
approximately 2 per cent of Canadian GDP in 1998-99 and influenced a range of labour market
decisions relating to labour force participation, employment and unemployment spells.
The analysis in this thesis provides new evidence on the role of the EI and SA programs on labour
market outcomes by examining the interface between the programs and labour market behaviour. An
analysis of the take-up of SA amongst a sample of SA eligible individuals is also undertaken that
provides new evidence on the determinants of participation in the SA program in Canada. The
analysis in this thesis uses the 1997 Canadian Out of Employment Panel dataset, a unique dataset that
provides detailed information on the use of income support programs and employment patterns, and
detailed information on a rich set of personal and household characteristics.
The approach adopted in this thesis is to use a generalized probability transition model to examine the
nature of the interface between income support programs and their effect on labour market outcomes.
This approach allows the implications of changes in either program for use of the other program, and
overall labour market outcomes, to be identified. The analysis of the SA take-up decision uses a
discrete choice framework that explicitly takes account of the potential endogeneity of benefit levels
available to the individual.
A number of conclusions can be drawn from the analysis undertaken in this thesis. First, when the
generosity of the SA program is reduced, individuals decrease use of both the SA and EI programs.
Conversely, reducing the generosity of the EI program results in an increase in the use, albeit
relatively small, of the SA program. The results of the analysis of the take-up decision of the SA
program point to the key role of benefit levels and previous use of the program as determinants of the
likelihood that an individual takes up SA.
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Income support programs and labour market behaviour in CanadaWhelan, Stephen Patrick 05 1900 (has links)
Income support programs constitute an integral component of modern labour markets and represent
significant fiscal commitments on the part of governments. This thesis examines two key income
support programs in Canada and their impact on labour market outcomes, namely employment
insurance (EI) and social assistance (SA). Together expenditures on EI and SA represented
approximately 2 per cent of Canadian GDP in 1998-99 and influenced a range of labour market
decisions relating to labour force participation, employment and unemployment spells.
The analysis in this thesis provides new evidence on the role of the EI and SA programs on labour
market outcomes by examining the interface between the programs and labour market behaviour. An
analysis of the take-up of SA amongst a sample of SA eligible individuals is also undertaken that
provides new evidence on the determinants of participation in the SA program in Canada. The
analysis in this thesis uses the 1997 Canadian Out of Employment Panel dataset, a unique dataset that
provides detailed information on the use of income support programs and employment patterns, and
detailed information on a rich set of personal and household characteristics.
The approach adopted in this thesis is to use a generalized probability transition model to examine the
nature of the interface between income support programs and their effect on labour market outcomes.
This approach allows the implications of changes in either program for use of the other program, and
overall labour market outcomes, to be identified. The analysis of the SA take-up decision uses a
discrete choice framework that explicitly takes account of the potential endogeneity of benefit levels
available to the individual.
A number of conclusions can be drawn from the analysis undertaken in this thesis. First, when the
generosity of the SA program is reduced, individuals decrease use of both the SA and EI programs.
Conversely, reducing the generosity of the EI program results in an increase in the use, albeit
relatively small, of the SA program. The results of the analysis of the take-up decision of the SA
program point to the key role of benefit levels and previous use of the program as determinants of the
likelihood that an individual takes up SA. / Arts, Faculty of / Vancouver School of Economics / Graduate
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The demise of universality: the politics of federal income security in Canada, 1978-1993Phillips, Stephen 05 1900 (has links)
Research by political scientists on the modern welfare state focuses on its historical
development and on the emergence of distinctive welfare state regimes. Research conducted in
the past decade has also been concerned with the implications for the welfare state of the
recurrent crises which have afflicted western economies since the late 1970's. However, while
the politics of building welfare states are now better understood, there remains little systematic
study of the politics of their retrenchment, a phenomenon which has been under way for the past
two decades in most advanced capitalist states.
This study examines the politics of retrenchment in Canada over the period 1978 to 1993.
Focusing on three categories of federal income security programmes (family benefits, retirement
income programmes, and Unemployment Insurance), the thesis describes a gradual shift in
programme design away from universality and toward greater selectivity. Concomitant with this
development was an increasing reliance on the tax system as an instrument of social policy.
Applying Gosta Esping-Andersen's analysis of welfare state regimes, the thesis contends that
the cumulative effect of programme retrenchment during this period was to reinforce the liberal-residualist
character of Canada's welfare state at the expense of its social democratic aspects.
In an effort to explain the process of welfare state retrenchment in Canada, within and
between different categories of income security programmes, the thesis tests hypotheses
associated with three major approaches to the study of public policy: class analysis,
institutionalism, and pluralism. The thesis concludes that retrenchment in Canada was broadly
facilitated by a decline in the political power resources of labour in relation to those of business.
Because of the weakness of the relevant non-class pressure groups, pluralism is of limited value
in explaining retrenchment outcomes. Insights into more specific patterns of retrenchment are
gained from two institutionalist perspectives. The first of these, a state-centred approach, draws
attention to the larger role in social policy-making that was assumed by the Department of
Finance, the chief fiscal guardian of the Federal Government. The second perspective, a rational
choice theory developed by Paul Pierson, provides insight into the manner in which certain
retrenchment measures were formulated. Based on Kent Weaver's blame-avoidance thesis,
Pierson's model provides a persuasive explanation for the reliance of Canadian governments on
arcane changes to tax rules and indexation formulae as an instrument of retrenchment.
Since each of the analyses provides at best only a partial explanation for the politics of
welfare state retrenchment, the thesis proposes the scheme of an integrated approach which
incorporates the explanatory power of class analysis and institutionalism. / Arts, Faculty of / Political Science, Department of / Graduate
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