This book is a volume in the Penn Press Anniversary Collection. To mark its 125th anniversary in 2015, the University of Pennsylvania Press rereleased more than 1,100 titles from Penn Press's distinguished backlist from 1899-1999 that had fallen out of print. Spanning an entire century, the Anniversary Collection offers peer-reviewed scholarship in a wide range of subject areas.
This is Volume VI of eighteen in a series on Public Policy, Welfare and Social Work. Originally published in 1969, this study is a revision of Penelope Hall's book (1952) from the Social Science Department at the University of Liverpool, deemed necessary to reflect changes like the creation of the Ministry of Social Security in 1966 and the White Paper on the Child, the Family and the Young Offender, which made it impossible to discuss services for the care of children without consideration of penal services for juveniles.
Few days pass without front page newspaper articles about the disarray in the American social security system and the oncoming crisis of exploding costs and imbalance between workers and retirees. New proposals to address these issues constantly surface from presidential candidates, Congress, and interest groups. Yet, few recognize that in the second half of the twentieth century, there has been a global expansion of social security systems, and there may be lessons to be learned from other societies. This collection of essays is designed to examine the diverse approaches developed in Australia, Britain, Chile, Hong Kong, Kenya, and Singapore. By analyzing different approaches—and different degrees of success—those debating public policy may find alternatives that can be adapted to meet American social needs. Midgley and Sherraden have drawn together experts on the systems developed in Australia, Britain, Chile, Hong Kong, Kenya, and Singapore; they explore the different approaches—and the different degrees of success—these societies have confronted. An international perspective can enhance understanding of the problems and offer a sound basis for evaluating policy proposals that may reform the social security system. Scholars, researchers, policymakers, and the reading public will find this a stimulating collection. As Senator John Breaux notes, This book is essential reading for anyone serious about addressing the inevitable problems that will face the U.S. Social Security system.
First Published in 1943, Social Security critically examines the arrangements for providing pensions, insurance benefits, allowances and compensation to the vast mass of wage earners and their dependants. Divided into two parts, it discusses crucial themes like the fundamentals of social security; unemployment and health insurance; pension schemes for widows, orphans, the blind, and the aged; the system of workmen’s compensation; superannuation schemes; pensions for the members of armed forces and civilians suffering war injuries and public assistance and the work of the assistance board. This comprehensive book is a must read for scholars and researchers of political economy, British economy, and labour economics.
This book analyzes the major influences shaping the Canadian welfare state. A central trend in Canadian social security over most of the twentieth century has been a shift from a ‘residual’ to an ‘institutional’ concept. The residual approach, which dominated until the Second World War, posited that the causes of poverty and joblessness were to be found within individuals and were best remedied by personal initiative and reliance on the private market. However, the dramatic changes brought about by the Great Depression and the Second World War resulted in the rise of an institutional approach to social security. Poverty and joblessness began to be viewed as the results of systemic failure, and the public began to demand that governments take action to establish front-rank institutions guaranteeing a level of protection against the common risks to livelihood. Thus, the foundations of the Canadian welfare state were established. The Emergence of Social Security in Canada is both an important historical resource and an engrossing tale in its own right, and it will be of great interest to anyone concerned about Canadian social policy.
This highly original and thought-provoking book examines the recent expansion of social protection in China, India, Brazil and South Africa four countries experiencing rapid economic growth and social change. The authors explore the developments in each country, analyse the impact of government cash transfers and discuss key future trends. The study reveals that social protection has complemented economic growth and supported development efforts and has been fundamental to promoting equitable and sustainable societies. The book is essential reading for students of social policy, economics, development studies and public administration and will be an important resource for policymakers and administrators everywhere.
The welfare state is one of Britain's crowning achievements. Or is it? In this seminal book, now studied in universities in Britain and elsewhere, James Bartholomew advances the sacrilegious argument that, however well meaning its founders, the welfare state has done more harm than good. He argues that far from being the socialist utopia the post-war generation dreamed of, the welfare state has led to avoidable deaths in the NHS, falling standards in schools, permanent mass unemployment and many other unintended consequences. At a deeper level, he contends that the welfare state has caused millions to live deprived and even depraved lives, undermining the very decency and kindness which first inspired it. This landmark book changed the way many people think about the welfare state. It played a major role in the political debate that led to recent reforms. Now with a new introduction by the author assessing the value of these reforms, this classic text still shocks with the power of its arguments and the weight of its supporting evidence.
