European unemployment insurance. From undercurrent to paradigm shift
László Andor
Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, 2022, vol. 28, issue 2, 267-283
Abstract:
The need for the European Union to get involved in unemployment insurance has frequently been debated in the past decade, starting from exploratory discussions and eventually becoming a political commitment by the European Commission President. This article looks back at the origins of the idea of an EU-level unemployment benefit scheme and explains the political dynamics of the concept’s evolution. Following the 2009 Great Recession and the subsequent eurozone debt crisis, a new movement for a reinforced social dimension has been pushing the EU beyond its previous red lines. The case for counter-cyclical social stabilisation at EU level is now a touchstone for a materially meaningful EU social dimension. The COVID-19 crisis triggered a giant leap to a greater EU budgetary capacity, including financial support for job-saving schemes. This article argues that these new instruments will not suffice without also creating an EU safety net for those whose jobs cannot be saved in a period of economic downturn.
Keywords: Unemployment benefit; European unemployment insurance; reinsurance; divergence; automatic stabiliser; solidarity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:treure:v:28:y:2022:i:2:p:267-283
DOI: 10.1177/10242589221099810
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