Why a UBI Will Never Be High Enough
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21497575 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Joseph Heath (0000-0001-6024-4371, Department of Philosophy University of Toronto Toronto ON M5R 2M8 Canada, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 41 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 289-305 |
| Publication date | 2024-05-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Applied Philosophy (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0264-3758 • E-ISSN: 1468-5930 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/japp.12569 |
| OpenAlex | W4200177648 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 4 |
Schemes to replace traditional welfare programmes with a universal basic income (UBI) are sometimes presented as a way to reduce overall economic inequality. But because they lower the implicit marginal taxation rate of individuals entering the workforce, they have the effect of increasing economic inequality between those who opt out of the workforce and those who choose to participate. This article examines the effect that an increase in this income gap can be expected to have on the perceived adequacy of the UBI payment level as an alternative to paid employment. The first question involves the extent to which individuals living on UBI payments will assess the adequacy of their condition by comparing themselves to those who are adjacent to them in the income distribution. If this looms large in their assessment, then the UBI, by increasing inequality within this segment of the income distribution, will tend to increase the perception of its own inadequacy. The second question involves the importance of the consumption of positional goods in determining the adequacy of the UBI. If these are significant then again this will increase the perception of inadequacy, because those in paid employment will enjoy a great deal more than those who opt out
Basic income · Demographic economics · Economic growth · Economic inequality · Economics · Income distribution · Inequality · Labour economics · Market economy · Payment · Perception · Public economics · Sociology · Welfare · Welfare economics · Workforce · Gender, Labor, and Family Dynamics · Income, Poverty, and Inequality · Psychology · Social Policy and Reform Studies · Finance
| Citations per year | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2024 - 2026 (3) |
| Highly cited | No |