Abstract
Until 1945, Western countries were the only ones to have introduced unemployment insurance programs. Since their adoption was extremely controversial, almost all Western nations introduced income support for the unemployed only in the wake of national emergencies such as war and economic depression. This article examines the determinants of program adoption in the Global South, which commenced after the Second World War. With the exception of military conflict, we find that the introduction of unemployment insurance was shaped by factors deviating from the driving forces of program adoption in the Western world. More specifically, we provide evidence that international factors such as war, the activities of the ILO and policy diffusion were more important than domestic factors.
Highlights
This article examines the introduction and spread of unemployment insurance across the globe in the post-Second World War period
Before the Second World War, the adoption of unemployment compensation schemes was almost exclusively a response to national emergencies, while later on, introducing unemployment insurance was highly influenced by international processes and agency. This finding is in line with previous studies providing evidence that the further spread of policies depends on their prior proliferation (e.g. Collier and Messick, 1975). To put it in more concrete terms, we find that in the Global South as well as in the Western world, war is a major catalyst for introducing unemployment insurance
Previous research has shown that the introduction of unemployment insurance in the Western world was furthered by left-wing and liberal parties and happened in the aftermath of political and economic emergencies such as war and economic depression
Summary
1905 1910 1915 1920 1925 1930 1935 1940 1945 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 Post -. We expect that unemployment insurance schemes were introduced in response to national emergencies such as wars or severe economic crises, which dramatically changed social needs but at the same time opened a window of opportunity that attenuated the political resistance against income support for the unemployed. The presence of emergencies is certainly not the only possible explanation for the adoption of unemployment insurance and we have to pay attention to the specific socio-economic and political conditions prevalent in the Global South when it comes to the introduction of social protection schemes. A useful strategy to counter the accompanying risk of becoming unemployed might be introducing unemployment benefits for workers in the exposed sectors
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