Reforms Of Social Protection Systems Research Articles

Individualização da incerteza: direito condicionado e ativação da proteção social

Resumo O artigo problematiza os componentes políticos de recentes reformas dos sistemas de proteção social, com atenção especial nas políticas de ativação para o trabalho. Em geral, os argumentos oferecidos por governos para sua adoção são de ordem econômica, porém eles não estão dissociados de inspirações ideológicas e, ademais, apresentam claras consequências políticas. Faz-se uma reflexão sobre a possibilidade de convivência da democracia com (des)proteção social de setores tais como desempregados crônicos, população em situação de pobreza beneficiária de assistência e o crescente contingente de pessoas inseridas em um mercado de trabalho flexibilizado que oferece mais precariedade do que proteção. Nesse contexto, ocorrem a (re)individualização dos riscos e das incertezas, a erosão do status social resultante do questionamento à titularidade de direito e da adoção do direito condicionado. O artigo analisa as consequências deste processo para a cidadania, entendida como pertencimento em bases igualitárias a uma comunidade política.

The Development of Long-Term Care in Post-Socialist Member States of the EU

Long-term care (LTC) in the new EU member states, which used to belong to the former socialist countries, is not yet a legally separated sector of social security. However, the aging dynamics are more intensive in these states than in the old EU member states. This paper analyses the process of creating an LTC sector in the context of institutional reforms of social protection systems during the transition period. The authors explain LTC’s position straddling the health and social sectors, the underdevelopment of formal LTC, and the current policies regarding the risk of LTC dependency. The paper is based mainly on the analysis of information provided by country experts in the ANCIEN project.

La Ley de autonomía y dependencia. Reflexiones y recomendaciones para su mejor desarrollo

The present article provides a critical analysis of the state of affairs of the care of dependent individuals and proposals for reform of social protection systems for dependency - especially the Act of Promotion of Personal Autonomy and Long-Term Care. The existing form of public coverage is linked to the theory of public finance. Against this background, a series of recommendations are made to achieve the goals of this important component of the welfare state.

Social Work and Conditional Cash Transfers in Latin America.

Conditional cash transfer (CCT) programs are a recent anti-poverty strategy in Latin America. CCT programs provide cash benefits to finance basic needs and foster investment in human capital to extremely poor households. These benefits are conditioned on certain behaviors, usually related to investments in nutrition, health, and education. In the literature, there is a recognizable lack of analyses from social science disciplines related to CCT program implications. This paper contributes in this arena by analyzing the particular role of social work in CCT anti-poverty programs. The educational element of these programs and its theoretical foundation based on the human capital model, the debate around issues of conditionality and targeting, the possible role of CCT programs in a broader reform of social protection systems, and professional practice implications using the Chilean CCT program as a model will be addressed.

The Reform of Social Protection Systems in Mixed Market Economies

Résumé Cet article analyse la réforme des systèmes de protection sociale dans deux pays méditerranéens, prenant comme point de départ le modèle des variétés du capitalisme. Son but est de démontrer l’intérêt d’une méthode intégrant les différentes approches à l’étude de l’État providence. Prenant comme point de départ la capacité limitée des théories existantes pour expliquer la dynamique de réforme des économies de l’Europe du Sud, l’article déploie une analyse sur deux niveaux pour rendre compte de la dynamique et de la direction du changement en Espagne et en Italie. L’intégration des conclusions provenant du modèle des variétés de capitalisme et de la littérature scientifique sur l’évolution de l’État providence nous aident à mieux comprendre les mécanismes du changement dans les économies hybride de l’Europe du sud. À cette fin, nous analysons l’interaction entre régime de production et de protection sociale. Parmi les variables clefs de cette analyse se trouvent : la fragmentation organisationnelle des associations collectives, les types de coalition de réforme, ainsi que les caractéristiques des systèmes politiques.

Pensions and gender in Latin America: Where do we stand in the Southern Cone?

This article summarizes gender-related aspects of the current social security reform paradigm in the countries of Latin America's Southern Cone—Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay. The author, Fabio M. Bertranou, begins with a review of the main elements that justify dealing with various aspects of social protection—old age, disability and survival. Bertranou then provides a summary of the main performance aspects of these reformed social security programs in the countries of the Southern Cone region in terms of providing protection for the risks of old age. Results for substitution (replacement) rates by gender are provided for Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay. The author also discuss other conceptual and empirical evidence produced by other international agencies such as the World Bank and ECLAC. Finally, Bertranou discusses some of the general implications for incorporating this dimension in the debate about public policies and reforms of social protection systems, particularly pensions and related programs.