Unemployment Insurance Fund Research Articles

Analysis on the Unemployment Prevention Function of Unemployment Insurance in China

After years of active exploration, the unemployment prevention function of unemployment insurance in China has expanded into rich and diverse forms and carried out profound practice. Using the literature research method, by sorting out the relevant documents of unemployment insurance and the published data, this paper found that the challenges facing the prevention function of unemployment insurance in China are as follows: the low level of coordination is not conducive to regulation; the payment rate is fixed; the dynamic monitoring system of unemployment is not perfect; and the payment level of unemployment insurance fund is low. In response to these challenges, China should establish the provincial pooling of unemployment insurance as soon as possible, implement the floating rate system of unemployment insurance payment; improve the dynamic monitoring system of unemployment; and reasonably increase the expenditure scope and intensity of unemployment insurance fund for unemployment prevention. The research of this paper can provide reference for perfecting China's unemployment insurance system and perfecting the unemployment insurance system.

Automated Decision-Making in The EU Member State’s Public Administration: The Compliance of Automated Decisions of the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund with Estonian Administrative Procedure Law

Automated Decision-Making in The EU Member State’s Public Administration: The Compliance of Automated Decisions of the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund with Estonian Administrative Procedure Law

Study on Some Factors Affecting Unemployment Insurance Fund Management in Vietnam

In Vietnam, workers' rights as well as unemployment have always been paid great attention by the Party and State in each different stage of socio-economic development. The current unemployment insurance fund mainly aims to pay unemployment benefits with absolute expenditures many times larger than other regimes, support regimes for training, fostering and improving vocational skills to maintain jobs for unpaid workers, proactive unemployment insurance policies to limit layoffs, support unemployment insurance contributions or enhance the role of the labor market have not been paid enough attention. As a result, the resulting amount of the current insurance fund is quite large. In the long run, it is necessary to point out a number of factors affecting the management of the unemployment insurance fund in order to have appropriate solutions in administration and management so that the unemployment insurance fund operates safely, effectively and for the right purpose. Keywords: Unemployment Insurance, Funds, Social insurance, Management, Vietnam

Is stress among street‐level bureaucrats associated with experiences of administrative burden among clients? A multilevel study of the Danish unemployment sector

AbstractResearch on street‐level bureaucracy argues that factors such as stress and burnout affect the behaviors of street‐level bureaucrats toward clients. At the same time, the literature on administrative burdens argues that citizens face a series of costs when they experience policy implementation as onerous. We draw on both literatures to theorize ways in which street‐level bureaucrats' behavioral responses to stress states may influence client experiences of administrative burden. Using a multilevel dataset of unemployment counselors and unemployment benefit recipients from 53 departments of a Danish unemployment insurance fund, we find that stress states among counselors are positively associated with benefit recipients' experiences of both learning costs, compliance costs, and experiences of autonomy loss. We conclude by discussing limitations and practical implications. In particular, we call for research into how street‐level bureaucrat characteristics influence client experiences of administrative burden.

Voluntary early retirement and mortality in patients with and without chronic diseases: a nationwide Danish Registry study

ObjectiveThis study explores how the choice of voluntary early retirement (VER) affects mortality in a population where VER is available 5 years before regular retirement age. Study designThis retrospective cohort study uses a registry-based follow-up design with access to Nationwide Danish Registry Data. MethodsThe study includes all Danish individuals who between 2000 and 2015 were part of an unemployment insurance fund and working at the time of their 60th (P60) or 62nd (P62) birthday. Those alive 1 year from their 60th or 62nd birthday were included in the mortality analysis. Individuals were registered as VER recipients if they chose the benefit within 1 year from P60 or P62. Three-year mortality likelihood following the first year from inclusion was explored for both cohorts separately. Multiple subgroups were explored in the mortality analysis, including individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), heart failure, and diabetes. ResultsP60 included 627,278 individuals, and VER was chosen by 22.5%. P62 included 379,196 individuals, and VER was chosen by 33.4%. The likelihood of VER in the P60 was lower in healthy individuals (odds ratio [OR] 0.87, confidence interval [CI] 0.85–0.88) and higher in COPD (OR 1.15, CI 1.07–1.22) and heart failure patients (OR 1.15, CI 1.05–1.25). Three-year mortality was significantly higher in those choosing VER in P60 (OR 1.28, CI 1.22–1.34), which was also found for all health subgroups (healthy, OR 1.18, CI 1.07–1.30; COPD, OR 1.55, CI 1.16–2.07; heart failure, OR 1.42, CI 1.02–1.98; diabetes, OR 1.36, CI 1.12–1.65). The increased mortality risk was not found in the P62 cohort. ConclusionThe choice of VER is more likely in patients with COPD and heart failure. VER in the P60 cohort is associated with an increased mortality likelihood, which was not found in the P62 cohort, which may be explained by health selection bias.

Eğitim Kurumlarında İş Sağlığı ve Güvenliği Kapsamında İşsizlik Sigortasının İncelenmesi

In this study, explanations were made about the existing situation by examining the conditions and method of unemployment insurance that was actually applied in Turkey after 2000 as a requirement of the social state. In addition to providing unemployment benefits, which is its main purpose, unemployment insurance also provides significant financial support for regulations and changes that have recently encouraged increasing the employment rate. In addition, in the study, the scope of unemployment insurance was considered in a holistic manner and reviews were made about the conditions for using the system, the pros and cons of the system and why the system is needed. Key Words: Educational Institutions, Unemployment Insurance, Unemployment Insurance Fund

Union Density in Norway and Sweden: Stability versus Decline

The aim is to explain why union density is not only considerably higher in the Ghent country Sweden than in non-Ghent Norway but also why it has declined much more in Sweden, in particular among blue-collar workers. We show how changes to Swedish unemployment insurance in 2007–2013 were followed by a decline in union density and how white-collar unions were more successful than blue-collar unions in developing supplementary income insurance schemes that counteracted membership losses. This type of institutional explanation is nevertheless insufficient. In Norway, too, blue-collar density has decreased while white-collar workers have maintained their density rate. Norwegian data further show that even without unemployment insurance funds, it is possible to achieve a fairly high union density at workplaces with collective agreements. However, without unemployment benefits like we find in Sweden, it is increasingly challenging to establish an institutional foundation for a social custom of unionization.

Research Roadmap for Designing a Virtual Competence Assistant for the European Labour Market

This research proposal explores how citizen-centered learning and career advancement can benefit from artificial intelligence, occupational classification frameworks, and the concept of proactive services. In the current literature, there are a lot of machine learning methods used in various job and training recommendation systems to tackle scientific or real-life problems. However, only a few use the existing occupational classifications to classify job and training advertisements or enable cross-regional labor mobility. Additionally, the quality of public e-services regarding labour market services in each European country varies greatly. For example, even though Estonia is typically referred to as being at the forefront of public service digitization and automation, it has not implemented machine learning methods to match job offers or training with candidates. The matching process between vacancy and job seeker is currently carried out with outdated International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) codes, altered to the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund's needs. The ISCO code is assigned to each job vacancy by a company and job wish by a citizen manually. Such functionality is rigid and requires the users to define an accurate ISCO code. Even when the filled-in CV consists of detailed previous work experience and educational background, if the ISCO code is not accurate, the e-service will not help the citizen find a new job. Moreover, in today's public employment service portals, there is typically no option to insert specific skills that a citizen has to receive an increased number of accurate job or training recommendations. Consequently, despite many well-established frameworks dealing with competencies and occupations, citizen-centered public services supporting upskilling and finding a new job are inefficient. In this paper, we put forth a research roadmap for investigating how to enable a technical ecosystem using occupational classification frameworks so that citizens, both employed and unemployed, can receive proactive recommendations about upcoming training events and job vacancies. Such a system should be tailored to support citizen life events. For example, it could consider citizens’ previous work and educational background to help with retraining, upskilling, or changing one's career path. Therefore we have initiated a project in collaboration with the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund, the Estonian Qualifications Authority, other Estonian public organizations, and partner universities in Latvia and Finland. The research is planned as an action design research to design an artificial intelligence-enabled Virtual Competence Assistant (VCA) for the EU labour market.

Exploring the impact of COVID-19 on the taxi industry in the City of Johannesburg

The tourism sector is currently one of the hardest hit by the pandemic, with impacts on both travel supply and demand. The transport system forms a key part of tourism, including the tourist experience at a destination. This research sought to understand how the taxi industry operates within the City of Johannesburg under the government restrictions imposed during COVID-19.
 The study adopted a qualitative research approach, based on interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) to explore the topic. Semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with participants who were purposively selected from the Johannesburg CBD taxi rank.
 Insufficient sanitisation and the breaching of curfews were observed. Limited guidance was provided during the initial stages of the pandemic, with no formal training. Financial support was made available, but drivers did not receive funds, as they did not comply with the requirements for membership of the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) and Temporary Employee Relief Scheme (TERS) (Melzer, 2020). Illegal full-capacity loading and price increases were also evident. All participants seem to have expressed some form of anxiety, loneliness and uncertainty. Few suggestions were proposed towards sustainable practices and innovative technological means to support the industry during the lockdown and going forward.

Covid-19 and Precarity in South Africa’s Minibus Taxi Industry

This article considers covid-19 and precarity in South Africa’s minibus taxi industry. Covid-19 and the resulting national lockdown interrupted the operations of the industry (like other businesses) in South Africa. During the lockdown (from level 5 to level 1), some taxi operators complained that the lockdown resulted in them losing profit. Taxi drivers also complained that they are making less money through taxi fares (noting that each day they give collected fares to taxi owners and keep some of the money for petrol). The labour inspectors of the Department of Employment and Labour (DOEL) continue to find it difficult to exercise their role of inspecting working conditions in the industry. Despite the fact that the DOEL issued a Sectoral Determination for the taxi industry (Basic Condition of Employment Act 95 of 1997, Sectoral Determination 11: Taxi Sector 2005), which specifies basic employment conditions, the industry is still predominantly informal and employees have no job protection. Taxi drivers remain exempt from job-related benefits such as the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), which makes it impossible for them to benefit during difficult times such as Covid-19 and unemployment. Therefore, the virus and the lockdown revealed further the precariousness of taxi drivers and the concerns around making profit by taxi owners.

How salient administrative burden affects job seekers’ locus of control and responsibility attribution: Evidence from a survey experiment

Despite an explicit focus on citizens' experiences with public service, research on administrative burden has done little to show how burdensome experiences affect citizen’s psychological beliefs. This limits our understanding of administrative burdens and their impact in public policy. Through a survey experiment on 1.116 unemployment insurance fund beneficiaries in Denmark, we test whether activating impressions from onerous experiences with the unemployment system affects psychological beliefs central to job search and (un)employment: job search locus of control and attribution of unemployment responsibility. We show that experiences of onerous demands and complicated rules externalize respondents' locus of control and increase their propensity to attribute responsibility for unemployment to their unemployment insurance fund and its employees. Thus, experiencing administrative burdens, even from policies ostensibly designed to make beneficiaries master their situation, may shift control beliefs and responsibility attribution outward rather than inward.

Methods and mechanisms for financing the Small and Medium Enterprises in Algeria

This study aimed to clarifying the methods and mechanisms of financing the MSMEs in Algeria. As one of the tributaries of the economic and social development in general. Through this research paper, we have discussed the support mechanisms and incentive systems for investment. Which is the National Unemployment Insurance Fund, the National Agency for Youth Employment Support, and the National Agency for Small Loans Management. Also, highlighting the role that these institutions play in accompanying investors. Especially young people that have a project ideas, which let them to create institutions, as these accompanying bodies guarantee at all stages of creating or expanding the institution. The study concluded that the support and accompaniment agencies contributed greatly to the establishment of MSMEs enterprises. As a result of serious accompaniment, from the idea to the goal of embodying the project through financial support and tax benefits. During the completion and exploitation stages. (Bank loans, tax and semi-tax exemptions and discounts ...)

Challenges in the implementation of the City of Johannesburg’s Expanded Social Package in alleviating COVID-19 induced food insecurity

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has subjected the African urban population into abject poverty. Local government initiatives, such as the City of Johannesburg’s (CoJ) Expanded Social Package (ESP) ‘Siyasizana’ [we help each other], have been established to enhance food security amongst the city’s most vulnerable based on their level of income.Aim: This article analysed the extent to which the ESP was effective in addressing food insecurity in the wake of COVID-19.Setting: This research was descriptive and explanatory in nature that played an important role in obtaining an in-depth interpretation of the challenges of the implementation of ESP in mitigating food insecurity in the CoJ.Methods: This article utilised a qualitative case study design with the aid of existing literature, municipal documents and authoritative internet sources in order to analyse the extent to which the ESP is effective in addressing food insecurity in the wake of COVID-19.Results: This article found out that the ESP did not expressly address the COVID-19-induced food insecurity because of numerous challenges, namely awareness, stigmatisation, qualification and hidden costs.Conclusion: The CoJ should bring in private players to finance the programme as COVID-19 has increased the number of beneficiaries, relax the requirement for in-person application to allow for online registration, increase the ESP poverty threshold of R6100 to cater for those on the border of poverty and diversify its means testing to include other criteria such as Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), which will provide much needed relief to those who might have lost income.

When free choice turns into a pitfall: conditional social protection for immigrants in voluntary unemployment insurance systems

Unemployment insurance systems are designed to provide income security for those who drop out of work temporarily. This form of social protection is particularly relevant for foreign-born workers who are, on average, more likely to become unemployed during layoffs. The article explores how the social protection of immigrants differs in cases where payments are tied to voluntary rather than mandatory contributions. This is done by focusing on a recent welfare reform in Sweden which led to both a sharp increase in costs and a decline in benefit generosity overnight. It is argued that migrants lost their social protection at a disproportionate rate over the course of the reform. Both their status on the labour market and position as newcomers to the norms and rules of society are expected to impede on their decision to obtain or prolong insurance membership, leading to a decline in eligibility to income security. Difference-in-difference estimates with administrative data from all unemployment insurance funds show that the share of benefit recipients with earnings-related payments decreased at a higher rate among the foreign-born as expected, especially if they had arrived in the country only recently.

Bureaucratic Barriers to Social Protection for Refugees and Asylum Seekers during the COVID-19 Disaster in South Africa

The economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic could be minimised by social protection instruments such as unemployment insurance and distress relief grants. This paper assesses the ability of refugees and asylum seekers to access these instruments in South Africa. In general, the bureaucratic system of asylum documentation acts as a barrier to access social protection, as exemplified by the administration of the Unemployment Insurance Fund and the Social Relief of Distress grants during the pandemic. While this problem has traditionally been articulated in terms of equality and socio-economic rights, this paper proposes that asylum administration should also be prioritised as a disaster preparedness and management infrastructure, as well as an essential service. This is to ensure refugees and asylum seekers need for protection is not neglected in a disaster.

Unemployment and wages and centralization in wage bargaining: Some analytical explanations

Abstract. This paper discusses the relation between centralization in union bargaining and the wage-(un)employment mix. Empirical findings point to a positive relation between the degree of coordination in union bargaining and wages till a certain point, and a negative one afterwards. A theoretical argument fits such evidence, relying on the mechanism behind the free-rider problem in union bargaining. If earnings taxes were introduced to finance the unemployment insurance fund, that relation could change. The impact on the equilibrium wages and multipliers in the several scenarios is briefly explored. Indirectly, an explanation for the shape of the empirical “wage curve” is also derived. Keywords. Monopoly unions, Wage determination models, Union bargaining, Corporatism, Wage curve, Unemployment insurance. JEL. J51, J65, E24, E62, H55, H39, D42, D43.

Role of Unemployment insurance in Sustainable development in Vietnam: Overview and policy implication

Unemployment insurance is one of the social policies that have received much attention from economists in many countries over the past decades. Since 1986, the Vietnamese economy was shifted from the centrally-planned economy to a market one leading to a very fast development of the labor market. Having a young population structure, so the unemployment problem and unemployment insurance policy had considered and recognized as the important social issues in this country. In Vietnam, the unemployment insurance policy is an important part of the Social Insurance Law, promulgated in 2008. Our paper aims to analyze the role of unemployment insurance in Vietnam since this policy officially began in 2009. The Vietnamese government has some targets in the formation of the unemployment insurance fund is the maintenance of regular compulsory contributions of parties to labor relations in combination with public budget supports, focusing on creating a stable financial funding for unemployment insurance regime in the long run. Our regression results using the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) method and the analysis descriptive statistics show that the unemployment insurance policy has a positive effect on reducing faster and stabilizer the unemployment rate of the Vietnamese economy (this policy have reduced the average unemployment rate by 0.66% per year since 2009). Furthermore, the unemployment insurance policy not only helps the unemployed people stabilize their lives but also provides more opportunities for them to faster continue participating in the labor market by many benefits including free counseling services, free employment placement services, free training services for unemployed people in Vietnam. The success of the unemployment insurance policy has been noted in reducing the number of labor strikes by softening the relationship between employers and their workers in Vietnam. Besides, the unemployment insurance policy will help reduce the fluctuations of the economic cycles automatically by increasing the aggregate demand by multiplier mechanic and contributes to support the economic growth in Vietnam in the period 2008-2010. We can conclude the benefits of unemployment insurance help the development of Vietnamese society towards sustainability in the long run. Finally, the article also suggested some policy implications for the policymakers to have a better control the unemployment as well as stabilize the labor market in Vietnam in the future.

The Benefits of Unemployment Insurance Fund in Jordan

This paper focuses on identifying the benefits of the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) in Jordan, and how it achieves a direct and indirect social protection for unemployed insured persons through enhancing job security, reducing unemployment rates, and encouraging graduates to recruit on jobs that are available in many different private sectors. The research employs a descriptive statistical method by analysing the collected annual data that is issued by the Social Security Corporation (SSC), which is related to a cumulated size of beneficiaries from the UIF and total compensation paid for insured persons within the same period. The data pertaining to these persons comprises of their distribution by gender, age, geographical area, wages, unemployment time, and economic activities. In this research, it is recommended to extend a number of beneficiaries from the UIF by including more unemployed persons who subscribe at the SSC, and who increase their ratio estimation of the monthly compensation. Additionally, the research enhances the corporative efforts by involving international, regional, and local organisations that aim at reducing unemployment rates by hosting an effective debate with all of them.

Precarious workers' choices about unemployment insurance membership after the Ghent system reform: The Finnish experience

AbstractThe literature on the Ghent system has focused on the link between voluntary unemployment insurance and union membership in terms of industrial relations. Less attention has been paid to unemployment benefits and employees' decision‐making concerning unemployment insurance, even though the core function of the Ghent system is to provide unemployment insurance. This paper examines both of the options that precarious workers (i.e., part‐timers, temporary employees, and low‐skilled service employees) choose regarding unemployment insurance membership and the change in union density after the Ghent system reform in Finland. First, the results show that the growth of the independent unemployment insurance fund was the main reason for declining union density in the 2000s and early 2010s. Second, in terms of precarious workers, we find that the emergence of the independent fund has affected their choices about unemployment insurance membership and that their choices depend on the type of precarious employment they have. Moreover, part‐timers and temporary employees younger than 35 years of age are much less likely to enroll in unemployment insurance than older employees who have the same types of employment contracts.

Пособия по безработице и рынок труда в странах ОЭСР и России

The unemployment benefits system is one of the most important labour market institutions, smoothing the decline in consumption due to job loss and providing the unemployed with time for job search. However, the size of payments and their duration can also have a number of serious negative consequences for the labour market associated with the moral hazard and the quality of matching between workers and jobs. This paper presents a comparative analysis of the institutional features of unemployment benefits system in OECD countries, as well as the key directions of their influence on the labour market outcomes, which have compared with the main characteristics of the Russian system of support for the unemployed. Unemployment benefits system is among those labour market institutions that have particularly large cross-country differences. These differences have made up of three main components: the replacement rate, the duration of payment, and the assignment criteria. These characteristics determine the differences in the impact of benefits on the labour market, primarily on employment rate, the number of the unemployed, the duration of unemployment state, as well as on the job search process. Effective policy measures supporting the unemployed are impossible without taking into account the whole range of consequences, which include both positive and negative effects on employment rates, productivity and wages. Measures aimed at curbing the costs of the unemployment insurance fund, toughening the assignment criteria, establishing a closer connection between unemployment benefit receiver status, and the activity of searching for a new job should contribute to increasing efficiency of this labour market institution. However, changes in the unemployment benefits system cannot solve all the problems of the labour market. Short period of job search and strict criteria for granting benefits will make the need for reforms in the demand side of labour market – the quality of jobs as well as their number – increasingly important.