Social inclusion via subsidized employment? : the example of the employment subsidy

Abstract

"The employment subsidy introduced in 2007 (Section 16e SGB II) complemented the set of support instruments contained in Book II of the Social Code (SGB II) with a measure for long-term unemployed persons who were especially difficult to place. While the employment support of SGB II was primarily aimed at the integration of the benefit recipient into the regular labour market, this labour market instrument, also known as the 'job perspective', placed very different accents: with the state subsidizing of long-term, and possibly even permanent employment relationships, objectives aimed at socio-political rather than simple activation strategies gain weight. The intention was to overcome the exclusion risks accompanying long-term unemployment and to strengthen the chances of social inclusion for benefit recipients with large barriers to placement in a lasting manner; for this reason the instrument can likewise be seen as a model case of a strongly socio-politically geared labour market policy. With recourse to qualitative data, the article shows whether and under which prerequisites the chances of social inclusion of this target group can be extended by subsidized integration into gainful employment. What proves to be decisive is the change in the institutional, and in the social status felt and the relative independence both of transfer benefits and the activation demands of the Basic Income Support funding agencies. Accordingly, limitations to perceived social inclusion are particularly apparent in those persons who remain dependent upon Basic Income Support benefits. The findings and observations presented indicate that subsidized employment can contribute in principle to strengthening social inclusion but that here the respective framework conditions of the support instrument, such as the duration of support and the form of the material benefit grant, take on a decisive significance." (author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Cite article

Hirseland, A., Ramos Lobato, P. & Ritter, T. (2012): Soziale Teilhabe durch geförderte Beschäftigung? Das Beispiel des Beschäftigungszuschusses. In: WSI-Mitteilungen, Vol. 65, No. 2, p. 94-102. DOI:10.5771/0342-300X-2012-2-94