Editorial: Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for the welfare state, its actors and benefit recipients

Abstract

"The COVID-19 pandemic is a global crisis with enormous consequences for economies and people’s lives. Far-reaching health policy measures to contain the virus have affected our social life and economic relationships on the national and global level. The long-term consequences for the labour market and society are unforeseeable in their extent and duration. The success of national governments in combatting the pandemic and its economic and social consequences also depends on political factors and national institutions. Especially welfare state institutions and social policies, which play a central role in ensuring social security and stabilising the economy, face major challenges. The articles in this Special Issue aim at shedding light on the implications of the pandemic for the welfare state, its actors and benefit recipients at different levels. The labour market effects of the pandemic were unevenly distributed across the working population. Empirical evidence based on data from the first phase of the crisis shows that the impact on different groups in the labour market deviates from the patterns of past recessions, with the service sector also strongly affected by social distancing measures. Inequalities emerged between occupations and sectors as well as between employees with different types of employment contracts and possibilities to work from home. National social protection systems and ad hoc policy measures reduced the resulting inequalities in many European countries, with insurance-based benefits such as short-time work programmes protecting many workers from loss of income and unemployment. However, particularly disadvantaged groups in the labour market may lack access to these benefits, so that even in countries with well-established social security systems, economically disadvantaged groups, who often also have fewer labour market opportunities, could be particularly affected." (Text excerpt, IAB-Doku, ↓ De Gruyter) ((en))

Cite article

Bruckmeier, K., Dietz, M. & Trappmann, M. (2022): Editorial: Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for the welfare state, its actors and benefit recipients. In: Zeitschrift für Sozialreform, Vol. 68, No. 1, p. 1-6. DOI:10.1515/zsr-2022-0001