The Federal Republic of Germany has a long tradition of social policy. Social policy in Germany was restricted to safety regulations for workers until the second half of the last century. However, a milestone in this development was the buildup of a state-organized social security system in the 1880s by Chancellor Bismarck. Health and accident insurance for workers were started in 1883 and in 1884, respectively, whereas pension insurance for workers was installed in 1889. In 1911, pension insurance for employees was added. The public social security system was further extended during the Weimar Republic (1919–1932) and completed by the installation of an unemployment insurance system in 1927 before the start of the Great Depression. Apart from the further extension of safety regulations for workers, several new social policies were added during this time: labor market policy (autonomous and collective wage negotiations, state-run job counseling and placement services, etc.), codetermination rights, public welfare, and housing policy. After the Second World War, the already existing social policies (safety regulations for workers, social security, codetermination rights, public welfare, and housing policy) were not only preserved and enforced, family, education, and redistribution policies were also added.

Reforming the Welfare State: The German Case

Sickness benefit ineome reduces an employee's opportunity costs of absence from work. In the Federal Republic of Germany the institutional arrangement was changed several times during the 1951-1998 period. This paper investigates the effects on sick leave behavior. According to the empirical analysis, moral hazard is a serious problem in Germany. The paper discusses some institutional changes which would significantly reduce moral hazard.

Kieler Arbeitspapiere Kiel Working Papers

/pdf/geringfugige-beschaftigung-mit-steigender-tendenz-55xnq2mbi3.pdf

"Geringfügige Beschäftigung" mit steigender Tendenz

This paper explores the problem of effective taxation at the lower end of the income scale in Germany. For the recipients of social income maintenance--currently about 1.8 million nationals--effective taxation consists not only of the explicit taxation through the tax code but also of the implicit taxation through the withdrawal of benefits. The paper calculates effective tax rates for recipients of social assistance; it is shown that for labor incomes in the lower income range explicit and implicit taxation add up to a marginal burden of just under 75 percent on average. The 1996 tax reform alleviates the explicit tax burden on low incomes, but it does not alleviate the total marginal burden on labor earnings of welfare recipients. It increases net incomes, but since the withdrawal of benefits increases with net incomes, too, the overall burden remains practically unchanged. Therefore, effective welfare traps remain prevalent; these could only be avoided through a reform of the system of social assistance and withdrawal. Constraints and possible steps for reform are discussed.

Effective Taxation for Recipients of Social Assistance in Germany and the Consequences of the 1996 Tax Reform

Vom Normalarbeitsverhältnis zum Arbeitskraftunternehmer : Telearbeit im Kontext sich wandelnder Arbeitsformen

https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/137064/1/wd_v73_i11_pp588-596.pdf

Sozialhilfe auf dem Prüfstand

https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/136150/1/wd_v66_i04_pp194-202.pdf

Familienlastenausgleich über die gesetzliche Rentenversicherung

In den letzten Monaten ist die Diskussion um die sogenannten 620-DM-Jobs erneut entbrannt. Wahrend bislang vor allem Gewerkschaften und Opposition eine Abschaffung oder Begrenzung dieser Beschaftigungsform forderten, wird inzwischen auch innerhalb der Koalitionsparteien um eine Neuregelung der 620-DM-Arbeitsverhaltnisse gerungen. Was spricht fur eine solche Neuregelung, was dagegen? Wie konnte sie aussehen?

https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/40028/1/261117335.pdf

Brauchen wir eine Neuregelung der '620-DM-Jobs'?

Vermogenspolitik mit dem Ziel, die Vermogensbildung in Arbeitnehmerhand und speziell die Beteiligung der Arbeitnehmer.am Produktivvermogen zu fordern, spielt zumindest in der politischen Rhetorik der Bundesrepublik seit Jahrzehnten eine prominente Rolle. Wie sind die Ziele, Begrundungen und die Instrumente der klassischen Vermogenspolitik wirtschaftspolitisch zu bewerten? Gibt es Alternativen?

https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/40479/1/300941048.pdf

Rainer Erbe

Papers

Sozialhilfe auf dem Prüfstand

Familienlastenausgleich über die gesetzliche Rentenversicherung

Brauchen wir eine Neuregelung der '620-DM-Jobs'?

Vermögensbildungspolitik in der Bundesrepublik: eine Bilanz