Grundeinkommenssicherung in der Sozialen Marktwirtschaft

For economic and social reasons some kind of basic income guarantees have to be provided in industrialized countries. In Germany a system called Sozialhilfe has been established in order to guarantee people a minimum revenue, if no others sources of income are given. The rising cost of the social security system however has revealed the need for a fundamental reform in order to reduce social payments. A simple reduction of the legal basic income is not the appropriate strategy because it would put to risk the key objectives of the Sozialhilfe system. The author proposes, instead, a reform that would oblige recipients of Sozialhilfe to participate in local community work schemes which, in turn, the municipalities would have to provide. In addition, a low compensation and the legal entitlement to receive job training should promote the reintegration of these persons into the regular labour market.