The Legitimacy of Redistribution: the Czech Republic in International Comparison

In this paper we pay attention to the legitimacy of the principles, scope and purpose of redistribution in Czech society. We use data from international surveys from the second half of the nineties, including European Values Study 1999 and ISSP 1996 – module Role of the Government and some national Czech surveys. We claim that Czech society does not favour extensive redistribution at the level of principles. Nevertheless, demand for redistribution is stronger compared to the other European countries and preferences for state responsibility and redistribution increased during nineties. Furthermore, the purpose of redistribution seems to play a central role. While benefits for marginalised groups are not supported, mainstream benefits should be increased according to the public, and the strategies to improve human capital and capabilities to adapt in the labour market gain support as well. The Czech public also prefers to combine collective (social) protection with private supplementary insurance schemes against risks of the contemporary society. There are remarkable differences in most of the above described attitudes among social classes. The above described findings may be explained by the social consequences of market transition: specifically by impacts of new social risks differentiated according to class position combined with restrictive social policies implemented during the nineties.