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BI is just a huge subsidy for employers. Competition in the labour market will absolutely crush salaries if everyone gets a basic income irrespective of whether
by retube 11y ago
BI is just a huge subsidy for employers. Competition in the labour market will absolutely crush salaries if everyone gets a basic income irrespective of whether employed or not.
Now given that income taxes > (or even >>) corporation and dividend taxes even if those reduced wages translate directly into increased corporate profits the net tax take by government will fall, whilst their liability goes up from BI obligations.
All BI will do is enrich the business elite and drive further inequality.
A semi test case of BI is being inadvertently conducted in the UK with tax credits. Thanks to effectively subsidised wages by the state, wages have remained stagnant or fallen. As wages have fallen more people qualify for tax credits, further subsidizing wages in a negative feedback loop. Net result: the cost to the state has ballooned to 30bn/year from an originally projected 2bn/year with over 50% of working households now in receipt of them, coupled with ever increasing equality gap.
Far from harmonising wealth and reducing inequality, basic income will have exactly the opposite effect.
- rwmj 11y ago> Thanks to effectively subsidised wages by the state, wages have remained stagnant or fallen. What's the evidence for this?
- ams6110 11y agoIt makes perfect sense. Each person has an income need, X. If they get B basic income, employer only needs to pay X - B whereas without basic income he needs to pay X.
- lhopki01 11y agoThat's a poor implementation of basic income. If each person has a need X then B should be set at X. That way if they work for someone everything on top isn't for need but want. Gives them the ability to choose more.
- saiya-jin 11y agoAgreed, look at it this way - most people don't earn minimum, but more. They will still work to keep their standards (paying rents, mortgages, cars, kids, lifestyle they are used to etc.). Employers are not dumb, they will reflect this immediately. A healthy society should always motivate people to WORK and produce products/services, that's what keeps society running. If main goal of BI is to remove that motivation, I fail to see it as a step in right direction.
- njharman 11y agoIf B < X then B is not a basic income. It's like you said, an salary subsidy. If B >= X then employees can walk away from any job for any reason. It inverts the labor market. Instead of employees competing for jobs, employers compete for labor. Portions of tech industry exhibit this inversion. Saleries, benefits, working conditions are off the charts compared to say Walmart line workers or Amazon pickers.
- Nutomic 11y agoYou seem to be missing the fact that no one needs to work anny more. Why should you work a shitty job for shitty pay, if you don't need the money?
- PinguTS 11y agoYou seem to be missing the fact that there are other people from other EU countries who will still work and need to work for that shitty job with that shitty pay.