THE JUSTIFICATION OF MEASURES FOR HELPING CITIZENS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF SOCIAL POLICY IN SERBIA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51204/IVRS_23201AKeywords:
social policy, pandemic measures, Covid-19, poverty, social inequalitiesAbstract
In this paper, we analyze the justification of measures for helping citizens during the COVID-19 virus pandemic in Serbia from 2020 to 2022 from the point of view of social policies. There is no agreement in the domestic literature as to whether these measures contributed to the reduction of poverty and social exclusion, as well as to decrease the social inequalities in Serbia. The conclusion of the paper is that the measures were not justified from the point of view of social policies and that they did not contribute either to the permanent reduction of poverty and social exclusion or to social inequalities. Greater results could have been achieved with targeted measures intended only for certain categories of the population, as in the comparative countries. Although three years have passed since the beginning of the pandemic, dealing with this topic is of particular importance because it provides guidelines for solving global crises in the context of the future.
References
Adams-Prassl, A., Boneva, T., Golin, M. & Rauh, C. 2020. Inequality in the impact of the coronavirus shock: evidence from real time surveys. IZA Discussion Paper 13183: 1–49.
Aidukaite, J., Saxonberg, S., Szelewa, D. & Szikra, D. 2021. Social policy in the face of a global pandemic: Policy responses to the COVID-19 crisis in Central and Eastern Europe. Social Policy & Administration 55(2): 358–373. https://doi.org/10.1111/spol.12704
Aristotel. 1994. Politika. Zagreb: Globus.
Baker, S. R., Farrokhnia, R. A., Meyer, S., Pagel, M. & Yannelis, C. 2020. Income, Liquidity, and the Consumption Response to the 2020 Economic Stimulus Payments. NBER Working Paper No. 27097.
Bariola, N. & Collins, C. 2021. The Gendered Politics of Pandemic Relief: Labor and Family Policies in Denmark, Germany, and the United States During COVID-19. American Behavioral Scientist 65 (12): 1671–1697. https://doi.org/10.1177/00027642211003140
Béland, D., Cantillon, B. & Hick, R. 2021. Social policy in the face of a global pandemic: Policy responses to the COVID-19 crisis. Social Policy & Administration 55(2): 249–260. DOI: 10.1111/spol.12718
Béland, L., Brodeur, A. & Wright, T. 2020. The short-term economic consequences of COVID-19: exposure to disease, remote work and government response. IZA Discussion Paper 13159: 1–90.
Blakemore, K. & Warwick-Booth, L. 2013. Social Policy: An Introduction. Open University Press.
Bonoli, G. 2005. The politics of the new social policies. Providing coverage against new social risks in mature welfare states. Policy and Politics 33(3), 431–449.
Brodeur, A., Gray, D., Islam, A. & Bhuiyan, S. J. 2020. A literature review of the economics of COVID-19. GLO Discussion Paper 601: 1–71.
Castles, F. 2010. Black swans and elephants on the move: the impact of emergencies on the welfare state. Journal of European Social Policy 20(2): 91–101. DOI:10.1177 /0958928709358793
Chudik, A., Mohaddes, K. & Raissi, M. 2021. COVID-19 fiscal support and its effectiveness. Economics Letters 205.
Chung, H. & Thewissen, S. 2011. Falling Back on Old Habits? A Comparison of the Social and Unemployment Crisis Reactive Policy Strategies in Germany, the UK and Sweden, Social Policy and Administration – An Internatonal Journal of Policy and Research 45(4): 354–370. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467–9515.2011.00779.x
Coibion, O., Gorodnichenko, Y. & Weber, M. 2020. Labor markets during the COVID-19 crisis: A preliminary view. NBER Working Paper 27017: 1–13.
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. 2020. Statement on the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and economic, social and cultural rights. https://undocs.org/E/C.12/2020/1.
Deacon, B. 2007. Global social policy and governance. London: Sage.
Deacon, B. 2013. Global social policy in the making: The foundations of the social protection floor. Bristol: Policy Press.
Desai, R. M. 2017. Rethinking the universalism versus targeting debate.
Đorđević, M. 2022. Uticaj državne pomoći na smanjenje siromaštva u Srbiji tokom pandemije Covid-19 u 2020. godini. U: Lukić, N. & Đukić, D. (eds.). Zbornik radova Epidemija. Pravo. Društvo. Beograd: Pravni fakultet Univerziteta u Beogradu.
Esping-Andersen, G. 1990. The three worlds of welfare capitalism. Oxford: Polity.
Fiskalni savet. 2020. Efekti mere „100 evra punoletnim građanima” na nejednakost i siromaštvo (komentar studije Međunarodne organizacije rada i Evropske banke za obnovu i razvoj). http://www.fiskalnisavet.rs/analize-stavovi-predlozi.php#a210505
Fiskalni savet. 2021a. Fiskalna i ekonomska analiza neselektivnih novčanih isplata građanima. http://www.fiskalnisavet.rs/analize-stavovi-predlozi.php#a210505
Fiskalni savet. 2022. Antikrizne budžetske mere tokom pandemije COVID-19: troškovi, rezultati i pouke. http://www.fiskalnisavet.rs/analize-stavovi-predlozi.php#a210505
Fletcher, M. & Prickett, K. & Chapple, S. 2022. Immediate employment and income impacts of Covid-19 in New Zealand: evidence from a survey conducted during the Alert Level 4 lockdown. New Zealand Economic Papers 56:1: 73–80. DOI:10.1080/00779954.2020.1870537
Gangl, M. 2004. Welfare States and the Scar Effects of Unemployment: A Comparative Analysis of the United States and West Germany. American Journal of Sociology 109(6). https://doi.org/10.1086/381902
Graziano, P. & Hartlapp, M. 2019. The end of social Europe? Understanding EU social policy change. Journal of European Public Policy 26(10): 1484–1501. DOI: 10.1080/13501763.2018.1531911
Grosh, M. & Leite, P. 2001. Defining Eligibility for Social Pensions: A View from a Social Assistance Perspective. In: Holzmann, R., Robalino, D. & Takayama, T. (eds.). Closing the Coverage Gap: The Role of Social Pensions. Washington DC: World Bank.
Gupta, S. et al. 2020. Effects of social distancing policy on labor market outcomes. NBER Working Paper 27280: 1–47.
Hadži Stević, B. 2023. Test proporcionalnosti u doba pandemije: ljudska prava versus javno zdravlje. Strani pravni život 1: 17–43.
Haggard, S. & Kaufman, R. 2009. The Eastern European Welfare State in Comparative Perspective. In: Cerami, A. & Vanhuysse, P. (eds.). Post-Communist Welfare Pathways Theorizing Social Policy Transformations in Central and Eastern Europe. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Hick, R. & Murphy, M. P. 2020. Common shock, different paths? Comparing social policy responses to COVID-19 in the UK and Ireland. Social Policy & Administration: 1–14.
Holden, C. 2018. Global social policy: An application of welfare state theory. Journal of International and Comparative Social Policy 34(1): 40–57. doi:10.1080/21699763.2017. 1413993
Holgersen, H., Jia, Z. & Svenkerud, S. 2020. Who and how many can work from home in Norway? Evidence from task descriptions. Discussion Papers No. 935, June 2020 Statistics Norway, Research Department.
Larsen, T. & Taylor-Gooby, P. 2004. New Risks at the EU Level; A Spillover from Open Market Policies?. In: Taylor-Gooby, P. (ed.). New Risks, New Welfare The Transformation of the European Welfare State. Oxford: Oxford Univeristy Press.
Matković, G. & Stubbs, P. 2020. Social protection in the Western Balkans – Responding to the Covid-19 Crisis. Beograd: Friedrich Ebert Stiftung.
Matković, G. 2020. Mreže socijalne sigurnosti u vreme Covid-19 krize. Beograd: Tim za socijalno uključivanje i smanjenje siromaštva Vlade Republike Srbije.
Međunarodne organizacije rada i Evropske banke za obnovu i razvoj. 2020. Kovid-19 i svet rada – SRBIJA – Brza procena uticaja na zapošljavanje i mera politike. https://www.ilo.org/budapest/ what-we-do/publications/WCMS_756871/lang--en/index.htm
Ministarstvo finansija. 2020 a. State sets aside € 5.1 b to mitigate corona-virus economic blow. https://www.srbija.gov.rs/vest/en/152964/state-sets-aside-51b-to-mitigate-coronavirus-economic-blow.php
Ministarstvo finansija. 2020b. Mali: Završava se isplata 100 evra, ispunili smo dato obećanje. https://mfin.gov.rs/aktivnosti/mali-zavrsava-se-isplata-100-evra-ispunili-smo-dato-obecanje
Ministarstvo finansija. 2022. Ekonomske mere za pomoć privredi i građanima. https://www.mfin.gov.rs/aktivnosti/ekonomske-mere-za-pomoc-privredi-i-gradjanima
Misailović, J. 2021. Uticaj pandemije virusa kovid 19 na režim rada od kuće. U: Đurić, V. & Glintić, M. (eds.). Pandemija kovida 19: pravni izazovi i odgovori. Beograd: Institut za uporedno pravo: 95–105.
Mkandawire, T. 2004. Social Policy in a Development Context: Introduction. In: Mkandawire, T. (ed.). Social Policy in a Development Context. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Monchuk, V. 2014. Reducing Poverty and Investing in People: The New Role of Safety Nets in Africa. Washington DC: World Bank.
Pathberiya, N. 2022. An analysis of the legal ramifications of mandatory vaccination in the light of rights to life and health: the case of Sri Lanka. U: Čović, A. & Nikolić, O. (eds.). Pravni i društveni aspekti vakcinacije tokom pandemije kovida 19. Beograd: Institut za uporedno pravo.
Petrović, M. 2022. Oboljenje kovid 19 – povreda na radu ili profesionalna bolest? Strani pravni život 1: 43–58.
Pierson, P. 2000. Three worlds of welfare state research. Comparative Political Studies 33(6–7): 791–821. https://doi.org/10.1177/001041400003300605
Reichelt, M. & Makovi, K. & Sargsyan, A. 2021. The impact of COVID-19 on gender inequality in the labor market and gender-role attitudes. European Societies 23: 1. DOI: 10.1080/14616696. 2020.1823010
Reljanović, M. 2021. Rad u okolnostima epidemije i vanrednom stanju. U: Đurić, V. & Glintić, M. (eds.). Pandemija kovida 19: pravni izazovi i odgovori. Beograd: Institut za uporedno pravo: 79–93.
Richardson, D. 2010. Child and Family Policies in a Time of Economic Crisis. Children & Society 24(6): 495–508.
Sanfelici, M. 2021. The Impact of the COVID-19 Crisis on Marginal Migrant Populations in Italy. American Behavioral Scientist, 65(10): 1323–1341. https://doi.org/10.1177/00027642211000 413
Scharpf, F. & Schmidt, V. 2003. Welfare and Work in the Open Economy Volume I: From Vulnerability to Competitiveness in Comparative Perspective. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Sekulović, I. 2021a. Nimalo jeftin trik. Peščanik. https://pescanik.net/nimalo-jeftin-trik/
Sekulović, I. 2021b. Kosovo ili siromaštvo? Peščanik. https://pescanik.net/kosovo-ili-siromastvo/
Starke, P. 2006. The Politics of Welfare State Retrenchment: A Literature Review. Social Policy and Administration – An Internatonal Journal of Policy and Research 40(1): 104–120.
Starke, P., Obinger, H. & Castles, F. 2008. Convergence towards where: in what ways, if any, are welfare states becoming more similar? Journal of European Public Policy 15(7): 975–1000, DOI: 10.1080/13501760802310397
Stojiljković, Z., Aleksić, D., Arandarenko, M. & Katić, N. 2020. Sindikati i društvene promene – Predlozi za progresivnu ekonomsku i socijalnu politiku. Beograd: Friedrich Ebert Stifung.
Su, C., Dai, K., Ullah, S. & Andlib, Z. 2022. COVID-19 pandemic and unemployment dynamics in European economies. Economic Research 35(1): 1752–1764. DOI:10.1080/1331677X.2021. 1912627
Svetska banka. 2020. Beleška uz Redovni ekonomski izveštaj (RER) Kako Covid-19 može uticati na siromaštvo i blagostanje domaćinstava na Zapadnom Balkanu. Beograd.
Taylor-Gooby, P. 2004. New Risks and Social Change. In: Taylor-Gooby, P. (ed). New Risks, New Welfare, The Transformation of the European Welfare State. Oxford: Oxford Univeristy Press.
Trifković, M. 2020. Kako identično postupanje prema grupama u znatno različitoj situaciji produbljuje nejednakost – primer jednokratne novčane pomoći za ublažavanje ekonomskih posledica epidemije Covid-19 u Srbiji. Seminarski rad. Beograd: Pravni fakultet Univerziteta u Beogradu.
Udovički, K. & Medić, P. 2021. Uticaj Covid-19 krize na zaposlenost: Fokus na ranjive kategorije. Beograd: Tim za socijalno uključivanje i smanjenje siromaštva Vlade Republike Srbije.
UN Women. 2022. Government Responses to COVID-19: Lessons on gender equality for a world in turmoil. https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/2022–06/Government-responses-to-COVID-19-Lessons-on-gender-equality-for-a-world-in-turmoil-en_0.pdf
Vuković, D. 2011. Izazovi oblikovanja novog socijalnog režima u Srbiji. U: Babović, M. (ed). Izazovi nove socijalne politike: Socijalna uključenost u EU i Srbiji. Beograd: SeConS – Grupa za razvojnu inicijativu.
Vuković, D. 2020. Reč struke, ali druge: Kako smo dospeli u prvi globalni karantin u istoriji? MONS – Monitoring socijalne situacije u Srbiji. Beograd.
Yasenov, V. 2020. Who can work from home. IPL Working Paper Series 20: 1–12.
