Recent changes moving Hungary away from the European Social Model

Hungary's punitive turn: The shift from welfare to workfare

The Hungarian post-communist welfare state was created under the neoliberal influence of international organisations while retaining lots of elements of solidarity. The growing social tensions in the mid-2000s due to a second economic crisis in the new millennium led first the left then the right wing governments to shift the post-communist welfare state into a punitive type of workfare system. The article concludes that the political populism of the mid-2000s leading to an undemocratic governance by the 2010s better explains this paradigm shift than e as many authors argue-the neoliberal influence frame.

Transformations of the welfare state in Hungary 1

2019

This descriptive paper analyses transformations of the welfare state in Hungary. The time of transition brought significant challenges to the post-communist region, putting pressure on the operation of the welfare state. After providing a brief background to the origins of the Hungarian welfare state, this paper interprets the historical-institutional features of the welfare state in Hungary. Particular emphasis is placed on the effects of the transition. The main findings are summarised in the conclusion.

Transformations of the welfare state in Hungary

2018

Workfare Society in Action - The Hungarian Labour Market and Social Conditions in European Comparison

Romanian Journal of European Affairs Vol. 20. No. 1. pp. 109-128, 2020

This paper aims at investigating the achievements of Hungary's "work-based society". Based on statistical data, it examines the characteristics of the Hungarian labour market and the development of social indicators over the past decade in comparison with the European Union and the Central and Eastern European member states. As there are improving tendencies during recent years on a regional level, the relatively good employment situation of Hungary cannot be considered as an outlier. While the Hungarian labour market conditions have been improved to some extent, some characteristics, like the level of wages and productivity are rather lagging behind the regional average. Due to policy changes since 2010, the social protection of the most vulnerable declines and, concerning the increase of income inequalities, Hungary is a regional "leader". The article concludes that in order for such a social welfare regime to help social inclusion and serve social equality, a reconfiguration of the economic, as well as political governance, is needed.

Managing the unemployment in Hungary

2020

Changing character of the Hungarian labour law With the transition to market economy and after the economy was rebuilt on new foundations, the unfavourable accompanying symptoms-especially unemploymentalso had to be addressed. The restructuring and continuous expansion of the system of institutions and instruments devoted to controlling unemployment followed the Western European model in many ways by this time, which had already amassed decades of experience; however, at the same time it was unable to break with its own traditions. The established system of labour market institutions operates in a very centralized way both with respect to its structure and its procedures, and non-state players either do not appear in the system at all or play only a very small role. The first unemployment benefit was granted on 1st January 1989. 2 Although the government's intention was to grant the benefit for those in need only as a last resort, the number of people receiving it continuously increased. This tendency was reinforced by Act IV of 1991 on job assistance and unemployment benefits, which was adopted after the fall of socialism. This law still guaranteed passive benefits for the unemployed for two years. The table below presents the number of recipients and the amount of the benefit during the past two decades.

The Social Consequences of Unemployment in Hungary

Innovation Vol.9, No. 3 (Sept):355-370, 1996

In this articb t}ufollnwing hlpotheses are teskd using the Hungaian Household Panel Sumgl and the SoCo data: (a)"Pouafit-is more ükrl2 n befelt ful'unemphled'households (i,e, households in which orc o, .orr'mlmberc are urcmployQ than fu 'non-unempl,glment' householls (i,e, househol.ds in which none of the manbas are unemplo1led); and (b) A household is more lilufu to be poor f the head of thl househilt becomes ununplo2ed rather than d tlu spouse or one of tfu elda clildrat io, n, orá4rl, shous that unanplo1ment is clnu[l related to all aspects of pouu|, (e,g, income, expmtliture, űd subjutiue_pouug,),'bui this associa,tion.is upuialfu strong in the case oJ income, It ako danonstrates that piuerEl is more' lilul1 whm the tuad of the household, rather than an1l otha membu. of the househokl, becomes unemplo1,,eí. Aíw controllng for all uaiabl,es we se1 .that uhm the head of the household becomes unemplo1ed"the pritaut;g, oJ being poor increases onlj, with regard to income_ and subjectiue_pouut1, í4/eakh_ aid housing_pouerQ are not infumced b? y:r*!hl:rnt,,in the household, B1l **poirir, in-the othu Cmnat Eurofein cointrils, when the head of the household becomes unemployd, the'probabitiE d being poor increasÁ in all aspects of pouerfil. This fnding sugests that unemplo1lment in Hurgory-serms n-bi l,ess dwastaüng than in othu post_socialist countri,es,

Diverting Welfare Paths: Ethnicisation of Unemployment and Public Work in Hungary*

e-cadernos CES, 2021

A new vision of "illiberal democracy" was introduced by the Orbán-led Fidesz government in the 2010s, which marked the end of the welfare state, and the central element of the political discourse once again became the creation of a labour-based society. The new workfarist trend in employment indicated a new direction in active labour market policy, favouring public work schemes. However, public work regulations put a disproportionate burden on the Roma unemployed, while disregarding the contributing factors leading to their material deprivation. This paper examines the new direction in employment and unemployment policy measures, a policy terrain where the workfare regime can be best detected. We placed special emphasis on the Roma minority and how their employment situation is effected by the anti-welfare turn.

The origins of the Hungarian welfare state in a comparative perspective

Periodica Polytechnica Ser. Soc. Man. Sci, 2002

In this paper we try to fit the figures of the first Hungarian social security arrangements into the Western-European trends. We concentrate on the date of introduction of such schemes and the coverage of industrial and factory workers. The major finding is that the beginnings of the Hungarian compulsory social security legislation were not belated compared to Western countries. At the same time we see differences which the paper attempts to explain.

Labor Law Reforms after the Populist Turn in Hungary

Review of Central and East European Law, 2022

The characteristics of Hungarian populism and its effects on labor and social policy are rather different compared to those of western Member States of the EU. These differences are due to the different experiences related to inter- and intra-EU migration and to the difference in how the EU’s austerity measures were imposed during the economic crisis. The two distinctive elements are the workfare regime which replaces the welfare state, and anti-pluralism. In the workfare model, ‘hard-working people’ are pictured as an idealized mass of employees who are disciplined and striving for betterment every day; and whose jobs and wellbeing are jeopardized by illegal migrants and the idle poor. However, labor law does not strengthen the rights of ‘hard-working people’ or support them in asserting their rights against their employers. While the Roma have been described as the undeserving poor and mainstreamed in everyday politics and practice, guarantees and protective measures have been sev...

Recent changes moving Hungary away from the European Social Model (original) (raw)

Related papers