Universal basic income schemes have been tested in numerous places around the world, without ever graduating from those pilot studies into anything more meaningful.  Nonetheless, they remain central to the ideas of many for how we can build a degree of buffer in these most turbulent of times to help people adapt to changes in the labor market.

They’re not the only policy innovation out there, however, as evidenced by a new experiment being designed by researchers at the University of Oxford, which aims to provide a guarantee of a properly paid job for every person who has been unemployed for longer than 12 months.

Like many unemployment programs, the Oxford initiative aims to provide unemployed people with intense training and support to find work, but where they stand out is that the state is willing to guarantee the wages in any paid role they take on, so that the role is effectively 100% subsidized by the state.

“With many jobs already lost and warnings of a tidal wave of unemployment around the corner, it’s understandable that the idea of a universal jobs guarantee is gaining interest,” the researchers say. “As well as its economic costs, long-term unemployment takes a terrible toll on people’s health and well-being and on family and community life.”

How it works

The program is being rolled out in the Austrian town of Marienthal and the surrounding municipality, Gramatneusiedl.  It will see all of those who have been unemployed for at least a year invited to participate, after which they will go on a two-month preparatory course.  This provides a range of support, including counseling, one-to-one training, and support from social workers and psychologists for those who need it.

Each participant will then be helped to find a suitable job in the private sector, which will be subsidized by the scheme, or alternatively a job will be created in the public sector.

“The idea of a jobs guarantee programme is an important addition to the toolkit of social safety provision, especially when participation is voluntary and the jobs offered are meaningful,” the researchers continue. “We are excited to participate in this first ever rigorous, transparent, and independent evaluation of such a jobs guarantee programme.”

Job guarantees

While basic income schemes have been widely trialed, job guarantee schemes have been much less so.  The researchers hope that their pilot will help to inform the debate.

The project is projected to cost €7.4 million and will be funded by the Public Employment Service of Lower Austria.  The researchers believe that despite this cost, it should prove economically viable as a year’s worth of unemployment costs is around €30,000 per person, whereas the scheme is estimated to cost €29,841 per person.

Marienthal was chosen for a number of reasons.  The town first burst into the international consciousness in the 1930s when it hosted a social study on the impact of unemployment on health and community life as well as the income of the unemployed.  The latest study looks instead at how the wider economy and community are changed when employment is guaranteed.

The preliminary results from the experiment are due to be released in spring 2021, with the final report set to be published in 2024.