SOCIAL WORK IN THE UNITED KINGDOM AND GERMANY

Social Work in the United Kingdom and Germany

Social Work in the United Kingdom and Germany

Introduction

Britain tend to shift from the liberal regime to a socialist regime. This might be because of the number of different political parties which had served in government. In 1911, the National Insurance Act was introduced, which entitled individual workers in shipbuilding, engineering, etc, to contribute to the scheme and receive benefits when they were ill or unemployed (Bryson, 1992). It was these “laissez faire” principles which allowed the market and society to operate at optimal efficiency (Hayek, 1976). After the Second World War welfare provision in Britain developed with a different tone. There was more emphasis on social democratic party policies and Keynesian principles (Pierson, 1999).

The expansion of the Welfare State placed voluntary organizations as very much junior partners (Deakin, 1998). In 1945 the Family Allowance was introduced followed by the National Insurance Act (1946) to include workers from any profession. The National Health Service was launched by the Labour Party in 1948. The service was controlled centrally and included free hospital use and G. P. service (George & Taylor-Gooby, 1996).

These are demonstrated geographically in areas which are deemed as deprived. This mix of social and geographical segregation creates a “group” set outside of the rest of society, stifling social inclusion. Pierson (2002) identifies comparisons and similarities between the concepts of “poverty” and “social exclusion”, outlining that to be in “relative poverty” may mean to an individual or family that they are excluded from resources obtainable by the average family or individual. Poverty, therefore, can be seen as the result of social exclusion. In comparison to Germany, poverty rates during the period 1992-1997 were higher in Britain. The proportion of British children who had an income below 60% of median income was about 29%, whereas in Germany the corresponding figure was 16% (Jenkins et al., 2000, p. 7). The basic idea of the liberal tradition encourages the state to prevent poverty, but not intervene in the stratification system produced in the market. People should not opt for welfare instead of work. Therefore, entitlement rules are strict, means-tested and to some extent stigmatizing. The purpose of social assistance is to guarantee a basic standard of living. Benefits are directed mainly to a clientele of low-income groups, usually from the working class. In Germany, preservation of status differentials is the predominant principle. Financial transfers are allocated according to previous income, therefore, rights are attached to class and status. By compulsory insurance, the state supplements the market as a provider of welfare. Upholding status differences means that its redistributive impact is relatively low. With the means-tested social assistance, the German system also contains an instrument designed to fight. East Germany was a socialist welfare state for more than four decades. In the socialist model of a collectivist welfare regime the communist state was the only provider of social welfare. The main instruments were non-targeted, object-related subsidies (Müller, ...