Explaining Variation in Public Support for Cuts in Levels of Unemployment Benefits Spending Across OECD Countries

Abstract

There is little doubt about the salience of the unemployment problem in the political agenda across the OECD countries. The sharp economic crisis suffered by the advanced capitalist countries during the early nineties has brought about, with very few exceptions, an important rise in unemployment rates across countries. In such a context, there has been an intense debate about the need to reform labour market regulations in order to make them more efficient. The policy packages implemented across countries have varied widely and they are well documented (for instance, Esping Andersen and Regini, 2000). What these different reforms have in common is that they pretend to reconcile competitive capitalism with social justice. This involves the general experience of potential constraints on unemployment benefits for citizens.