Guy Standing, Beyond the New Paternalism: Basic Security as Equality. - book review

Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, June, 2003

New York: Verso, 2002. $70.00 hardcover, $22.00 papercover.

People's welfare has historically been closely associated with their ability to engage in activities that may be described as `work'. For millennia, families, clans and tribes met their needs by using their skills, knowledge and physical capacities to hunt and gather food. Subsequently, skills, physical resources and knowledge were applied to agricultural tasks and even today, agriculture sustains hundreds of millions of people around the world. In the 19th century, mass employment in industrial occupations emerged as a new and important way by which a substantial proportion of the world's population secured their livelihood. Although industrial employment was regarded by many as the best means of raising standards of living, the emergence of post-industrial economies in Europe, North America and elsewhere has created new uncertainties and insecurities.

It is in this context that Guy Standing of the International Labour Office discusses diverse aspects of work, security and the role of government in human welfare. The key to the book lies in its last sentence which states: "Dignified work can only exist when it is done for intrinsic reasons, and not because a landlord, a boss or the state says shall be so (p. 277)." Although Standing believes that work is central to the human experience, work must be organized and linked to just, humane and satisfying social arrangements if it is to contribute positively to the creation of a Good Society. And this requires the rejection of paternalism by the state, corporation and other social institutions.

This premise paves the way for a lengthy and discursive review of many different aspects of work in modern society. The book begins by discussing what the author calls `the century of the laboring man'--in other words, the period of mass industrial employment when creativity and self- fulfillment were shaped by machines and when governments of quite different ideological hues introduced extensive social policies and programs designed to regulate labor. This era has now been replaced by an era of market regulation characterized by employment insecurity and uncertainty and a new trend towards individualization in work, social relationships and attitudes. However, the author contends that this new era is already facing the prospect of fragmentation and collapse. In this situation, there is an opportunity to introduce a new set of values and policies that will promote `dignified work' and authentic opportunities for the full realization of human welfare.

The book contains much that is of interest and relevance to social policy scholars but it is discursive and ranges of a great variety of complex issues. It also contains a huge amount of information. At times, the reader feels that the book loses its focus as the author digresses into numerous tangential issues. On the other hand, some of the topics the author addresses are highly pertinent to the book's central theme. Perhaps the most important of these is the issue of basic income or `basic security', as the author calls it. One very useful chapter is devoted to the topic and its history, dimensions and implications are examined in some depth. Other related topics of importance include profit sharing, stakeholding in firms and the issue of the right to work. Other useful chapters deal with workfare, unemployment benefits and retirement pensions. The book will certainly be of interest to anyone concerned with the link between work, employment and human well-being.