A basic income can be defined as a minimum guaranteed income that all individuals receive. It is considered to be the basis of social security system and it is supplemented by various benefits and social insurances for such conditions as unemployment, sickness, disability and etc. A full basic income include all means that are necessary and important in order to fulfill basic needs of people such as shelter, food, water, healthcare, clothing and etc. The main characteristic of a basic income is that it is unconditional, which means that all people have a right to have this income without obligation to work. The rule is that all citizens should receive this minimum income without any preconditions regardless their social status, wealth and income. According to the human rights policy, every human is entitled to a basic income. Thus, it is given to every person individually and there is no connection between the amount of a basic income and living conditions that a person has.
There is also such term as a global basic income that is defined as a basic income given to all people in all countries in the world. A global basic income is applied after all nations have made an agreement within the framework of the United Nations. (Global Basic Income Foundation)
A basic income is believed to be an important issue of the modern economic system because both advantages and disadvantages of it, as well as necessity of a basic income are discussed. Below I would like to provide arguments for a basic income in order to explain, why it is needed and important. The first and the main argument is that a basic income is an indicator of the dignity and the right to life. Originally all humans have unconditional and inborn right to live. However, there are modern conditional social security systems, according to which there are also some category of people who do not the requirement for having this right. Therefore, a basic income is important because it emphasize by its existence that all people deserve to have a right live without any conditions. Moreover, a basic income also supports a dignity of all people by protecting them and freeing them from the degrading modern society, as well as enslaving and not fair working conditions. Thus, it is possible to say that the main argument for a basic income is that it is the key element of humanity that does not allow society to fully degrade. Another argument is that it creates conditions for freedom and democracy. Since a basic income is unconditional and all people have it since their birth, they are not obliged to work and have a right to choose, whether they want or not to do this. It is very important because originally work is not an obligation, but rather a human right. If an individual is obliged to work, his freedom is limited, and it is considered as an incursion on democratic values. Moreover, if people have a basic freedom, they are able more freely to choose, what kind of work they want to have and, as a result, have higher motivation to start working. The third important argument and benefit of a basic income is that a basic income allows to revaluate an unpaid type of work. There are many people, who are officially unemployed but still do important work for society. They are volunteers, housekeepers or young mother raising children. They do not receive a salary though they also have duties and responsibilities. By providing these categories of population with a basic income means to emphasize that their work as important as a paid type of work. Moreover, it also gives some people freedom to choose, whether they want to work or to spend more time with their families. The last but not least argument is simplicity of a basic income. Since a basic income is unconditional and all people regardless their social class, wealth, gender and age have right to receive it means that there is no bureaucracy in order to determine, who deserves a basic income and who does not. The only things are needed are an updated simple registration in order to make sure that an individual do not receive more than a basic income and well established banking system. (Global Basic Income Foundation)
Summarizing all the written and discussed above about a basic income, it is possible to say that it is a very important aspect of economy because it has many advantages and helps the modern society to function in a proper and the most effective way by being beneficial for all people.
Works Cited
“Global Basicc Income Foundation”. CBI Foundation. Global Basic Income. n.d. Web. 16 May 2016.
