German trade union bosses slam universal basic income in Labor Day statement

German trade union leaders have pledged their opposition to unconditional basic income (UBI) as a response to potential job losses resulting from automation.

In a statement made on Monday to honor International Workers’ Day (also known as “Labor Day”), Reiner Hoffmann, head of the German Federation of Trade Unions (DGB), emphasized that the focus of any response to technological change should be on managing it in a way that ensures employees are protected, and on not letting them fall by the wayside.

"It's no solution to shunt somebody aside with a standstill reward just because people cannot be offered any decent jobs anymore," he said.

UBI is a policy innovation that would provide all citizens with a fixed monthly amount of money, which has been identified as a response to fears of job insecurity and high unemployment resulting from automation in the workplace.

Such schemes would replace all current means of state financial support (such as unemployment benefits, welfare money, or child allowance) and apply to all citizens, regardless of their income and whether they work or not.

In his speech, Hoffmann suggested that such programs also ignore the role that work plays beyond simply providing a means of income, and that jobs are crucial to structuring people’s lives and ensuring social cohesion.

Jörg Hofmann, head of the powerful German union IG Metall, also spoke out, arguing that people were not happy sitting at home and doing nothing, or getting money for doing nothing.

Writing in IZA World of Labor, Ugo Colombino notes the potential drawbacks to UBI, but highlights that it should nevertheless be taken seriously as a policy response to economic and technological change.

“Current social policies may not be adequate for achieving the goals of redistributing the gains from automation and globalization, providing efficient buffers against economic shocks, and advancing the reallocation of jobs and skills. Under certain circumstances, an unconditional basic income might be a better alternative for achieving those goals.”

Find more IZA World of Labor articles on the future of work.