The income of participants in a market economy is distributed according to the degree of participation of factors of production (land, labor, capital and entrepreneurship). The factor theory of income does not fix the amount of income of individuals, which are formed from various non-factorial sources.
The income of the population is the sum Money and wealth received or produced by households over a given period of time.
The level of consumption of the population directly depends on the level of income. According to the degree of impact on the consumption process, there are: nominal, real and real disposable incomes of the population.
The nominal income of the population is the monetary expression of the income received for a certain period. They characterize the level of income regardless of taxation and price changes.
In socially oriented economy the share of nominal incomes of the population in GDP varies depending on the level of development of the country and averages 65-75%.
Disposable income is nominal income reduced by the amount of mandatory payments and taxes, which is the monetary value of the amount appropriated directly by the population for final consumption. Their value is determined by the formula:
Dr \u003d Dn - Np,
where Dr - disposable income;
Дн - nominal incomes;
Hn - the amount of taxes and obligatory payments.
Disposable income expresses the relationship between the state and the population regarding the use of the funds received. In the national accounting system, disposable income corresponds to that part of GDP that comes to the population for consumption. The greater the amount of disposable income, the greater part of the GDP is spent on consumption and the greater the amount of necessary material goods comes to support the livelihoods of the population.
Real disposable income is income adjusted for the price level.
Real disposable income rises if price rises do not outpace growth real income, otherwise, disposable incomes fall, which leads to a decrease in effective demand and a reduction in production volumes. The decline in disposable income is caused by the following reasons:
firstly, unbalanced proportions between the dynamics of prices (for food, non-food products, transport, housing) and incomes;
secondly, the growth of tariffs for services, which increase faster than prices in the consumer market;
thirdly, an increase in the proportion of the population whose standard of living is lower than living wage; aggravation of poverty processes, an increase in the share of that part of the population that lives below the poverty line.
Thus, despite the growth in nominal incomes, their real value, taking into account inflation and taxes, may fall, which leads to a decrease in purchasing power, narrows the consumer market, and hinders the growth of production volumes.
The main types of income of the population are: wages (together with various accruals and additional payments), social transfers, income from property, etc. In general, the system of types of income of the population is shown in fig. 17.1.1.
Remuneration is a regularly received remuneration for products manufactured or services rendered, for hours worked, including annual leave, public holidays and other unworked time paid in accordance with labor legislation and collective labor agreements.
The fund is the source wages.
This type of cash income of the population includes accrued by an enterprise, institution, organization of any form of ownership, all types of remuneration in cash and in kind for hours worked and not worked, incentive bonuses and allowances, compensation payments related to the mode of work and working conditions, bonuses and one-time incentives. payments, as well as payments for food, housing, fuel, which are of a regular nature.
Along with wages in the conditions of the formation of a market economy, income from entrepreneurial activity.
Describing entrepreneurship and the income received from this type of activity, it must be emphasized that its socio-economic types differ significantly: an entrepreneur can be a small owner, manager joint stock company(manager), cooperator, tenant using wage labor. Entrepreneurial activity is carried out by both individuals and groups of people (collective entrepreneurship).
Rice. 17.1.1. Types of income of the population 44
The formation of market relations has made significant adjustments to the income received, on the one hand, in the form of wages - on the other, from property, entrepreneurial activity, self-employment of the population. If in 1990 these incomes in their total volume amounted to only 11.2%, then in 1998 - already 54.4%, and their decrease in 1999 to 21% is explained by a decrease in the share of other incomes (from this indicator, hidden salary). Income from entrepreneurial activities increased 3.5 times, reaching 12.7%. Property income grew rapidly, although specific gravity they remain small - 7.4%.
An important place in the incomes of the population is occupied by public or so-called social transfers.
These include pensions, allowances, scholarships, grants and other social security payments, insurance claims, lottery winnings, reimbursement of expenses for the disabled, compensation for damage to repressed citizens, as well as free services, which are part of the income of citizens.
Public consumption funds, which functioned quite extensively and accessible under socialism, are practically destroyed today. The only thing that still represents them today is partially free education and health care.
Personal income from property includes:
■ income from shares, interest, payments on equity shares from the participation of employees in the ownership of an enterprise, institution, organization;
■ interest on deposits due to depositors of credit institutions, Sberbank of Russia and Vnesheconombank (paid during the year and accrued on the balance of deposits at the end of the year);
■ payment of income on government and other securities by Sberbank of Russia and credit institutions;
■ preliminary compensation for citizens' deposits;
■ income of the population from the sale of real estate in the secondary housing market.
A certain and growing part of the income of the population of the country falls on personal subsidiary farms (PSP), collective gardening and horticulture. Until the 70s. a negative attitude towards private household plots prevailed, and the scale of their development was insignificant. So, at the beginning of the reforms, income from household plots was 2.3% in the families of workers and employees, 21.5% in the families of peasants.
Basically, private household plots are focused on meeting the personal needs of the owners (to receive income in kind). In the 90s. the rural population from household plots satisfied their needs in potatoes by 95%, meat - 79%, milk - 82%, eggs - 97%. Household and horticultural plots of urban families and villagers provide about 50% of the needs for potatoes, vegetables, berries and fruits. About a quarter of the products produced in JlllX are sold on the market, generating income in cash. But, by and large, the so-called traditional or “proletarian” strategy of model behavior of households is being implemented, based on the survival of the non-market sector of the eco-
Thus, JlllX has become the main means of survival for a certain part of the population.
Income from the sale of products of personal subsidiary plots includes proceeds from the sale of livestock and other agricultural products in the markets, procurement organizations of consumer cooperation, farm and state farms, various organizations, etc.
Income from JlllX has a positive impact on income growth and a decrease in income differentiation of the population, especially in rural areas. In the total income of rural families, the share of income from them reaches 25-35%, and in urban families - 3-5%.
This is due not only to differences in the income levels of these groups, but also to differences in the provision of urban and rural population land plots. According to sociologists, on average a quarter of urban families have dachas, from 3 to 8% - land, and among rural families, 80% have gardens, orchards and household plots. Rural families, as a rule, have large plots. Among urban families, 64.5% have a plot size of 0.06 ha, and among rural families, more than half have a plot larger than 0.1 ha.
Income from JlllX can act not only in cash, but also in kind.
Income in kind is represented by products that are used by producers for their own consumption or barter for goods and services with other citizens. By-
The consumption of JlllX products allows the household to save money, reduce the share of food expenses in the structure of cash expenditures. Saving money in household can be calculated using the formula:
where j - types of products;
Q - the number of products of each type consumed in the household;
p - prices for products of similar quality. Similarly, you can calculate the savings obtained as a result of the barter exchange of JlllX products for goods and services produced by other citizens.
In addition, citizens receive other types of income from self-employment, providing services to other citizens and receiving payment for them in cash that is not reflected in the documents. It is impossible to determine the exact amount of income from self-employment. Income from the shadow economy cannot be accurately reflected in the balance sheet either. In this case, it is possible to use expert assessments and the results of sociological surveys.
Other receipts include:
Income of employees from enterprises and organizations, except for wages and social payments;
Proceeds from financial system, including changes in debt on loans issued to citizens for individual housing construction and other purposes; change in debt on loans issued by credit institutions to citizens for consumer purposes; change in debt on loans issued to commercial entrepreneurs operating without forming a legal entity;
The income of the population from the sale foreign exchange (commercial banks and Sberbank of Russia);
Other income, including: from the sale of salvage, scrap metal, etc. (non-agricultural blanks), other income;
Money received from transfers (net of transferred and deposited amounts);
Income not related to the wage fund and social payments, including travel expenses, royalties, wage supplements paid to employees of certain sectors of the economy in connection with the mobile (travelling) nature of work, field allowance, the cost of uniforms and uniforms issued free of charge , remaining in personal permanent use, or the amount of benefits in connection with their sale at reduced prices, etc.;
Change in debt on loans issued to citizens for individual housing construction and other purposes;
Change in debt on loans issued for consumer purposes by credit institutions;
Change in the debt of the population for the purchase of goods on credit;
Change in debt on loans issued to commercial entrepreneurs operating without forming a legal entity.
Other income includes proceeds from the sale of scrap metal, salvage materials and handicraft products (non-agricultural blanks) and other income.
This item takes into account payments from funds issued to enterprises and organizations by credit institutions for business, operating and other expenses. It also reflects the income of the population from individual entrepreneurial activity. Part of the unaccounted wages is reflected here (for example, monetary and clothing allowances for military personnel of the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Russian Federal Security Service, etc.), as well as wages hidden from taxation and paid in various forms - in the form of buying cars, apartments, financial assistance for the construction of individual housing, the purchase of a garden plot, durable items, an interest-free loan, opening an individual bank account, etc.
The money received through transfers (minus the transferred amounts) increases the volume of the population's monetary resources presented in this region(republic, territory, region) for the purchase
goods and services, and are therefore included in the income side of the balance sheet. If the amount of money transferred by mail is more than the amounts received, then the difference (balance) is taken into account in the expenditure side of the balance sheet, since in these cases the amount of money resources for the purchase of goods and payment for services in the given region (republic, territory, region) decreases. To calculate the received (sent) amounts for transfers, data on postal and telegraphic transfers through communication enterprises are used.
The change in the income structure of the population during the period of transition to a market economy is shown in Table 17.1.1.
Table 17.1.1
The structure of incomes of the population of the Russian Federation in 1990-2000. (%) 47
| Name of cash income | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 |
| Cash income - total, including: | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| salary | 74D | 623 | 73,6 | 61,1 |
Structure of social policy
As a direction of state regulation, income policy is one of the
means of centralized influence on the overall size and distribution of the newly
created value. The price of labor, the rate of profit, the demand and supply of labor,
competition - all these factors of self-regulation of the labor market form the income of the population and distribute social wealth. The leading economists of the West recognize the inequality in the distribution of income and wealth. Moreover, by wealth they mean the available movable and immovable property, money, securities, and by income - total amount money earned or received in any other way during any period.
Statistics from different countries show that most of the population has
minimum income, and the smaller one is very high. Government spending
consist of government purchases and transfer payments. Government purchases are, as a rule, the purchase of public goods (defense costs, construction and maintenance of schools, roads, scientific centers, etc.). Transfer payments are payments that redistribute tax income received from all taxpayers, to certain segments of the population in the form of unemployment benefits, disability payments, etc.
The essence of income policy lies in the direct establishment
the state of such an upper limit of the increase in nominal wages, which would contribute to the fulfillment of the main tasks and the realization of the priorities facing the economy.
The specific wording of certain income policy provisions in different countries different. In practice, there are no two completely identical options for the development of income policy. In the mechanism of implementation and forms of manifestation of this policy in each particular state, the features determined by:
Socio-economic and political development of a country;
The degree and nature of government intervention in regulatory matters
wages;
Traditions of concluding collective agreements;
Social tension in society.
The main object of all income policy options is the earnings of the worker as a whole, including the wage rate, overtime pay, social benefits, and so on. In Western European countries, as a rule, income policy implies direct restrictive regulation of all major categories of income of the population that underlie personal and industrial consumption. Income policy in practice predominantly affects the movement of wages only.
The design and implementation of income policy has gone particularly far in
Great Britain, since the British state tried to achieve
concerted action by trade unions and the government. However, in practically all capitalist countries the income policy had modest economic results: its principles were not fully implemented anywhere.
Under the income of the population is understood the amount of money and material goods received or produced by households for a certain period of time. The role of income is determined by the fact that the level of consumption of the population directly depends on the level of income.
Monetary incomes of the population include all receipts of money in the form of payment
labor of employees, business income, pensions,
scholarships, various allowances, income from property in interest,
dividends, rents, sales proceeds valuable papers and real estate.
Nominal income characterizes the level of monetary income, regardless of taxation and prices.
Disposable income is nominal income less taxes and other obligatory payments. To measure the dynamics of disposable income, the indicator of real distribution of income is used. It is calculated based on the price index.
The problem of income distribution has two aspects: functional
distribution and personal distribution.
The functional distribution of income is related to the way in which
The cash income of the society is divided into wages, rent, interest and profit.
Aggregate income is distributed in accordance with the function performed by
income recipient. The functional distribution forms the primary income of the population. In a mixed economy, as the practice of developed countries shows, the main part of the total income comes from wages. The income of small proprietors, including that from the amateur activities of doctors, lawyers, farmers, owners of small and unincorporated enterprises, is essentially a combination of wages, profits, rent and interest.
The personal distribution of income is related to the way in which the aggregate
The society's income is distributed among individual households. Total income unevenly distributed among the groups. Personal distribution is related to households as a spending group. Part of the income of the population goes to the state as individual taxes, and the rest is distributed for personal consumption and savings. Income generation is accompanied by inequality of distribution. Causes of income inequality:
Objective reasons reflect the overall usefulness of activities, territory,
sectoral and interprofessional differentiation of wages, the level
education, inequality of property ownership.
Subjective reasons are related to the nature of the individual (luck, connections, risk,
adventurism, discrimination, etc.).
Specific causes due to current features market environment(low price of labor, lack of regulation of the regulatory framework, the possibility of appropriating large "shadow" incomes).
The incomes of working people are not exhausted by the sources mentioned above. In any market economy there is also a system of compensation payments,
representing important part income. Such a system is needed
because inflation at one speed or another "eats" the increase in money
income of the population in any country. We have had this process in the last
years at an increasing rate, while the compensatory compensation meanwhile
was practically absent.
In fairness, it should be noted a certain positive role of inflation: it does not allow enterprises in the production, trade, commercial sectors to stop and calm down at some point. They are forced to produce
an increasing number of goods and services, improve their quality, otherwise
their incomes stopped at some point will be “eaten” by inflation. However, its impact
force must be mitigated by introducing protective mechanisms for the underprivileged
activities to provide for themselves and thereby entirely at the expense of their own
efforts to increase or at least maintain one's material
well-being A well-known way to protect against inflation is the indexation of income. But
there should not be a direct proportional relationship between it and growth; otherwise
In other words, the goal should not be to fully offset inflation. FROM
with a certain degree of assumption, it can be argued that the balance of the market will be
be achieved by the size of the "gap" that is formed between the rise in prices and
income indexation.
Income indexation is possible from both the state and the enterprise,
which gives part of the profit for this.
It should be borne in mind that payments in the order of indexation must still
account for a small proportion of the total income of workers. In the opposite
situation, conditions are created for the fading of the stimulating role of wages and
on the created value, while indexation of income goes beyond reasonable limits
its main function - social protection. In world practice, indexing
carried out after such a period of time as a quarter or six months. AT
in some areas, wage increases are made on a sliding scale: in
when the price index rises by a predetermined number of points, or
percent - by a certain amount, agreed in advance, increases and
wage.
The indexing mechanism has been used for several decades in the USA, Japan,
Canada and more than ten Western European countries; recently -
and in the former socialist states of Eastern Europe, performing according to
in relation to a significant part of the population, protective functions, it is also necessary
to prevent social explosions, and with the latter circumstance it would be
1.2.2. Policy of social guarantees
In order to ensure the protection of the population, the state must, first of all, in
legally establish basic social guarantees, mechanisms for their
implementation, and the function of providing social support.
An analysis of world experience allows us to identify four institutional forms
social protection of the population. State social assistance
persons who, due to disability, lack of work, sources of income
unable to provide financial support for their own existence.
The financial sources of this protection institution are the state,
regional and municipal budgets formed at the expense of the general tax
systems. The defining characteristic of this defense institution
social and alimentary non-contractual relations of the state with vulnerable
insurance period to receive pensions and benefits for compulsory social
insurance). Payments within this system are made after verification
need and are designed to provide a minimum income, the size of which
comparable to the level that defines the poverty line. Mandatory
(by law) social insurance for loss of income (salary)
due to loss of employment (illness, accident, old age)
or places of work. Financial sources - insurance premiums employers
workers (sometimes the state), organized on the principles and with the help of
mechanisms of compulsory social insurance. Defining characteristics
social insurance relations: replacement of lost wages (this
means that benefits are linked to previous earnings and contributions, i.e.
insurance experience is assumed), solidarity and self-responsibility
policyholders and insured. Voluntary personal
(collective) insurance of employees (against accidents,
medical and pension provision). Financial sources - insurance premiums
workers themselves (sometimes in their favor - employers), organized on
principles and mechanisms personal insurance. Defining
characteristics - the existence of an insurance contract self-responsibility of citizens.
Corporate systems of social protection of employees, organized by
employers (medical and health care, payment of housing,
transport, educational and cultural services, corporate pension payments).
Financial sources - means of enterprises. Among the named institutions
social protection basic (in terms of financial resources, mass coverage
variety and quality of services) is compulsory social insurance
(pension and medical, from accidents at work and in connection with
unemployment). AT developed countries these types of social insurance absorb,
as a rule, 60-70% of all social protection spending is
about 15-25% of GDP in Russia is the share of state non-budgetary social
funds account for about 45% of spending on social protection and 7.3%
GDP. World experience confirms
that the social insurance system is one of the main institutions of social
protection in a market economy, designed to ensure the implementation
constitutional right of citizens to material support in old age, if
illness, complete or partial disability (or lack thereof)
from birth), loss of a breadwinner, unemployment. Funds received
are regulated by laws and depend on the duration of the insurance (labor)
length of service of wages (which serves as the basis for calculating insurance
contributions), the degree of disability. Unlike social assistance,
when a person in need receives benefits from public funds
(actually at the expense of other persons), financial sources payments and services
social insurance programs are specialized funds,
formed with the direct participation of the insured themselves. Based
sources of funding, social security can be divided into
social insurance and social assistance. Insurance, assistance and
guardianship is in every separate case some
combination of social services and cash transfers. characteristic feature
principle of insurance is to finance the assistance provided through
contributions and the close relationship between contributions and the volume of social services.
The amount of payments in this case is guided by the volume of individual contributions, i.e.
on the preliminary contribution of the insured. Thus, the principle of insurance in
most consistent with market principles of justice,
remuneration according to personal contribution and personal responsibility. it
limits the system's ability to regulate income, although it reduces
consequences of social risk. Social risk is the risk of sudden
the occurrence in society of circumstances that cause significant damage to many
persons at the same time. Modern Risk Response - Insurance, Essence
which in risk pooling. There are two main types of insurance:
Implemented by private companies (voluntary);
Implemented by the state (forced);
For developed countries, compulsory insurance is generally accepted,
providing benefits in case of unemployment, disability, onset
elders. But even in these areas, the state does not take over everything, but only
areas where private insurance does not work. But insurance is not
can block all options for social disasters. In general, insurance should
complemented by social assistance. Between social assistance and public
insurance:
1. Both involve a redistribution of income
2. Both are connected with the ideas that have developed in society about
justice.
3. Both have fields of intersection.
But there are also differences, it is one thing when a person in need receives help at the expense of
other persons, and it is a completely different matter when for him the dependence of the sizes
assistance depending on his contribution to the public fund. In the second case
stimulates individual accumulation, and in the first - dependency. That's why
where insurance and social assistance overlap, preference should be given
give insurance. The principle of social assistance implies
funding from the budget. When determining the amount of payments, there are four possible
alternative approach:
Assistance to all buyers is paid in the same amount;
Assistance is focused on individual security;
The amount of assistance can be oriented towards the value of the previous salary
payments or on the amount of insurance premiums of the recipient;
The amount of assistance depends on the needs of the recipient.
The same amount of assistance for all recipients - the easiest way to
organizational option. This method, however, is not suitable
if we are talking about compensation for lost earnings, because loss of income
varies greatly among different recipients. In addition, the same assistance can
reduce motivation to work. In favor of accounting for individual security
when establishing the amount of social assistance, it also says that in this way
social security funds are effectively used and cases of
unreasonable payments. Due to funding from the budget, all systems
social security, based on this principle, to a high degree
depend on the financial situation of the state. All three principles of organization
social security occupy in countries with market economies their
a certain place. The social security system is able to operate with
maximum return only in the interaction of insurance, assistance and
guardianship. A characteristic feature of guardianship is
financing through taxes. However, if a significant part of the system
social security is built on the principle of guardianship, it can
lead to an overload of public finances.
Of significant importance is the question of the amount of lost income and social
help. There are two main criteria here:
Social guarantees should ensure a minimum sufficient standard of living;
Social benefits should not distract people from work and cultivate
dependent relationships;
The first criterion determines the minimum, and the second - the maximum limit
social benefits.
For example, in Russia, unemployment benefits can be paid within 12
months (3 months - 75%, next 4 months - 60%, further - 45%), after
year is the minimum wage. one
In today's conditions, such a system generates anti-incentives: it is more profitable not to
work than work.
The problem of disincentives is very acute in the provision of social assistance. A task
such assistance consists in raising the income level of the poor and poor to
minimum acceptable level. In this case, the maintenance
minimum income at a certain level.
If a minimum allowance large enough, it can solve the problem
individual poverty. However, this does not mean a solution to the problems of family
poverty. Therefore, in social assistance it is necessary to highlight family
allowances, low-income benefits and social services.
1.2.3. Employment Policy
In the twentieth century, it turned out that it was impossible to give the labor market to
“payback” to spontaneous market forces. The most important reasons for the development and
revitalization of the state in the field of employment were:
1) development of scientific and technological revolution and increasing the role of man in social production;
2) provision general conditions reproduction, including reproduction
work force;
3) providing entrepreneurship with the necessary personnel;
4) the need for compromise and mitigation of social conflicts;
5) promoting the development and improvement of intellectual potential
society;
6) the influence of ideas and specific social achievements (lack of explicit
unemployment - above all) capitalism;
The influence of the state on the labor market is carried out by direct and indirect
means.
The question arises whether unemployment is possible in our society. Possible and
inevitable due to economic crisis production, mold change
property, the course for the implementation of production, technical progress and
structural shifts in the economy, the conversion of the military-industrial complex.
There are two options for the development of the labor market. The first is that everyone
leave immobile. The second is to significantly increase
the level of wages, but not all the same, but differentiated, in
depending on the real contribution to production. At the same time, enter
labor-saving equipment and technology, reduce redundant personnel,
pay them an allowance, the amount of which directly depends on the level of salary, and
provide a free opportunity for retraining and assistance in
employment. The first option significantly reduces the quality of the workforce,
labor productivity. The second is a model for the development of the labor market in all
developed countries. We are talking about a change in the concept of labor force, that is, about
abandoning the concept of full employment and adopting the concept
effective employment.
Efficient employment is a model for the development and use
skilled, expensive and mobile workforce, focused on
reassessment of its growing material and domestic needs. big role in
implementation of the concept of effective employment should be played by the state
employment service, government-established employment improvement fund
(deductions to it amount to 1% of the payroll, regardless of
form of ownership). It is also necessary to organize a forecasting service
processes that occur in the sphere of demand and supply of labor,
develop programs for the transformation of all forms of educational levels and
education, training and retraining of workers. Policy effective
employment is more rational, socially oriented, which meets
labor market requirements.
Unemployment insurance is provided from special insurance funds.
The amount of payments depends, firstly, on the duration of the period of unemployment,
secondly, from the specific conditions of a particular country. In the first case
maximum payout amounts (from 50 to 70% average salary) are paid in
the first months of unemployment during a certain period. Further payout amounts
decrease.
In the second case, the period of employment is taken into account, seniority,
physical fitness for work, the time of providing assistance, etc. Thus, in
Germany, the length of service must be at least 6 months of employment in
within 3 years.
An important element of social protection in the labor market are programs
employment and retraining. With the introduction of these programs
government and business are involved. Every year American firms spend
billion dollars for these measures. The state spends on the implementation of programs
retraining most of the funds. In order to create new jobs
the state also undertakes the execution of such public works as
construction of roads, sewers, etc. During the economic crisis
the state increases investment in state-owned enterprises.
Employment programs are also implemented through preferential
taxation of companies that create jobs.
Providing compensation for the loss of a job by the state. This is about
unemployment benefits, the payment of lifting at a new place of residence,
severance pay, etc. The question rests on the sources of funding for services
employment, retraining systems, information centers,
concentrating data on the surplus of labor and the need for it.
The minimum wage is one of the most important levers
reproduction of the labor force and its stimulation, in addition, on the basis of
minimum wage, various benefits are established (including
unemployment), pensions, etc. When establishing minimum level salary
housing, social benefits, inflation rate, as well as indicators that
affect the level of employment. For a minimum wage base
accept a set of basic goods and services that satisfy the basic
physiological and social needs of an individual or typical families
different types (with one child, two, etc.). To this set in different countries
include different components. In the USA, for example, it includes payment
rental housing, about 20 types of meat products, purchases once every five years
used car, etc.
1.2.4. Social Security Policy
The concept of "social protection" was first used by American legislators
in the text of the law adopted in 1935. It provided the legal justification
a new institution for the USA compulsory insurance in case of old age
death, disability and unemployment.
This term organically fit into the conceptual apparatus of scientists and practitioners,
as it simply and intelligibly expressed the essence of supporting socially vulnerable
strata of the population.
In the future, the scope of this definition has been significantly expanded, which
contributed, among other things, to the development of conventions and recommendations
International Labor Organization, World Health Organization,
International Social Security Association dedicated to social
insurance and social assistance, minimum income guarantee
working in the event of disability, as well as the conditions and protection
labor, wages.
Widespread use by the international community of the category "social protection"
largely due to the fundamental changes that have taken place in the social
Western policy in the 1930s and 1950s.
In our country, the term "social protection" began to be used relatively recently, with
the beginning of market transformation: the need for its use arose,
when there was an urgent need to help citizens unable to
provide yourself financially.
At the same time, a derivative term from "social protection" is often used, and
Namely - "social security". Their difference lies in the correlation
actions and states:
for "social protection" the key is the nature of intentions (states,
public structures and individuals) for the implementation of social policies or measures
on self-defense;
for "social security" the semantic load is embodied in the definition
the state in which the protected person or social group is located
(disabled, unemployed, pensioners, etc.).
There are three methodological approaches to the interpretation of this category:
political economy, methodological and instrumentalist.
So, according to B. Rakitsky, social security in a broad sense
is a social order in which objects
can defend their interests.
The most important characteristics of the term "social protection" include: types and
organizational and legal forms of social protection, categories of citizens who
are receiving social assistance or who are covered by social insurance.
This methodological approach is based on the positions of the ILO, considering
national social protection systems as a combination of various institutions
social insurance and social assistance.
Methodologically, the question of the forms and mechanisms of social protection is quite
worked out in detail by Western scientists. So, to forms of social protection
include: personal types of social insurance (pension, medical,
industrial accidents, unemployment); social assistance in the form
various types of assistance; national labor protection systems; help
states in education; social protection systems at the level
enterprises.
definition of this concept: social protection covers a complex
relations, essential connections and interests of social subjects (employees and
employers), public organizations and the state associated with
minimizing the influence of factors that reduce the quality of life (including
labor).
To factors that disrupt the normal course of working life and reduce social
status of employees, include risks of damage to health and loss
ability to work (illness, accidents, old age), insufficient
professional qualifications or unfavorable situation on the labor market,
leading to job loss. For an individual worker, these risks
are probabilistic and random in nature, and for the total - objectively
mass.
Social protection of employees includes the following areas:
Creation of conditions for employment of the population by labor activity,
allowing workers to earn a livelihood in volumes
sufficient for a decent existence;
Security safe conditions labor for employees and access of citizens to
national systems health care, rehabilitation and vocational
education;
Providing workers and their families with a living wage
funds in cases of unemployment, loss or sharp reduction in income due to
illness, birth of a child, accident at home, work injury
or occupational disease, disability, old age, loss
breadwinner.
The whole variety of activities in the social sphere, ranging from providing
assistance at home for the elderly and lonely citizens and ending with lobbying
social legislation can be divided into four main areas:
social protection, social insurance, social security and
social assistance [I].
Social protection is the protection of social human rights. Through this
functions, the principle of equal rights and equal opportunities for all
citizens and stateless persons. Special
legal and policy measures to protect the rights of the working population
in the field of labor and employment; to protect the interests of citizens who themselves do not
can exercise their rights (social protection of children, the elderly,
disabled people).
Thus, social policy is a complex of organizational, economic
and other measures to improve material well-being, spiritual and
physical development of the population, support for the disabled and
low-income citizens
World experience shows that an effective socially oriented market economy is unthinkable without a state policy of distributing citizens' incomes. The income of the population determines the social position in society, and the level of income of each person depends on the economy of the country in which he lives. In general, the generally accepted sense is the opinion that it is advisable to pursue a policy of income from a combination of economic efficiency and social justice. Thus, the implementation of state policy in the field of incomes of the population should be carried out through the development government programs providing for specific measures, primarily in the field of regulating the income of citizens, fair taxation and improving the system of social protection of citizens. The main task of the state regulation of income is the redistribution of income through the state budget through differentiated taxation of various groups of income recipients.
At the same time, a significant share of the national income is transferred from high-income to low-income strata of the population. Increasing the incomes of the poor creates conditions for the normal reproduction of the labor force, helps to ease social tension, and regulates employment. The activity of the state in this area is measured by the volume of social spending from the federal and local budget. Here, modern trends in the development of state policy in the field of incomes of the population in the Russian Federation were analyzed. The main recommendations were given to ensure an effective state policy in the field of incomes of the population for the future.
The regional aspect of the regulation of the income of the population is becoming one of the most difficult areas for improving the regulation of the income of the population in present stage. The further course of economic transformations in the regions largely depends on its successful solution.
The situation with the incomes of the population in the regions is characterized by a number of complex and contradictory trends that are characteristic of most regions and have their own characteristics in each individual subject of the Russian Federation.
In the dynamics of the most important indicators in the regions, such as incomes of the population and their differentiation, the scale of poverty, the level of consumption and some others, in the course of reforming the economy, a number of negative trends have emerged, the further aggravation of which can lead to an increase in social tension and jeopardize the reforms themselves.
State regulation income and wages consists in their redistribution through the budget through differentiated taxation of various groups of income recipients and social payments to the population. The state, organizing through the budget the redistribution of incomes of the population, creates conditions for the normal reproduction of the labor force, contributes to the easing of social tension. The degree of influence of the state on the process of redistribution of income, as evidenced by world experience, can be measured by the volume and dynamics of spending on social needs at the expense of budgets at all levels.
(Table 2) Methods of state regulation of income and consumption of the population.
Direct - administrative measures Indirect - economic measures
Transfer payments
Social guarantees (living wage, minimum wage, the minimum amount of assistance in the areas of health and education)
Administrative regulation of prices
Indexation and reimbursement of expenses
Social programs Sales taxes, VAT, excises, customs duties,
Tax breaks for the poor
State price control,
Social taxes, deductions to off-budget funds,
Charitable foundations
One of the most effective methods of state regulation of income is the legislative establishment of the minimum wage, based on the cost of the minimum set of goods and services that allows the employee to ensure the reproduction of the labor force. The minimum wage can be both federal and differentiated by regions and climatic zones of the country in relation to the cost of the minimum set of goods and services, calculated according to unified methodology. An approach is also possible that establishes the size of the minimum wage at the national (federal) level as a percentage of the current level of average wages.
Another effective lever for regulating the absolute size of income is their indexation in connection with the rise in prices for goods and tariffs for services. Indexation of incomes of the population is one of the main forms of social protection of the population in the face of inflation, aimed at maintaining and restoring the purchasing power of the received labor and other incomes. Especially important is the indexation of the incomes of socially vulnerable groups of the population (low-income workers, pensioners, the disabled, people with a fixed salary).
It seems economically justified to index income and wages based on a differentiated approach. Full indexation (a percentage increase in the wages of other payments by a percentage increase in prices and tariffs) is impossible and unnecessary, since indexation above the income limit will "unwind" the inflationary spiral. In addition, a partial increase in the income of working citizens is possible by increasing their labor contribution, rewarded with incentive wage payments.
Citizens' monetary incomes subject to indexation include, first of all, those that are not of a one-time nature. These are remuneration at rates and salaries, state pensions and allowances, scholarships, amounts of compensation for damage caused by injury or other damage to health in the performance of work duties. The monetary incomes of the population from property, which are formed in conditions of free pricing, are not subject to indexation and therefore do not need additional protection. This is income from the lease of property, from shares and other securities, from entrepreneurial and other activities permitted by law.
The role of the state system of taxation as a mechanism for regulating wages and other types of labor income of citizens is very significant. Hence the importance of the implementation of tax policy in the direction of influencing the differentiation and size of income and direct payments for work and consistent implementation progressive taxation high incomes.
By reducing the taxation of the payroll fund and shifting part of the taxes to income recipients, it is possible to provide additional revenues to the budget due to the fact that employers will stop issuing their employees significantly higher wages than indicated in the payment documents submitted to the tax authorities, as well as enrolling it in deposits, in insurance funds etc.
State regulation of income should be aimed at overcoming excessive differentiation through progressive taxation.
The importance of collective-contractual regulation of income and, first of all, wages has increased. Collectively - contractual regulation should develop and ensure social partnership, increase guarantees in the remuneration of each employee, depending on the level of his qualifications and work performed, as well as labor productivity. The social partnership of the state, the representative bodies of employers and representatives of the bodies of employees makes it possible to streamline the ratio of wages between industries, regions and separate categories personnel.
Collectively - contractual system of regulation of social - labor relations to a large extent complements the measures for the direct and indirect impact of the state on the level and differentiation of wages. A clear distribution of functions and a definition of the range of problems to be solved at the federal, regional, sectoral levels and directly at enterprises should ensure the coordinated actions of the links of a single system of contractual regulation of labor relations without duplication and contradictions based on the coordination of interests of all participants in the negotiation processes.
As a direction of state regulation, income policy is one of the means of centralized influence on the total size and distribution of newly created value. The price of labor, the rate of profit, demand and supply of labor, competition - all these factors of self-regulation of the labor market form the income of the population and distribute social wealth. The leading economists of the West recognize the inequality in the distribution of income and wealth. Moreover, by wealth they understand the available movable and immovable property, money, securities, and by income - the total amount of money earned or received in another way during any period. Statistics from different countries show that most of the population has a minimum income, and a smaller one has very high incomes. Government spending consists of government purchases and transfer payments. Government purchases are, as a rule, the purchase of public goods (defense costs, construction and maintenance of schools, roads, scientific centers, etc.).
Transfer payments are payments that redistribute tax revenues received from all taxpayers to certain segments of the population in the form of unemployment benefits, disability payments, etc. The essence of the income policy lies in the direct establishment by the state of such an upper limit for the increase in nominal wages, which would contribute to the fulfillment of the main tasks and the realization of the priorities facing the economy. The specific wording of individual income policy provisions varies from country to country. In practice, there are no two completely identical options.
income policy development. In the mechanism of implementation and forms of manifestation of this policy in each particular state, there are differences,
defined:
Socio-economic and political development of a country;
The degree and nature of state intervention in the regulation of wages;
Social tension in society.
The main object of all income policy options is the earnings of the worker as a whole, including the wage rate, overtime pay, social benefits, and so on. In Western European countries, as a rule, income policy implies direct restrictive regulation of all major categories of income of the population that underlie personal and industrial consumption. Income policy in practice predominantly affects the movement of wages only.
The design and implementation of income policy has gone particularly far in
Great Britain, as the British state was trying to achieve concerted action between trade unions and the government. However, in practically all capitalist countries the income policy had modest economic results: its principles were not fully implemented anywhere.
In any market economy there is a system of compensation payments. Such a system is necessary already because inflation destroys the growth of the population's money income in any country with one speed or another. In our country, this process has been going on with increasing speed in recent years, and in the meantime, compensatory compensation was practically absent.
In fairness, it should be noted a certain positive role of inflation: it does not allow enterprises in the production, trade, commercial sectors to stop and calm down at some point. They are forced to produce an increasing number of goods and services, to improve their quality, otherwise inflation will eat up their income that has stopped at some point. However, its impact force must be mitigated by introducing protective mechanisms for low-income categories of the population, who, as a rule, are deprived of the opportunity to provide for themselves by work and thereby entirely through their own efforts to increase or at least maintain their material well-being at the same level. A well-known way to protect against inflation - income indexation. But there should not be a direct proportional relationship between it and growth; in other words, the goal should not be to fully offset inflation. With a certain degree of assumption, it can be argued that the balance of the market will be achieved by the amount of the “gap” that forms between the rise in prices and the indexation of income. Income indexation is possible on the part of both the state and the enterprise, which gives part of the profit for this.
It must be borne in mind that indexation payments should still account for a small proportion of the total income of workers. In the opposite situation, conditions are created for the fading of the stimulating role of wages based on labor and value created, while the indexation of incomes goes beyond the reasonable limits of its main function - social protection. In world practice, indexation is carried out after such a period of time as a quarter or six months. In some areas, salary increments are made on a sliding scale: in the event of an increase in the price index by a predetermined number of points or percentages, wages also increase by a certain, agreed amount ahead of time.
The indexing mechanism has been used for several decades in the USA, Japan, Canada and more than ten Western European countries, performing protective functions in relation to a significant part of the population, it is also necessary to prevent social explosions, and it would be reckless to disregard the latter circumstance.
Thus, the transition to market relations deforms the previous structure of incomes of the population, new sources of income appear (entrepreneurial income, income from property), the role of individual sources and their significance for different groups of the population change. Income differentiation is quite effective, but up to a certain limit, its excessive strengthening turns into impoverishment of the population. This means that appropriate mechanisms and sources should be provided for maintaining the incomes of socially vulnerable segments of the population at the minimum acceptable level (income indexation, price regulation, social benefits). The normative consumer budgets (primarily the subsistence minimum budget) serve as an instrument for regulating and forecasting incomes and their differentiation.
In the context of the diversity of types of income, updating the income policy is carried out by improving the mechanism for regulating each type of income so that it actively contributes to the transformation process. administrative system economy to a market one.
As a result of the transformational crisis in Russia, as well as the unregulated transition to a factorial model of income generation, there has been a significant deterioration in the overall economic and social situation in the country. The income differentiation of the population has grown significantly.
A study of the dynamics of income distribution between quintile (20%) groups of the population shows that in Russia With 1992, the unevenness in the differentiation of incomes of the population is increasing. The tendency towards the concentration of funds among the wealthiest 20% group was quite clearly manifested. The redistribution of property that occurs in the context of privatization creates opportunities for certain groups of the population to derive income from property. Together With meanwhile, numerous abuses took place in the process of primitive accumulation of capital, which became the source of an unjustifiably sharp increase in the concentration of income.
In reality, the value of the stock coefficient is several times higher. According to this indicator, Russia is among the countries with the most pronounced population inequality.
The discrepancies in statistical data are due to the fact that when studying the distribution of incomes of the population in a particular country, certain difficulties arise in obtaining reliable information. This problem is faced by both individual researchers and organizations. For example, in the report World Bank for 2005/2006 it is noted that, given the difficulties that arise in measuring the income of the population, differentiation estimates have very significant errors.
In this regard, there are various interpretations of statistical data, often directly opposite.
The main source of information on the level of income of the population in Russia are surveys of family budgets. The data obtained from them does not differ high reliability, because respondents often simply do not know the real size of their income. At the same time, there is no possibility of obtaining reliable information on the incomes of the most affluent categories of the population. As incomes rise, these categories are less likely to report any information about them. This reluctance is quite understandable, because. a significant portion of the income of the wealthy.
Analysis of the process of differentiation of incomes of the population during recent years in Russia allows us to draw the following conclusions.
First, transformational transformations, in the absence of clear legislative regulation of the relevant processes, led to an increase in income differentiation. The most dramatic changes took place in the early 1990s.
Of course, an increase in the differentiation of incomes of the population is inevitable in the context of reforms, one of the objectives of which was to establish a stronger interdependence between the market productivity of labor and incomes. However, the current level of differentiation is so high that even the emerging positive trends of 2001-2006, as well as public policy aimed at strengthening the social protection of the population, are not yet capable of generating radical changes in the standard of living of the population.
Secondly, based on the above data, it is difficult to determine the optimal level of income differentiation for Russia, economically efficient and socially acceptable. It is necessary to compare various indicators of the level of income differentiation in Russia with the corresponding indicators of other countries, as well as with the critical values of income differentiation adopted in world practice.
For example, comparing the value of the Gini index with the corresponding indicators of other countries undergoing transformational transformations, allows us to conclude that Russia is experiencing a significantly sharper increase in differentiation indicators compared to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. At the same time, in some countries - the former Soviet republics, the level of income concentration is higher than in Russia.
On the whole, the study of various indicators characterizing the differentiation of the incomes of the population makes it possible to reveal the following paradoxical situation. The indicators of the distribution of the population by income, typical for Russia as a whole, are close to those recorded in both low-income countries (Ghana), middle-income countries (Tunisia, Philippines), and high-income countries (Switzerland, Great Britain). At the same time, the data for the most highly profitable region, Moscow, are close to those for countries with the highest income differentiation (Brazil).
The analysis of this situation leads to the following conclusions. First, the value of the Gini index makes it possible to judge the model of a particular state: contractual or exploitative. In our opinion, the values of the Gini index rather depend on the mechanism of distribution of property rights, which forms the conditions for access to property by certain groups of the population.
Second, it is difficult to determine thresholds acceptable level of income differentiation of the population. Thus, the current level of income differentiation in Russia in the 1990s does not correspond to the critical values of differentiation accepted in world practice (Table 5.3).
Thirdly, the study of the level of income differentiation of the population based on analytical tools, including such indicators as the stock coefficient, the Gini index, and others, rather indicates a quantitative characteristic of the differentiation of incomes of the population. In order to determine the optimal level of income differentiation for Russia, economically effective and socially acceptable, it is necessary to identify the qualitative component of the differentiation of incomes of the population.
Table 7.3
Comparison of critical values of income differentiation
A sharp differentiation in the incomes of the population against the background of their low per capita level has led to the differentiation of the economic potentials of the population. This was most clearly manifested in the structure of consumption, as well as in the structure of disposable savings. In the structure of the use of monetary incomes of the population, the costs for the purchase of goods and services predominate, which, according to Engel's hypothesis, indicates a low level of income in general (German statistician E. Engel, studying the effect of income growth on population spending, noted that with income growth, consumption structure, opportunities for savings increase).
Features of state regulation of incomes of the population.
Qualitative shifts in the development of production, the growth of production volumes and its quality are not possible without profound transformations in everything economic mechanism, one of the most important links of which is the regulation of income and wages. In a market economy, there are objective and subjective factors that must be taken into account when organizing wages in enterprises.
The main objective market factors include: the price of labor, the price of labor tools and finished products, the market for goods and its conjuncture, the mechanism of competition, profit, etc. Such factors affect wages, regardless of the state and the enterprises themselves. When organizing wages, the main role belongs to objective factors; managers can only and must take these factors into account.
Subjective factors include: state regulation, regulation by the enterprises themselves and trade union regulation.
It is known that in a market economy the state, although in a significantly reduced form, retains its regulatory function. This function extends to the area of income and wages. The regulation of income and wages at the macroeconomic level takes place in many countries with developed market economies and is integral part socio-economic policy. The state cannot abandon the regulation of income and wages, unless market mechanisms self-regulation, if most enterprises do not have a real owner who is interested in restructuring and developing production. In addition, the transition from a centralized system for solving problems in the social sphere to a market one cannot occur automatically and spontaneously, since the transformations affect the deep, essential elements of the system.
The following most significant goals of the state concept of income can be distinguished.
The priority direction in income policy should be to increase real wages, for which it is necessary to carry out its indexation, reduce debt and make payments on it a priority, and adopt laws on compensation for damages in case of non-payment of wages.
It is necessary to speed up the process of bringing the minimum wage closer to the average living wage. To do this, release the minimum wage from the functions of regulating social transfers, as this hinders its increase, because it is associated with significant budget expenditures.
To ensure a real increase in income, it is necessary to strengthen the distinction between the taxation of wages and business income, establishing a more preferential procedure for employees and those equated to them (the privilege consists in lower starting taxation and less progressive rates).
The financial base of pensions should be strengthened by increasing the nominal wages, the deductions from which form the pension fund.
Legislatively, organizationally and economically form a mechanism for regulating the income of the population, taking into account the territorial characteristics of life.
The policy of state regulation of income today contradicts financial stabilization, as it is carried out by reducing state payments on all items of social spending state budget.
Changes have also been made to the main functions associated with the influence of the state on the incomes of the population. These changes are manifested, first of all, in the reorientation of administrative and command functions to social protection ones, which are aimed at mitigating the negative consequences transition economy. Among the priority areas, one can single out such changes of a functional nature as:
· ensuring conditions for earning income and creating equal opportunities in the exercise of rights to a share in public welfare through a fair distribution of income;
Implementation of social programs for the structural reorientation of the economy, aimed at housing construction, education, healthcare, and so on, as well as supporting industries that provide social development society;
· reduction of undesirable, due to the transition period, differences in the receipt and distribution of income;
· ensuring a reasonable policy of combining taxation with social support (benefits for producers of life support, small businesses, encouragement of charity, transport payments, subsidies, and so on).
The state regulatory impact on the incomes of the population consists in the implementation of measures aimed at preventing negative social consequences associated with the formation of a market mechanism. Forms of state regulation consist of material, institutional and conceptual components.
Material the basis of state regulation of income depends on the volume of national production and the size of the share that is redistributed centrally through the state budget. institutional The basis is connected with the organization of the process of redistribution and the activities of the relevant institutions. Conceptual relies on the use of a particular theory in government social policy.
The state mechanism of regulation is quite complex and includes primary distribution (wages, other primary incomes of the population and enterprises); redistribution through the state budget, tax and transfer systems; final distribution through operations and services to the public.
In the course of the primary state distribution of income, an upper limit is set for the increase in nominal wages in public sector. economic importance regulation of wages is determined by the fact that its change has an impact on aggregate demand and production costs. Primary income regulation is used by the state both to increase the competitiveness of national products, encourage investment, and to curb wage growth and inflation.
Redistribution of income is carried out through the state budget, consists of differentiated taxation of various groups, income recipients and social payments to the population.
By organizing the budgetary redistribution of income, the state solves several problems: increasing the incomes of the poor, creating conditions for the normal reproduction of the labor force, and easing social tension.
The following methods can be distinguished: economic, legislative, conciliatory, administrative.
To economic methods include: definition minimum dimensions wages, tax policy, regulation of wages for employees of public sector organizations and civil servants, employment, etc.
The growth of the minimum wage depends on the economic opportunities that have developed in society at a certain stage. If this factor is not taken into account, then this can lead to delays in the payment of wages to employees, to a budget deficit, etc. At the same time, the minimum wage should be determined taking into account the funds that are necessary for the normal physical reproduction of the labor force, i.e. subsistence minimum, which in turn depends on monetary policy states.
Tax revenues to the budget are provided by tax policy, without which it is impossible to organize the redistribution of income, to establish effective incentives economic growth. For example, providing tax incentives It helps small businesses to increase employment, gives them a chance to survive and take their place in the market.
Regulating wages in public sector, the state proceeds from its economic capabilities. The efforts of this sphere form the human potential of any society. The role of this sphere in health promotion and leisure activities is great. By increasing the cost of maintaining this sphere, the state is implementing a social orientation of the economy towards the development of the individual. There is also an inverse relationship: more complex, creative labor creates a larger mass of products per unit time, which leads to economic growth.
Legislative Methods. An important place in the regulation of income is occupied by the development of its legislative and regulatory framework, which is the starting point of the entire regulatory process. The standards are used to calculate the normative consumer budgets, the norms of working hours - to determine the modes of working hours, the duration of holidays at enterprises, the creation of safe working conditions; tax rates - to withhold income tax, taxes from legal entities(including social taxes and etc.)
To regulate the income and quality of life of the population, the most significant are the Constitution of the Russian Federation (Basic Law), the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, laws on reforming the economy, on employment, decrees of the President of the Russian Federation, government decrees (on increasing the minimum wage, legal support collective bargaining system, social security and insurance, social guarantees, etc.).
Administrative Methods. These methods are not associated with the creation of an additional material incentive or the risk of economic (financial) damage. They are based on the power of power and include measures of prohibition, permission or coercion.
With the transition to a market economy, some of the old administrative measures were preserved, but new ones appeared: direct state control above monopoly markets; development of standards, control over their observance; education and maintenance of the minimum acceptable parameters of life of the population, below which - poverty; protecting the interests of the nation - licensing exports or state control over imports.
consensual methods. In many countries, these methods are widely used and are considered the most economical and "bloodless". Social partnership - coordination of actions of the government, entrepreneurs and employees on the dynamics of wages and social transfers.
The idea of social partnership, developed in the 1950s. L. Erhard, R. Balogh and others, proceeds from the need to harmonize public interests, represented, on the one hand, by trade unions of employees and, on the other, by associations of entrepreneurs for the sake of a successful economic development countries. It involves the conclusion, acting as equal partners, by the government, national associations employers and trade unions "social contract" in the field of economic and social policy.
Agreements at different levels (in the General - at the federal level, in sectoral and regional tariff agreements - at the sectoral and territorial levels, collective agreements - at enterprises) reflect questions about the size of the minimum wage, tariff rates, social payments on the procedure for indexing income, working hours, compensation for harm, guarantees of labor rights, labor protection, housing and others.
The collective-contract system is an effective form of regulation of the wages of employees. Its formation in Russia is hampered by two factors:
1) depreciation of the labor force, as a result of which wages cannot fulfill their reproductive function;
2) unjustified differentiation of wages by categories of workers at enterprises of the same industry, territory, as well as by individual industries and regions.
Each method has at its disposal direct and indirect measures of influence. The number of measures of direct state intervention include: the state guarantee of a minimum wage on its territory, the regulation of wages in the public sector, the establishment of a system of regional coefficients, state investment, subsidizing programs to improve production efficiency, tax exemption, direct administration by the mandatory allocation of a quota of jobs for some groups of the population, the organization of retraining of workers, the allocation of a certain number of workers to perform public necessary work etc.
Indirect methods of influence include: preferential taxation of the poor; selectivity of the distribution of free goods.
Anti-inflationary income regulation
For anti-inflationary regulation, two types of economic policy are used:
· a policy aimed at reducing the budget deficit, limiting credit expansion, curbing the issue of money;
· a price and income regulation policy aimed at linking wage growth with price growth and income indexation, determined by the level of the subsistence minimum and consistent with price index dynamics.
The state regulates prices through direct intervention. Government subsidies (through special surcharges, subsidies to the producer or consumer) have a direct impact on the formation of prices.
The direct impact of the state takes place in sectors where its share in the consumption of goods and services is significant (state orders in the defense industries, in a number of sub-sectors of construction). Government bodies, being regular customers (buyers) of certain types of goods and services from private firms, establish in agreement with partners before agreement with partners.
The state also influences foreign trade prices (encouragement of exports; exemption from taxes, provision of preferential loans and other benefits; change of duties in foreign trade; introduction or abolition of quantitative restrictions, etc.).
The state can set fixed prices for goods (services) of the public sector, the limits of their increase in the non-state sector.
The impact of taxation on income policy. The distribution of the newly created value among the factors of production, the main of which is labor, largely depends on how the state uses the financial, credit and tax mechanism. The decline in real wages in the context of a sharp drop in gross domestic product and a slight decrease in the number of people employed in the economy is natural.
A significant role in regulating the income of entrepreneurs and wage workers belongs to the state system of taxation. As the analysis of the state of affairs shows, the social potential of the tax system in modern Russia practically not used. This refers to its ability to redistribute income from the high-income to the middle- and low-income strata of the population. In addition, a significant part of the population avoids paying taxes altogether.
By reducing the taxation of the wage fund with taxes and shifting part of them to income recipients, you can get additional amount revenues to the budget due to the fact that those employers will come out of the shadows who currently transfer wages “in envelopes” to their employees that are significantly higher than indicated in the payrolls submitted to the tax authorities. In the meantime, tax policy stimulates and consolidates such employment structures and wage schemes, in which labor is not prestigious and low paid in sectors of the economy that determine the face and prospects for the development of the country - in industry, science, and culture.
In order to "adjust" the mechanism of taxes, it is also necessary to redistribute tax burden between sectors of the economy. It is about shifting the tax burden from manufacturing enterprises, first of all, on the financial and trade spheres, where there was an unjustified low level tax exemptions.
There are four main reasons why, under the current conditions in Russia, a more equitable distribution of income should be seen as a necessary condition in order to stop the decline in production and move towards economic growth in the future.
First, high-income groups in Russia are not inclined to save and invest in domestic economy, but focused on the export of capital abroad and the consumption of imported goods.
Secondly, with a reduction in production and a decrease in incomes for the majority of the population to a physiological minimum, while reducing the consumption of education and health services, there is a sharp deterioration in the quality of labor resources.
Thirdly, an increase in the income level of low-paid (low-income) groups of the population, focused on the consumption of domestic goods and services, stimulates the development of domestic production, investment activity and employment growth.
And finally, fourthly, a more even approach to the distribution of income is a psychologically important positive factor. If wealth inequality and differentiation in income levels between different groups of the population continues to increase, there will remain the danger of opposition to reforms by fairly highly educated but low-income groups of the population.
Let us dwell briefly on the recommendations of the school of supply-side economics in the field of tax policy. Representatives of this school believe that tax increases lead to higher costs and prices and - ultimately - are passed on to consumers. High taxes hinder investment, investment in new technology, in the improvement of production. In contrast to Keynes, supply-side economists argue that Western taxation does not curb, but increases inflation, does not stabilize the economy, but undermines the incentives to increase production.
Supply-side economics advocates tax cuts to encourage investment. It is proposed to abandon the system of progressive taxation (recipients of high incomes are leaders in renewing production and increasing productivity), to reduce tax rates on entrepreneurship, on wages and dividends. Tax cuts will increase the income and savings of entrepreneurs, lower the level of interest rate As a result, savings and investments will grow. For wage earners, tax cuts will increase the attractiveness of additional work and income. additional earnings, incentives to work will increase, the supply of labor will increase.
In their reasoning, supply-side economics theorists rely on the so-called Laffer curve (the Laffer curve was named after the American economist who substantiated the dependence budget revenues from tax rates). Its meaning is that the reduction of marginal rates and taxes in general has a powerful stimulating effect on production. When rates are reduced, the tax base eventually increases: as more output is produced, more taxes are collected. This does not happen immediately (Fig. 3). But in theory, the expansion of the tax base is able to compensate for the loss in tax revenue caused by lower tax rates.
Some other recommendations of supply-side economics should also be mentioned. Since tax cuts lead to a reduction in budget revenues, various ways are proposed to "rescue" from the deficit. Thus, it is recommended to cut social programs, reduce the bureaucracy, and get rid of inefficient federal spending. The effective functioning of the tax system of countries with market economies is aimed at fulfilling several main tasks.
Rice. 7.3. Laffer curve
Firstly, tax system must successfully solve the fiscal redistribution problem, i.e., by redistributing the incomes of entrepreneurs and the population, to ensure financial resources the revenue part of the state budget (in developed countries, taxes cover on average up to 90% of state budget revenues).
Secondly, the tax system should operate in such a way that, at a minimum, it does not undermine incentives for production and any economic activity and, at best, contribute to the formation and strengthening of such incentives.
Thirdly, the taxation system is quite organically connected with the principle of social justice.
Fourthly, the formation of taxation systems is greatly influenced by the requirements of organizational and computational ease in determining certain taxes, the efficiency of their collection, the possibility of maintaining the stability of taxation, i.e., the absence of the need for frequent and even more drastic changes in certain taxes, etc. . P.
Fifthly, there should be a skillful distribution of the tax burden between different budgetary levels - federal, regional (subjects of the Federation) and local; in unitary states - between the national and local levels.
The first general indicator that characterizes the role of tax in the economy of a country is the share of all tax revenues, as well as tax revenues at the central (federal) level, in the gross national product (GNP).
The second general indicator of the system of taxation of countries with market economies is the similarity of the main taxes. Approximately 90-95% of all tax revenues come from 70 taxes, although their total number in different countries reaches several dozen. An important generalizing indicator of the taxation system is the distribution of tax revenues by different budgetary levels.
7.8. Income policy as an aspect of socio-economic
state policy
In any society, income policy is part of the state's socio-economic policy. It is determined by the economic institutions that exist in the state at a particular moment in time, the priorities that the state has identified and the tools that it uses. In the very general view economic policy and the policy of incomes, among other things, is determined by the degree of state intervention in the economy: the scale, forms and intensity of this intervention. From this point of view, there are two polar options: the administrative economy and the free market. President Roosevelt's anti-crisis measures included a wide range of administrative methods:
· the government was empowered to regulate wages, prices, working hours, the process of industry competition;
government agencies organized program orders to enterprises that were paid from federal budget;
· the government organized public works to reduce the pressure of unemployment in society;
· Significantly increased state control over the securities market;
The federal budget expenditures increased significantly, mainly due to the growth public debt(increased budget deficit) etc.
The socio-economic policy of the state, carried out in unstable, transitional periods of historical development, has a central block of so-called sub-policies, decisions in which to a large extent determine the success or failure of the reform as a whole. You can call it a certain dominant in the totality of all economic decisions adopted in the course of reforms, since it is this block that has direct access to the level and quality of life of the population and contributes to the adoption or blocking of reforms by citizens. We are talking about employment policy, price policy and income policy, which ultimately constitute the general concept of transformation, since mismatched decisions in the field of one of these policies can nullify all efforts to reform the economy as a whole.
Let us recall how, for example, employment policy and wage policy interact as an aspect of income policy. According to the classical model, high unemployment is the product of too high wages. Unemployment is considered by the classics as an excess of supply over demand. The cure for unemployment is to reduce wages to the equilibrium level.
Rice. 7.4 Scheme of classical unemployment
According to this theory, no special economic policy is required, since classical market mechanisms are at work: excess supply pushes the price down, and equilibrium is reached. However, in reality, wages are reduced very reluctantly. There are many reasons for this, and the main one is that wages are not only the costs of employers, but also the income of an employee. Therefore, employees through the trade unions in every possible way prevent such a decrease. But the employer is also interested in stable wages, as this allows you to more clearly plan the activities of the company, establish calmer relations with the staff, and make reasonable forecasts for the future. Thus, the presence of this or that level of unemployment in the society of the classics was called "voluntary" payment for high earnings and did not consider it possible to interfere in this process.
Meanwhile, during the massive unemployment of the 1930s. the failure of this theory became obvious and the classical approach was replaced by the views of Keynes and the Stockholm School. What is true for an individual enterprise is not necessarily true for the state. Indeed, the entrepreneur will hire more workers if the price of labor falls, and other conditions of the economic situation, and, first of all, the demand for the company's products remains unchanged. However, the following situation is also true: if wages fall in the country as a whole, then this leads to a contraction in aggregate demand, and, consequently, employment.
Thus, a confrontation arose between "classical unemployment", caused by an excessive rise in the cost of labor, and "Keynesian unemployment", caused by a fall in aggregate demand. Keynes, as you know, believed that the state should pursue a special policy aimed at increasing demand, for example, increase government spending actively expansionist financial policy. This will affect the demand for labor, new jobs will be created, which will ultimately reduce unemployment. However, an increase in investment and consumer spending will certainly affect the level of inflation. Moreover, the post-war decade showed that both prices and unemployment could rise at the same time.
Fundamentally A New Look on the problem of the relationship between price policy, employment and wages, and how to solve it, Philips proposed, having built his famous curve. Phillips' main idea was that inflation could be curbed only by limiting earnings and allowing a certain level of unemployed to exist (6-7%).
The dependence derived by Phillips also indicates a direct relationship between inflation and the mechanism of income generation, since the price growth curve practically repeats all the curves of the curve characterizing the rate of wage growth. True, there is a certain lag in the rate of price growth, which increases as wage growth decreases. Based on what, Phillips states: it is not an increase in wages in itself that leads to inflation, but only one that outstrips the real progress in labor productivity.
So, it seemed that a mechanism for managing such complex processes as inflation, unemployment and wages had been found. By planning the unemployment rate (still the same 6-7%), it is possible to regulate the inflation rate, and the ratio between the growth of the average wage in the country and the growth of the national level of labor productivity is able to maintain a balance between the money supply and the supply of commodities. Only partly. In subsequent years, it turned out that this dependence is not so stable, especially in long term. In the 1970s the general pattern is the simultaneous acceleration of growth and prices, and unemployment.
Thus, it can be clearly stated that:
· Price policy, employment policy and wage policy are one of the most significant central blocks of any socio-economic policy of the state, since they directly affect the interests of all members of society;
