7.3. Economic Freedom, Work and Universal Basic Income
Ideas
- The economic system is never as efficient as when the agents work freely within it.
- Software Democracy offers this opportunity to everyone, guaranteeing access to education, as well as the right to fail and to reorient oneself.
- Work is abundant, ensuring a balanced power dynamic between employees and employers.
- Universal Basic Income is the main redistribution mechanism. It guarantees everyone a minimum of security and dignity.
Freedom
One of the key factors for the success of Software Democracy is allowing everyone to contribute to the economic system by expressing their qualities and skills in the areas where they will be most effective.
The social safety net and free education thus allow everyone to train and contribute freely to the economy.
This also allows for greater flexibility for companies, which see their hiring and dismissal processes greatly facilitated. An indefinite-term employment contract is possible and encouraged, but both companies and employees can freely terminate it within a reasonable period.
Self-employment is facilitated in the digital democracy economy. Everyone can easily create a company to invoice their services and can work even more freely.
It may seem like a neoliberal dream, but it is actually about restoring balance in the power dynamic; in today's society, losing a job can mean personal and family economic disaster, with few prospects. In the digital democracy economy, not only is a minimum income guaranteed, as well as access to healthcare and education, but everyone can instantly create their own business to generate additional income, train for a new profession, etc...
In fact, companies will be constantly searching for skilled workers!
Work
Moreover, work will be abundant. Unemployment is a product of our current economic system, but in the context of Software Democracy, the shortage of workers will be the main problem.
Yes, we will always have more machines to help us, software and AI will allow us to automate increasingly complex tasks, and digital democracy itself will simplify administration so much that the number of civil servants will be drastically reduced.
But this will only make us focus on more important tasks, which will be the major projects of digital democracy:
- Fighting poverty and supporting developing countries.
- Rebuilding and revitalizing neglected regions in developed countries.
- Cleaning the planet and the oceans.
- Accelerating the energy transition and decarbonizing the atmosphere.
- Transforming food production.
- Transforming industry and research.
- Space exploration.
Why then allow idleness by providing everyone with a Universal Basic Income?
Universal Basic Income
Firstly, because Universal Basic Income is not meant to ensure idleness, but rather to allow for subsistence, dignity, and the exercise of citizenship under all circumstances. It is a safety net, not a luxurious life financed by the community!
The desire of individuals to improve their daily lives, combined with the ease with which one can work, will thus encourage active contributions to society.
Moreover, who really wants to live without contributing in any way to society? Beyond a few months, idleness becomes unbearable. The economy of Software Democracy therefore allows everyone to get back on track at any time.
This contribution to society is also encouraged by:
- The belief that the societal model is positive and contributes to the common good.
- The ability to actively participate in the government through citizenship, and thus to feel associated with a common societal project.
- Education, from an early age, which values contributions to society in all its forms.
Finally, many activities with high economic and social value are not remunerated: grandparents taking care of their grandchildren, volunteers in associations that help people in difficulty, or volunteer educators in sports clubs. Universal Basic Income allows these individuals, regardless of their task, to receive compensation for the contributions they make to society.
From a practical standpoint, Universal Basic Income is paid at the full rate starting at age 18, at 50% from birth, and at 150% from age 60 onwards.