Universal basic income (UBI) has supporters across the political spectrum. The idea is that if every citizen received a payment from the state to cover their living costs, it this will allow them the freedom to live as they choose.
But voters who turned down a UBI pilot in a recent referendum in the German city of Hamburg apparently found something to dislike. A frequent argument against UBI is that recipients will decide to work less. This in turn will make labour (and consequently labour-intensive products) more expensive.
Indeed, a recent study on a UBI experiment has found that recipients of an unconditional monthly transfer of US$1,000 (£760) were significantly less likely to work. And if they did work, they put in fewer hours than a control group who received only US$50 per month.
The goal of UBI isnt to “make everyone more wealthy instantly”, that would be unrealistic. So claiming it “doesnt work” because it doesnt make everyone 1000$ richer is just wrong.
One of the main goals is to help people with low/no income, who struggle to get their lives on track, by taking away the immense stress they experience from the struggle for survival. This could turn their downward spiral back upwards.
A months worth of groceries wont get 1000$ more expensive. For the median employee it might not make a difference as it might cancel out, for the rich probably neither, they arent really influenced by inflation. But it would have a huge impact on lower-income households.