De-Commodification Revisited: On the Absence of Emancipation in Europe

25 Pages Posted: 4 Sep 2006

See all articles by Alexander Somek

Alexander Somek

University of Iowa - College of Law

Date Written: August 27, 2006

Abstract

Is the European Union undermining the national European social welfare state? Or has it succeeded at balancing the project of market building with social concerns?

An answer to this question presupposes a clarification of what social policy is to be about. Two conceptions can be distinguished. Social policy in a weak sense is aimed at enabling market-participation or compensating for the loss of a market-income; in a strong sense, social policy is designed to establish independence from market-demand. The distinction between these two conceptions can be developed by juxtaposing the notion of de-commodification (Polanyi, Esping-Andersen) with Eduard Heimann's attempt to attribute to social policy an emancipatory objective. On this basis, it can be seen how European integration has consistently contributed to the weakening of social policy in Europe.

It should not come as a surprise, then, that European integration has not been perceived by European citizens as a process of emancipation. This matter is of constitutional significance, at any rate, for an organisation that has an economic constitution.

Keywords: De-commodification, European Union, European Social Welfare State

Suggested Citation

Somek, Alexander, De-Commodification Revisited: On the Absence of Emancipation in Europe (August 27, 2006). U Iowa Legal Studies Research Paper No. 06-04, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=927967 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.927967

Alexander Somek (Contact Author)

University of Iowa - College of Law ( email )

Melrose and Byington
Iowa City, IA 52242
United States

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