If not everyone has a job in the future, how will individuals who do not have a job survive?
More than 200 years ago, when the first industrial revolution began, industry using machines greatly enhanced society’s output while allowing individuals time to rest. The development of technology has made many industries much more efficient and allowed them to lower labour costs but at the expense of many skilled workers who now suffer unemployment and other issues. And in this instance, the wealth disparity is also increasing quickly since the capitalists in charge of the machinery can amass enormous money. At the same time, the artisans are forced to deal with the problem of not having enough to eat due to unemployment. The universal basic income (UBI) scheme was created due to the widening wealth and poverty divide.
Understanding Universal Basic Income (UBI)
The universal basic income (UBI) scheme provides a defined amount of money to every adult citizen on a regular basis. A basic income system’s goals are to reduce poverty and to replace existing need-based social programmes that may require more bureaucratic engagement. The concept of universal basic income has gained traction in the United States as automation replaces workers in manufacturing and other sectors of the economy.
The concept of universal basic income attracted a lot of interest during the early stages of the 2020 presidential campaign as an entrepreneur, and former Democratic candidate Andrew Yang made it the centrepiece of his campaign. Every American over the age of 18 would get a $1,000 payment each month under Yang’s “Freedom Dividend,” as he dubbed it. Participants in government aid programmes might choose to keep receiving their payments or choose the Freedom Dividend in their place.
Yang asserted that the percentage of Americans who were employed or looking for employment was at its lowest point in decades. One American said, “The Freedom Dividend would give money to Americans to cover the essentials while allowing us to hunt for a better career, establish our own business, return to school, take care of our loved ones, or work towards our next chance.”
Global Experiment for UBI
Switzerland held a referendum in 2016 to determine whether or not to add a “universal basic income” to its constitution. It was opposed by 76.9% of the general populace. The primary grounds for resistance were that “taxes are insufficient to fund the basic income,” “fear of decreased employment,” and “the influx of immigrants into Switzerland.”
The UBI experiment was started in Ontario, Canada, in 2017 with low-income earners, but it was discontinued the following year due to a political party switch, with the New Deal Party’s major justification being that it was “too pricey.”
Finland started a two-year trial with jobless people in 2017. The findings revealed a slight improvement in the basic income recipients’ average number of days worked, financial stability, and mental health.
Support and opposition
Tesla CEO Elon Musk: “In the future, if AI replaces most people’s jobs, a universal basic income will be a necessity.”
Founder of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg: “We should explore ideas like universal basic income more often to ensure that everyone has a buffer to try new ideas.”
American economist Pavlina R. Tcherneva: “It’s easy to send a check in the mail, but making sure everyone has access to the real goods and services they need to live is the hard part.”
Lawrence F. Katz, American economist: “The Earned Income Tax Credit, or wage subsidies for people who are hard to employ, are better policy options than a universal basic income that is not linked to work.”
How to execute it
According to global experiments and public opinion, this UBI experiment is not particularly successful and runs into several issues during its deployment. As a result of the fundamental issue that not everyone can accept the UBI concept, mainly people in the higher classes, the need for governments to start adopting UBI is not very promising at the time and may take many years to achieve.
However, this problem is solved in HyperNation, where the concept of UBI will be implemented. In all countries, it is challenging to accomplish this. Still, in HyperNation, it is simple to do so because no one is subject to government control, everyone is free to express their opinions, and the government doesn’t make all the decisions. In contrast, in the current society, everything is decided by the government.
UBI frees a person from the responsibilities of daily maintenance so they can pursue self-actualization. The details of other financial aid and pressures that will be used to help the citizens of HyperNation will be made public in the future. Being a citizen has many advantages, one of which is the ability to affect HyperNation’s policies via the DAO system, also known as a Decentralized Autonomous Organization.
Even though UBI may still seem like a long way off, HyperNation has already started implementing it, so there is no need to wait for other nations to investigate and adopt it. We can currently experience the UBI at HyperNation. It’s a highly distinctive experience that also increases awareness of the current social welfare system.