Social Rights

Social Rights and Citizenship: An International Comparison

Michael Fix and Laureen Laglagaron, The Urban Institute

A Report of the Working Group on Social Rights and Citizenship of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Comparative Citizenship Project Adrian Favell, Sussex Centre for Migration Research, University of Sussex; Kees Groenendijk, Center for Migration Law, University ofNijmegen; Susan Martin, Institute for the Study of International Migration, Georgetown University; Riva Kastoryano, Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques

August, 2002

The authors would like to express their appreciation to T. Alexander Aleinikoff, Georgetown University Law School and the Migration Policy Institute for his guidance and insights and to David Madden for his researchassistance. Another version of this paper will appear in Alexander T. Aleinikoff and Douglas Klusmeyer, eds. Citizenship for an Age of Migration, 2002, The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Washington, D.C. To order or read excerpts of the book see, www.ceip.org/pubs. Financial support was provided by the Ford, Andrew W. Mellon and LusoAmerican Foundations.

Opinions expressed are those ofthe authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Urban Institute or any of its sponsors.

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Table of Contents I. INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 1 Rationale for the Inquiry............................................................................................................1 Analytic Framework ..................................................................................................................3 II. ACCESS TO PUBLIC BENEFITS: GENERAL POLICY TRENDS ....................................................... 5 The Path to Permanent Status...................................................................................................6 RationingBenefits by Citizenship: The U.S., Austria and Britain..............................................7 Indirect Bars to Benefits.............................................................................................................8 Restrictions to Contributory Benefit Programs .........................................................................9 Does Rationing by Citizenship Make GoodPolicy?.................................................................10 III. RATIONING ACCESS TO THE LABOR M ARKET ON THE BASIS OF CITIZENSHIP ......................13 Public Sector Employment .......................................................................................................13 Private Sector Employment.....................................................................................................15 Self Employment.. ....................................................................................................................17 IV. IS CITIZENSHIP ENOUGH? ANTIDISCRIMINATION POLICIES .................................................. 17 V. POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS .................................................................................................. 20BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................................... 23 ENDNOTES .................................................................................................................................. 28 APPENDIX I - Summary Tables: Benefit Eligibility by Country……………………………..31

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I. INTRODUCTION Liberaldemocratic states generally offer citizens benefits and entitlements on an equal basis: what T.H. Marshall referred to in a famous essay as “ the basic human equality associated with full membership of a community" (Marshall 1950). In the current era of immigration, there are strong arguments for extending these entitlements beyond citizens to settled, permanent immigrants: especially those in jus...