welfare states
Countries providing social protection
Welfare states are nations where the government takes significant responsibility for citizens' economic security and social well-being—providing healthcare, unemployment insurance, pensions, and other safety nets.
The term describes both the political system and the countries themselves: The Nordic welfare states offer generous parental leave.
Critics use it disparagingly to suggest excessive government dependency; supporters see it as civilized society's baseline.
- food stampsSubsidized grocery purchasing vouchers
- pensionsOngoing payments after employment
- governmentsRuling political authorities
- big governmentExpansive, powerful state apparatus
- tax burdenAmount owed to government
social safety net · safety net · workfare · social services · well-being · unemployment benefits · social security · public healthcare · basic income · poverty alleviation · cradle to grave · social insurance · social democracies · mixed economies · universal basic income · working poor · minimum income · family benefits
welfare statesanarcho-capitalism
Stateless free-market ideology
Thatcherism · Reaganomics · classical liberalism · objectivism · tax havens
welfare, state, states, fare, fared, fares, faring, statehood, stateless