Universal Basic Income as a Safety Net For American Workers

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 By: Andy Wyatt


Micheal Tubbs at the launch of his UBI experiment in Stockton 

Universal Basic Income is more than just a policy solution to combat workplace automation. Andrew Yang popularized his UBI plan in the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries. 

"The mission in this campaign has to be for us to disentangle economic value and human value, say they are not the same things, and make this case to our fellow Americans that we each have intrinsic value as citizens, as human beings, and as owners and shareholders of the richest country in the history of the world."-Andrew Yang, 2020 Democratic primary debates. 

We know from recent UBI pilots such as the Stockton Basic Income program that gave some participants $500 each month. They also had a controlled group that did not get $500 a month and followed them and their spending habits; they found that a majority of those that received the extra $500 a month spent that money on home goods, utilities, and other bills. The program also indicated that the extra income did not dissuade the participants from working. In fact, they found that the recipients working full time INCREASED by 12% versus only 5% for those in the program that did not get the $500 a month. 

Many parents in America have finally tasted what UBI can do through the Child Tax Credit payments. Now it's time to make UBI work for everyone, not just the poor, the working poor, the middle class, every American citizen. Suppose you are an American citizen, which means you live in the wealthiest country in the history of the world. In that case, you shouldn't have to break your back to eat when we have the technology, companies because of that technology, have a surplus of cash in savings that should be taxed. 

UBI will allow Americans to work less and spend more time with loved ones. UBI will increase the arts if people can afford to do what they love instead of being miserable at a job they hate until they retire. The American addiction with work from a mental health standpoint is not sustainable, one research from WHO(World Health Organization) has found that working 55 or more hours per week is associated with an estimated 35% higher risk of a stroke and a 17% higher risk of dying from ischemic heart disease, compared to working 35-40 hours a week.

 UBI should NOT be used as the primary source of income. It's literally impossible to live on 8-12K a year, especially given the recent inflation of rent and food. UBI as a supplement would act as a safety net to many Americans that might only make 35k a year. Many teachers have to get second jobs. School bus drivers, school janitors, artists, low-budget independent movie actors, independent journalists, Uber drivers, and Instacart delivery workers need UBI to live with dignity in this society. It's past time to treat essential workers like the essentials they are. 



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