Benefit Reforms for Inclusive Societies in the United States
Income Security During Joblessness
Protecting people, rather than specific jobs, plays a key role in promoting labour-market
inclusiveness and dynamism. Effective unemployment benefits reduce inequality, and
facilitate a good match between workers’ skills and job requirements. They are a crucial
policy lever for adapting to the major societal, technological and environmental transitions
of our time. This report on the United States is the second of a number of OECD country
reviews of income support policies. Each report analyses key policy challenges, discusses
recent reform initiatives, and identifies good practices from other OECD countries.
The report examines the reach and generosity of unemployment insurance and other income
support for working age households, with a special focus on disadvantaged labour market
groups. What are key gaps in benefit receipt between wage- and salaried employees
and non-standard workers (part-time workers, those on temporary contracts, and self-employed
workers including own-account workers)? What factors, including race/ethnicity and
gender, drive non-entitlement to unemployment compensation? The report examines these
questions, considers the impact of recent extensions to the unemployment insurance
programme in response to the COVID pandemic, and outlines policy directions for strengthening
out-of-work support.
Published on May 09, 2023