Universal Basic Income, Poverty, and Social Justice: A Moral and Economic Imperative for Social Workers

Modern technology threatens to dramatically alter the U.S. labor economy, but the crumbling social safety net may be insufficient for affected workers. Some advocates propose to address these converging problems through universal basic income (UBI). Authors conducted a preliminary review of social work perspectives on the topic of UBI. They found very little relevant literature, especially among American scholars. Existent social work literature frames UBI as an alternative to the neoliberal welfare state and mass unemployment. Social workers also contribute a critical social justice orientation to UBI scholarship in other disciplines. Grounded in the NASW Code of Ethics, authors argue that it is imperative for American social workers to seriously consider UBI as an answer to growing inequality and the unique expertise that social workers offer as allies of marginalized populations.