福利國家對新自由主義的回應—以荷蘭為例

Abstract

傳統上，有關福利國家的研究經常以歷史時段之切割作為分界。政治學界對福利國家研究多半聚焦於建立、擴張和緊縮的政治意涵、福利國家體制構成和制度性政策之治理等，或是來自社會學界對福利制度如何透過公權力和經濟資源，對公民社會產生權威性支配和社會生活之影響等為內涵。然而1980年代起，以新自由主義為主軸的經濟全球化對民族國家、企業、社會乃至於個人產生廣泛而深遠的影響，就福利國家而言，其引發侵蝕福利國家永續發展基礎的疑慮。而新自由主義全球化是否必然窒息福利國家生路亦存在多元的爭辯。因此，本論文企圖結合政治學和社會學對福利國家發展的觀點，透過對荷蘭作為一福利國家的宏觀檢視，探究福利國家如何作為荷蘭的國富民強之道，而荷蘭又如何借助新自由主義調適其福利體制。 荷蘭福利國家確立於二次大戰後，以發展「照護國家」為總體國家發展目標，植基於其高度協調的市場經濟制度、自由開放的國際貿易、統合主義的協商傳統，並在政黨政治和荷蘭社會柱化的崩解下，構成荷蘭完備而優渥的福利體制。然而荷蘭經驗之特殊性不僅在於其福利體制融合了以勞動者為主的社會保險、以公民權為基礎的普及式福利和帶有家長主義特色的照護取向，從荷蘭的歷史經驗出發，更可了解國際環境對荷蘭福利國家之形塑，特別是地緣政治上受到德國、英國與北歐對社會福利理念的啟發。此外，本文亦指出荷蘭高度依賴國際貿易作為資本積累的途徑，同時意味高度曝險於國際經濟環境，歷經1970年代荷蘭病的教訓，荷蘭能以更自由靈活的彈性面對國際風險，並率先發展出配合時勢的福利緊縮、鬆綁協調市場管制以及彈性安全的就業策略，形成當代荷蘭特殊而普遍的「一個半」養家者模式。新自由主義經濟全球化蔚為風尚，使得福利國家之治理成為先進資本主義國家的共同課題，而荷蘭經驗則成為各界的參考。

The studies of welfare states are always divined by historical phases traditionally. There are two main perspectives of studying welfare state, political and socialogical. The former focuses on the political meanings of welfare state building, expansion and retrenchment and the arrangement of welfare state. The other pays attention to how the welfare schemes affact people’s life and rights. However, it was not until 1980s that neoliberal economic glibalization has overwhelmed nation-state by its pervasive power. Some believe it will ruin the basis of welfare state and suffcate the future of welfare state. It is still an open question and the debates go on. Thus, the thesis trys to analyze the Dutch welfare state with the approaches of both politics and sociology and explore how welfare state could be a mean that leads to a prosperous state and how the Dutch welfare state adjust itself by means of neoliberalist trend. The Dutch welfare state is set up under the goal of “caring state” which is based on its coordinated market economy, open international trade and corporatist tradition. Motivated by the competition of political parties and the collaspe of pillarization, the Dutch welfare state has become the most generous one worldwide. The particularity of Dutch welfare state consists not only in the hybird type but also the formation of welfare state mixture has profoundlly shaped by its surrounding countries and the international environment. Besides, the thesis indicates the Netherlands heavily relys on international trade as a mean to capital accumulation which implys the great exposure to international econmic flunctuations. With the experience of Dutch disease during the 1970s, the Netherlands treats international risks in a more flexible manner and the way it responds to neoliberalism has been watched and learned by its counterparters.