A universal basic income in the superstar (digital) economy
This paper argues that the structural logic of the digital economy is to widen inequality, not only through its increasing automation of jobs but also in its efficiency in delivering ever greater profits to a smaller number of already-enriched organisations and individuals. Remedial actions that mig...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis
2018
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/53819/ |
| _version_ | 1848798990616756224 |
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| author | White, Andrew |
| author_facet | White, Andrew |
| author_sort | White, Andrew |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | This paper argues that the structural logic of the digital economy is to widen inequality, not only through its increasing automation of jobs but also in its efficiency in delivering ever greater profits to a smaller number of already-enriched organisations and individuals. Remedial actions that might be taken to mitigate the effects of some of the digital economy’s structural flaws are interrogated here, with a particular focus on universal basic income (UBI) and stake-holding schemes. The paper considers whether the digital economy’s inherent problems are of such magnitude that some sort of financial support for workers to buttress long periods of idleness, or to enable them to take risks in increasingly volatile and unstable global markets, is both desirable and politically feasible. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T20:28:33Z |
| format | Article |
| id | nottingham-53819 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T20:28:33Z |
| publishDate | 2018 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-538192019-08-24T04:30:21Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/53819/ A universal basic income in the superstar (digital) economy White, Andrew This paper argues that the structural logic of the digital economy is to widen inequality, not only through its increasing automation of jobs but also in its efficiency in delivering ever greater profits to a smaller number of already-enriched organisations and individuals. Remedial actions that might be taken to mitigate the effects of some of the digital economy’s structural flaws are interrogated here, with a particular focus on universal basic income (UBI) and stake-holding schemes. The paper considers whether the digital economy’s inherent problems are of such magnitude that some sort of financial support for workers to buttress long periods of idleness, or to enable them to take risks in increasingly volatile and unstable global markets, is both desirable and politically feasible. Taylor & Francis 2018-08-24 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/53819/1/1.pdf White, Andrew (2018) A universal basic income in the superstar (digital) economy. Ethics and Social Welfare . pp. 1-15. ISSN 1749-6535 Universal basic income; digital economy; automation; joblessness http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17496535.2018.1512138 doi:10.1080/17496535.2018.1512138 doi:10.1080/17496535.2018.1512138 |
| spellingShingle | Universal basic income; digital economy; automation; joblessness White, Andrew A universal basic income in the superstar (digital) economy |
| title | A universal basic income in the superstar (digital) economy |
| title_full | A universal basic income in the superstar (digital) economy |
| title_fullStr | A universal basic income in the superstar (digital) economy |
| title_full_unstemmed | A universal basic income in the superstar (digital) economy |
| title_short | A universal basic income in the superstar (digital) economy |
| title_sort | universal basic income in the superstar (digital) economy |
| topic | Universal basic income; digital economy; automation; joblessness |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/53819/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/53819/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/53819/ |