I have an idea that seems (to me) to be somewhere between a higher minimum wage, and universal basic income:
Require employers to offer very high amounts of paid time off. Perhaps only applying to low paying jobs.
For example, if a minimum wage employee was guaranteed 6-months worth of paid time off, they could work two jobs and make twice as much money. And even though they would technically be working two jobs, they would not have to work more hours.
People with two jobs are less likely to lose all their income from being laid off, and would be willing to be more mobile in the market, because they already have two jobs and can compare them. It would increase competition between businesses to offer good work environments.
It would also have some of the benefits of universal basic income, because people would have a lot of time they could spend going to school, or starting a business, etc.
If minimum wage employees became accustom to a lot of time off that would also put pressure on other jobs to give more time off. As far as I understand the US is pretty stingy with time off compared to other developed nations?
It could also address one of the fears about universal basic income, which is that people would become do-nothing hermits. That couldn't fully happen if people still had to work some of the time.
It would essentially double the employee cost on business though. But so would doubling the minimum wage.
The problem with this scheme is that it is weirdly selective; only people who can get jobs can benefit. What about the mentally or physically disabled? What about felons, who often face a significantly smaller job market? What about people who are outed from a shrinking industry but are too "overqualified" to be hired at lower levels in other industries?
Perfect is the enemy of good. I think the parent comment uses their proposition as a good start on the way to eventually achieve universal basic income for everyone. From their post, the part about alleviating lazy hermit related worries when it comes universal income hinted at that, imo.
Require employers to offer very high amounts of paid time off. Perhaps only applying to low paying jobs.
For example, if a minimum wage employee was guaranteed 6-months worth of paid time off, they could work two jobs and make twice as much money. And even though they would technically be working two jobs, they would not have to work more hours.
People with two jobs are less likely to lose all their income from being laid off, and would be willing to be more mobile in the market, because they already have two jobs and can compare them. It would increase competition between businesses to offer good work environments.
It would also have some of the benefits of universal basic income, because people would have a lot of time they could spend going to school, or starting a business, etc.
If minimum wage employees became accustom to a lot of time off that would also put pressure on other jobs to give more time off. As far as I understand the US is pretty stingy with time off compared to other developed nations?
It could also address one of the fears about universal basic income, which is that people would become do-nothing hermits. That couldn't fully happen if people still had to work some of the time.
It would essentially double the employee cost on business though. But so would doubling the minimum wage.