Guaranteed Basic Income.

With the rise of Robotics and AI and technology advancing at a fast rate reducing the need for a large workforce, careers that were lifelong are becoming a thing of the past. A new age of career insecurity and subsequent income insecurity or uncertainty require a new approach to safeguarding citizens against such sudden changes in their lives.

Universal Basic income has becoming a large talking point and suggestion for income security. It is where every citizen receives a basic income amount regardless of their income and free of any conditions. It is rightfully questioned due to the cost to the economy for every citizen, regardless of their income level to receive such an amount.

My suggestion is a "guaranteed" basic income. This is where you receive a payment to equal a calculated basic income if your job income falls below a certain level. I would consider the tax free amount of $22,000 per annum as a suitable basic income. If your job income drops below this amount or you are unemployed, your would receive fortnightly payments so that your income matches this amount. If you are unemployed, to receive this amount you would need to sign up to a work pool from which employers could draw employees at short notice for new projects, new business or increases in production.

The benefit to employers is that the government guaranteed basic income would continue for the employee and the employer would just need to match the income amount of $22k per year (pro rata) in order to employ the worker for a fixed period of time. I will discuss this in another section. The employee, under this payment system, would then receive an income of 44k with the employer paying only $22k, full burden of superannuation would be on the employer however. This would mean benefit for employer, benefit for worker and benefit for the government with taxable income and higher production attracting GST. Again I will discuss the work pool system, which will replace Centrelink, on the "replace Centrelink" page.