Solidarity without the State?: Business and the Shaping of the Swiss Welfare State, 1890-2000

Description

This book presents the first comprehensive history of the interplay of public and private provision that made the Swiss 'three-pillar' pension system into a model for the World Bank and other pension reformers during the last two decades of the twentieth century. Through a study of business federations', private pension lobbyists' and insurance companies' archives, Matthieu Leimgruber charts the century-long battle waged over the boundaries of state and private pensions. He shows how a distinctive path towards social provision has laid the foundation for a pension fund industry rivalling that of the United States and the United Kingdom. Through this comparative approach Matthieu Leimgruber is also able to question current assumptions about the strict dichotomy between 'Anglo-Saxon' and 'continental' models of welfare provision. This study will appeal to scholars of twentieth-century European history, economic history, political economy and welfare economics.

Matthieu Leimgruber is a postdoctoral advanced researcher, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (2005-2008) at the International Institute for Social History, Amsterdam.

'History is here to remind us that the practicability, acceptance and performance of a social policy model cannot be artificially separated from its roots and development trajectory and these factors should always be taken into account in any discussion about transfer and adoption. Yet, most recommendations in favor of the 'Swiss system' remain utterly silent on these aspects ... Matthieu Leimgruber's book is a welcome therapy against this blindness.' Thilo Fehmel, Zeitschrift fur Sozialreform '[This] well-written study offers a fascinating, often thrilling insight into the contested policies of old-age provision in Switzerland. Another advantage of the book is that it amply contextualizes the Swiss case by side-glances at other countries, notably Britain and the United States. [This] is required reading for everyone interested in the fragmentations of modern welfare systems and in answering the question of how this complex story can be understood in history and the social sciences.' Martin Lengwiler, Reviews in History (history.ac.uk/reviews) 'This book is an especially welcome addition to the growing literature on European welfare states ... Like all good welfare histories, it both furthers and complicates our understanding of social policy.' Paul V. Dutton, Social History 'Thanks to his knowledge of the political science scholarship on welfare regimes and to his comparative insights, the author is able to solidly anchor the Swiss social state historiography to international scholarly debates. As a further contribution, Leimgruber also brings new understanding to the history of [twentieth-century] Swiss taxation policy.' Gisela Hurlimann, H-Soz-u-Kult 'This book provides a masterly account of the shaping of the Swiss pension system during the twentieth century ... there is no doubt that this book will be an important milestone in welfare state research. Hopefully, it will boost more encompassing empirical investigations bearing on all components of the complex nexus between the State, private companies, and associations.' Jean-Michel Bonvin, European History Quarterly