Política pública de renda mínima: o desafio da universalização do acesso no Brasil

Abstract

The present study addresses the difficulty for the universalization of access to living income programs and how the obstacles presented keep Brazil from realizing the constitutional principles preconized in the 1988 Federal Constitution. Therefore, the research uses the hypothetical-deductive method which aims to solve a problem by formulating hypotheses which are constantly tested throughout the study. Taking that into consideration the research questions whether the living income programs in Brazil fulfill the purposes described in the Constitution, especially that of extreme poverty eradication. The core hypothesis was elaborated upon it keeping in mind that the universal access to the living income contributes to reach the fundamental constitutional goals of poverty and extreme poverty eradication in order to realize the principle of human dignity. The research performs a study on the formation of the State, going through its evolution up to the current model, drawing attention to its success and failures. Such analysis allowed the verification of the evolution of social concerns and of social issues emphasizing the consolidation of fundamental social rights, mainly through the Fundamental Principle of Human Dignity, in search for the reduction of poverty and inequalities. Regarding social rights, they were inserted in the legal universe throughout the twentieth century and since then the Constitutions started to regulate them. This caused the State to change from its abstentionist stance into a service approach, bringing about the first-generation individual rights such as freedom of speech, due process of law. Along with those there are the second-generation individual rights such as the economical, social and cultural rights realizing the fulfillment of the Fundamental Social Rights. The phenomenon of poverty emerges linked to the development of the State. However, due to specificities of each country it turns to be a difficult task to measure poverty by focusing on income. In that context distinctions between the concepts of both living wage and basic income were verified. The former is related to the industrialized countries which established a certain income to be transferred through the accomplishment of certain issues related to health and education. On the other hand the latest turns to be totally unconditional and is destined to each person individually considered, and free of whatsoever criterion of selection. Brazil has created a third concept which is the Conditioned Income Transfer, an option that took Brazil into consideration as still being a developing country. Besides, that model is learned to be the best way to meet the need of reducing by half the rates of misery and poverty from 1990, as stated in the Millennium Development Goals established by the United Nations - UN. The structuring of the Brazil Without Extreme Poverty Scheme agglutinated several social policies implemented in Brazil since 2003, among which is Bolsa Família Program which is considered the largest and most well-targeted program for income transfer in the world. Finally, this study analyzes the barriers to universal access to the living wage and aims to propose some achievable solutions to face extreme poverty and poverty therefore realizing the Human Dignity Principle.