Firms’ Preferences for State Social Policy in the Developing World – Evidence from Russia (Research Brief)

When do businesses support the creation of a welfare state – pension, unemployment, and health benefits – and pay the necessary taxes to support it? In much of the developing world, firms who would otherwise welcome the welfare state and its impact on labor markets are unenthused about welfare state reform. Using content analysis of 351 newspapers and journals during the period of Russia’s major post-soviet Pension Reform, this project shows that businesses’ preferences are heavily influenced by the perceived trustworthiness of the state. The analysis has implications for programs promoting corporate social responsibility, public-private partnerships, and civil society amongst businesses.

Israel Marques, of Columbia University, was a 2012-2013  Individual Advanced Research Opportunities (IARO) fellow.