Abstract

The Nordic welfare systems started their development from insurance schemes, matured in the context of industrial employment. During the twentieth century, the services were extended to all citizens, creating measures that assist every citizen «from the cradle to the grave». The mid-1990s and 2007-08 crises forced the Nordic countries to review their employment policies in order to facilitate the integration of the unemployed into the labor market. This article examines the evolution of labor policies in Denmark, following the transition from welfare to workfare, expressly focusing on the flexicurity introduced in 1994 and on the most recent reforms. We also examine the experiment that introduced a partial basic income in Finland in the years 2017-18, analyzing the innovative aspects and the reasons why it was abandoned.