The Chronicle of Higher Education discusses a number of income redistribution proposals. For example, Edmund Phelps has suggested a government wage subsidy for low-wage workers.
Mr. Phelps argues that his plan — which, in his view, should entirely replace the welfare and food-stamp programs — would draw hundreds of thousands of discouraged workers into the labor market. In turn, he says, that would reduce the cycle of self-destruction that afflicts many poor neighborhoods. He predicts that violent crime and prison costs would substantially decline.
For Discussion. How does this idea differ from the Earned Income Tax Credit?