The origin of Western European welfare states

Abstract

The article explores the contexts and the content of the European states’ first measures in the social policy: introducing of the limiting norms of the working hours; the ban to force women and under of age to work at night; granting the day off during the religious holidays and one day off per week; providing women with 36 hours uninterrupted rest and with the maternity leave; paying of the illness, disability, unemployment, retiring benefits, and so on. At the same time some of the social policy directions (aid to the homeless, orphans) remained the sphere of the numerous philanthropic organizations. Though the social aid in the end of the 19th – beginning of the 20th century was not sufficient in terms of its scale the prerequisites had been done for its further development: initial laws had been added and amended till modern effective social security system was formed.