The voluntary welfare associations in Germany: An overview

22

Thus this new partnership among welfare players is developing more and more to a
principal and agent relationship with the risks of budgeting and competition and in-
creasing specialist and bureaucratic guidelines set by the funding institutions.

Abolishing of conditional precedence:

In the past the Social Codes on social welfare and on support for children and youth
provided a conditional precedence⁶⁰ for the voluntary welfare associations. This prece-
dence meant that the voluntary welfare associations were preferred over private and
public agencies and as associations for public tasks had to be promoted by the Federal
Republic, the states and the municipalities.

Since 1990 the conditional precedence was largely abolished in line with European
integration rules and the rigidity of the principle of subsidiarity was loosened too.⁶¹ This
was due to

• the influence of the European development (competition rules) and

• a new comprehension of the role of voluntary welfare (which was influenced by
the shortage of public means).

Presently there are only a few privileged provisions in favor for the central voluntary
welfare associations left:

• The limited subsidiarity principle: as far as the voluntary welfare associations run
or can run an establishment in the fields of social welfare and support for chil-
dren and youth it must not be turned into the responsibility of the state or mu-
nicipality.

• Special forms of participation in the municipal process of planning of the support
for children and youth („Jugendhilfeplanung“) and and in the relevant municipal
decision-making authority („Jugendhilfeausschuss“).

The consequences of this development are:

• The traditional corporatism particularly between the municipalities and the vol-
untary welfare associations is being replaced more and more by a comprehensive
cooperation among all private and public stakeholders including the voluntary
welfare leading to a new system of welfare mix and welfare pluralism. ⁶²

• The economic pressure on voluntary welfare associations has increased. The
competitive situation with other agencies is influencing the range on offers and
their conditions, the organizational structure of the association and the relevance
of voluntary work.

⁶⁰ Dahme/Wohlfahrt 2000: 14.

⁶¹ Dahme/Kühnlein/Wohlfahrt 2005: 245; Backer/Naegele/Bispinck/Hofemann/Neubauer 2007, Bd. 2:
544-545.

⁶² Dahme/Wohlfahrt 2000: 19-20.

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