Serving two masters: social policies in the Lula government

Abstract

This article reviews the principal social policy initiatives of the Lula government. It focuses on social security reform for government employees; the government position concerning the Single Health Care System budget and Social Security Resources; the significance and scope of the Family Grant income transfer program and changes in labor income and the minimum wage. The article concludes that these initiatives are in keeping with the government's economic policy, which benefits financial capital. It highlights, however, that the Family Grant program has benefited a portion of the population previously excluded from government attention, removing them from absolute poverty, and that the real minimum wage has undergone a substantial increase, although it is far from that promised in Lula's 2002 campaign. The article also discusses the limitations of the Family Grant Program and the reasons that it has not been established as a right.