should the the distribution happen in the format of redistribution or predistribution?
July 22, 2026 at 1:23 AM
should the the distribution happen in the format of redistribution or predistribution?
"Australia used to do fairly well in terms of predistribution (that is, for white, able-bodied males). But no longer; we’ve become an ‘assetocracy’ where access to assets tends to be what shapes folks’ life chances and life choices." @katherinetrebeck.bsky.social
thepoint.com.au/opinions/260...
thepoint.com.au/opinions/260...
Redistribution or predistribution? Another way to think about tackling inequality
Australia used to do fairly well in terms of predistribution (that is, for white, able-bodied males). But no longer; we've become an ‘assetocracy’ where access to assets tends to be what shapes folks’...
thepoint.com.au
April 29, 2026 at 1:19 AM
"Australia used to do fairly well in terms of predistribution (that is, for white, able-bodied males). But no longer; we’ve become an ‘assetocracy’ where access to assets tends to be what shapes folks’ life chances and life choices." @katherinetrebeck.bsky.social
thepoint.com.au/opinions/260...
thepoint.com.au/opinions/260...
i think this pairs well with Naidu's paper on predistribution vs redistribution: tariffs are viewed as a predistributionary measure (albeit for everyone who knows econ, an extremely flawed version) - but voters, especially non-college, prefer predistribution over redistribution
Things like this need more attention...this new paper by David Autor, Anne B., David Dorn, and Gordon Hanson finds that not only have tariffs not only failed to raise employment, but people in tariff-exposed regions supported the tariffs because they're "confrontational"
It's affect, not interests
It's affect, not interests
www.ddorn.net
July 27, 2026 at 3:17 AM
i think this pairs well with Naidu's paper on predistribution vs redistribution: tariffs are viewed as a predistributionary measure (albeit for everyone who knows econ, an extremely flawed version) - but voters, especially non-college, prefer predistribution over redistribution
"Redistribution or predistribution? Another way to think about tackling inequality". Excellent column by @katherinetrebeck.bsky.social for @thepointau.bsky.social
thepoint.com.au/opinions/260...
thepoint.com.au/opinions/260...
Redistribution or predistribution? Another way to think about tackling inequality
Australia used to do fairly well in terms of predistribution (that is, for white, able-bodied males). But no longer; we've become an ‘assetocracy’ where access to assets tends to be what shapes folks’...
thepoint.com.au
April 28, 2026 at 10:59 PM
"Redistribution or predistribution? Another way to think about tackling inequality". Excellent column by @katherinetrebeck.bsky.social for @thepointau.bsky.social
thepoint.com.au/opinions/260...
thepoint.com.au/opinions/260...
People in economics academia will really be like "you believe in predistribution? that pales in effectiveness to my strategy, compensate the losers of structural economic changes" and then not compensate the losers of structural economic change
February 19, 2025 at 8:16 PM
People in economics academia will really be like "you believe in predistribution? that pales in effectiveness to my strategy, compensate the losers of structural economic changes" and then not compensate the losers of structural economic change
This piece by Matt Bruenig (when will he come over to this site?) on redistribution vs predistribution seems both correct and convincing on the substance, and admirably clear on what the stakes are. www.peoplespolicyproject.org/2025/10/26/d...
October 26, 2025 at 5:20 PM
This piece by Matt Bruenig (when will he come over to this site?) on redistribution vs predistribution seems both correct and convincing on the substance, and admirably clear on what the stakes are. www.peoplespolicyproject.org/2025/10/26/d...
If markets are rigged, no amount of redistribution fixes the problem.
Predistribution = unrigging the rules:
• higher wages
• lower prices
• less corporate power
A powerful antidote to the oligarchal agenda.
Read more from @sunnysmalhotra.bsky.social and @skvogel.bsky.social:
Predistribution = unrigging the rules:
• higher wages
• lower prices
• less corporate power
A powerful antidote to the oligarchal agenda.
Read more from @sunnysmalhotra.bsky.social and @skvogel.bsky.social:
Predistribution Is the Anti-Oligarchy Solution
Predistribution transforms society and markets to generate less inequality in the first place.
rooseveltinstitute.org
April 30, 2026 at 8:11 PM
If markets are rigged, no amount of redistribution fixes the problem.
Predistribution = unrigging the rules:
• higher wages
• lower prices
• less corporate power
A powerful antidote to the oligarchal agenda.
Read more from @sunnysmalhotra.bsky.social and @skvogel.bsky.social:
Predistribution = unrigging the rules:
• higher wages
• lower prices
• less corporate power
A powerful antidote to the oligarchal agenda.
Read more from @sunnysmalhotra.bsky.social and @skvogel.bsky.social:
Closing that gap will require more than just piecemeal measures to redistribute income after the fact. We also need to more fundamentally change how income and power are distributed in the economy in the first place.
That is the case for predistribution.
Learn more:
That is the case for predistribution.
Learn more:
The Predistribution Solution - Roosevelt Institute
Introduction This policy brief analyzes the American political economy past and present through the lens of “predistribution.” Predistribution policies seek to achieve greater equality in opportunitie...
rooseveltinstitute.org
August 27, 2026 at 5:41 PM
Closing that gap will require more than just piecemeal measures to redistribute income after the fact. We also need to more fundamentally change how income and power are distributed in the economy in the first place.
That is the case for predistribution.
Learn more:
That is the case for predistribution.
Learn more:
Universal basic credit would create a fair AI economy ft.trib.al/GHcjYlt | opinion
Universal basic credit would create a fair AI economy
Predistribution, not redistribution, is needed to close the inequality gap
ft.trib.al
October 31, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Universal basic credit would create a fair AI economy ft.trib.al/GHcjYlt | opinion
increasingly think that this is basically the knot to cut: the public wants redistribution, but they want it to look like predistribution, so you have to do that, *and* you have to do it in a way that is still attributable to your administration or party
November 22, 2024 at 6:12 PM
increasingly think that this is basically the knot to cut: the public wants redistribution, but they want it to look like predistribution, so you have to do that, *and* you have to do it in a way that is still attributable to your administration or party
"Tax the billionaires" accepts that markets naturally create billionaires.
"Predistribution" asks: WHY are we designing markets that create billionaires through exploitation in the first place?
The framework: Pay working people fairly *from the start.* (via @rooseveltinstitute.org)
"Predistribution" asks: WHY are we designing markets that create billionaires through exploitation in the first place?
The framework: Pay working people fairly *from the start.* (via @rooseveltinstitute.org)
The Predistribution Solution
Instead of letting billionaires extract all the wealth and then arguing about taxing them, what if we just paid workers fairly in the first place?
rooseveltinstitute.org
January 23, 2026 at 3:11 PM
"Tax the billionaires" accepts that markets naturally create billionaires.
"Predistribution" asks: WHY are we designing markets that create billionaires through exploitation in the first place?
The framework: Pay working people fairly *from the start.* (via @rooseveltinstitute.org)
"Predistribution" asks: WHY are we designing markets that create billionaires through exploitation in the first place?
The framework: Pay working people fairly *from the start.* (via @rooseveltinstitute.org)
From the thread: "Policies don’t receive a predistribution boost in support, but a redistribution penalty."
Americans say they want less inequality. Why don’t they support policies to reduce it?
New paper: across 31 nationally representative survey waves (N=384,248) and a preregistered experiment (N=1,009), Americans favor PREdistributive over REdistributive policies 🧵
osf.io/preprints/so...
New paper: across 31 nationally representative survey waves (N=384,248) and a preregistered experiment (N=1,009), Americans favor PREdistributive over REdistributive policies 🧵
osf.io/preprints/so...
May 28, 2026 at 11:44 PM
From the thread: "Policies don’t receive a predistribution boost in support, but a redistribution penalty."
Predistribution… So like, high-quality publicly funded education and healthcare then?
Americans say they want less inequality. Why don’t they support policies to reduce it?
New paper: across 31 nationally representative survey waves (N=384,248) and a preregistered experiment (N=1,009), Americans favor PREdistributive over REdistributive policies 🧵
osf.io/preprints/so...
New paper: across 31 nationally representative survey waves (N=384,248) and a preregistered experiment (N=1,009), Americans favor PREdistributive over REdistributive policies 🧵
osf.io/preprints/so...
May 30, 2026 at 2:23 PM
Predistribution… So like, high-quality publicly funded education and healthcare then?
A deep dive into living standards and inequality comparing Sweden and US, focusing on redistribution vs predistribution, and a bonus on use of price indices and PPP and what difference it makes!
Link: next post
Link: next post
June 3, 2026 at 1:54 AM
A deep dive into living standards and inequality comparing Sweden and US, focusing on redistribution vs predistribution, and a bonus on use of price indices and PPP and what difference it makes!
Link: next post
Link: next post
I’m getting very bad vibes at morons pushing predistribution when their funders hate unions
October 27, 2025 at 8:53 PM
I’m getting very bad vibes at morons pushing predistribution when their funders hate unions
Predistribution, baby! V good column by @stephenkb.bsky.social. What's interesting is that I think this mix (lefter on econ policy, righter on social/welfare) actually matches what lots of voters say they want. But as Stephen says, it's also pissing off a lot of people. www.ft.com/content/f235...
March 18, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Predistribution, baby! V good column by @stephenkb.bsky.social. What's interesting is that I think this mix (lefter on econ policy, righter on social/welfare) actually matches what lots of voters say they want. But as Stephen says, it's also pissing off a lot of people. www.ft.com/content/f235...
How effective are policies of predistribution or redistribution for reducing in-work poverty? How do their effects differ by household type? Some answers in my paper using EU-SILC data out in @europeansocieties.bsky.social:
doi.org/10.1162/euso...
doi.org/10.1162/euso...
No one-size-fits-all solution. Effects of social policies on in-work poverty
Abstract. The paper studies effects of social policies on in-work poverty risks, distinguishing between measures that either intervene in labour market processes - i.e. predistribution policies - or r...
doi.org
May 16, 2025 at 6:20 AM
How effective are policies of predistribution or redistribution for reducing in-work poverty? How do their effects differ by household type? Some answers in my paper using EU-SILC data out in @europeansocieties.bsky.social:
doi.org/10.1162/euso...
doi.org/10.1162/euso...
As they laid out in their earlier report, policy choices structure markets and with them, the distribution of power and income.
From labor law to antitrust to corporate governance, predistribution is about ensuring workers and communities share in growth from the start.
From labor law to antitrust to corporate governance, predistribution is about ensuring workers and communities share in growth from the start.
The Predistribution Solution - Roosevelt Institute
Introduction This policy brief analyzes the American political economy past and present through the lens of “predistribution.” Predistribution policies seek to achieve greater equality in opportunitie...
rooseveltinstitute.org
April 30, 2026 at 8:12 PM
As they laid out in their earlier report, policy choices structure markets and with them, the distribution of power and income.
From labor law to antitrust to corporate governance, predistribution is about ensuring workers and communities share in growth from the start.
From labor law to antitrust to corporate governance, predistribution is about ensuring workers and communities share in growth from the start.
Today, Matthew Dimick explains why one of the most famous arguments against addressing inequality through predistribution fails on its own terms.
After Neoliberalism: Predistribution and the Law and Economics of Income Inequality
Law and Economics scholars argue that if income redistribution is to happen at all, it should occur exclusively through the tax system, rather than through supposedly less efficient methods…
lpeproject.org
October 9, 2025 at 3:41 PM
Today, Matthew Dimick explains why one of the most famous arguments against addressing inequality through predistribution fails on its own terms.
The Democratic Party needs a bold economic vision for a better future. @sunnysmalhotra.bsky.social and I propose the predistribution solution.
The Predistribution Solution - Roosevelt Institute
Introduction This policy brief analyzes the American political economy past and present through the lens of “predistribution.” Predistribution policies seek to achieve greater equality in opportunitie...
rooseveltinstitute.org
December 19, 2025 at 2:38 PM
The Democratic Party needs a bold economic vision for a better future. @sunnysmalhotra.bsky.social and I propose the predistribution solution.
Interesting thread generally. But this point in particular is spot-on.
‘Couldn’t we get businesses to do social policy for us’ is a problem. It’s the Miliband ‘predistribution’ agenda pushed to breaking point.
I am old fashioned: tax credits worked.
‘Couldn’t we get businesses to do social policy for us’ is a problem. It’s the Miliband ‘predistribution’ agenda pushed to breaking point.
I am old fashioned: tax credits worked.
Indeed. It's part of the bigger 'couldn't we get businesses to do social policy for us?' - a lot of the disability pay gap is something that the government needs to solve by more generous in-work benefits and or jiggery-pokery with tax*
*please don't do this. Please don't add more complexity
*please don't do this. Please don't add more complexity
The Disability Pay Gap Reporting is particularly annoying because it completely misses the point about what Disability Campaigners are complaing about, as the whole methodolgy will miss disabled people working fewer hours to protect their health and so being poorer as a result
June 2, 2025 at 10:08 AM
Interesting thread generally. But this point in particular is spot-on.
‘Couldn’t we get businesses to do social policy for us’ is a problem. It’s the Miliband ‘predistribution’ agenda pushed to breaking point.
I am old fashioned: tax credits worked.
‘Couldn’t we get businesses to do social policy for us’ is a problem. It’s the Miliband ‘predistribution’ agenda pushed to breaking point.
I am old fashioned: tax credits worked.
Predistribution...
June 20, 2026 at 2:32 AM
Predistribution...
Much of actually existing social democracy has been about redistribution within labor income, both through predistribution and through tax/transfers.
October 25, 2025 at 1:53 PM
Much of actually existing social democracy has been about redistribution within labor income, both through predistribution and through tax/transfers.
i do kind of wonder if the reason no tax on tips took off was because it is sort of a "predistributionary" policy if you rationalize it hard enough
September 24, 2025 at 1:59 PM
i do kind of wonder if the reason no tax on tips took off was because it is sort of a "predistributionary" policy if you rationalize it hard enough
The ultra-wealthy talking about fairness should be a hilarious joke.
Unless they’re calling for more predistribution and redistribution policies, it is a con job.
Unless they’re calling for more predistribution and redistribution policies, it is a con job.
May 7, 2025 at 1:38 PM
The ultra-wealthy talking about fairness should be a hilarious joke.
Unless they’re calling for more predistribution and redistribution policies, it is a con job.
Unless they’re calling for more predistribution and redistribution policies, it is a con job.