The international financial crisis has revived the debate about the role of government in the economy and on the tension between public debt and rising demand for social services of health, welfare and assistance. Being care and assistance essential for sustaining human life in society, the mere restriction of these state benefits - recurring technical recommendation for the solution of the problem - seems not to be an alternative. Given the incentives and social injunctions for individuals to seek paid work and not depart from the needs of the household environment, it should be a balance between social incentives to these different modes of human activity. The public welfare systems can function as an instrument for the delivery of material conditions so that individuals can, themselves, provide care and assistance that their families and people close need, ensuring, at the right moment, free time and economic stability.
Public Debt; Welfare; Labor Market; Household Economy; Care and Assistance