Analysis of the effectiveness of changes in the social safety net concept during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Czech Republic

The thesis deals with the analysis of the effectiveness of changes in the concept of social safety net during the pandemic COVID-19 in the Czech Republic. The period of the pandemic is defined as 2020-2022. The thesis is important in the context of a deeper understanding of social policy and social safety nets in times of emergencies. Thus, it contributes to the understanding of how citizens were protected and supported during the uncertain times of the pandemic. Beginning with an explanation of social policy as a whole, the theoretical part of the thesis progresses through the welfare state and social security to the concept of the social safety net. This provides a coherent basis for the implementation of the analysis of changes in the social safety net. In the practical part, partial conclusions of the impact of the introduced government measures on the social security subsystems are presented. Then, the results of the efficiency analysis are presented, which is based on three main indicators: the income poverty rate, the material and social deprivation rate and the evolution of household income. The main conclusions of the paper suggest that the measures implemented within the social safety net and social security benefits have contributed to preventing households from falling below the income poverty line and material and social deprivation. It also found that social income, including social safety net benefits, contributes to increasing households' total income, enabling them to better manage their expenditure. From the conclusions presented, it is evident that the changes introduced to the social safety net concept help to mitigate the negative economic impacts of the pandemic and can therefore be considered effective.