From the Middle Ages to the dynamics of our own time, the history of Social Security and of the social and solidarity economy (SSE) is woven around initiatives and doctrines that place solidarity at the heart of their concerns. Today, faced with the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics, humanity is about to live through a new industrial revolution that compels us to rethink our socioeconomic models. From the tradition of the guilds to the institutionalization of social protection, and on to the ideas of a universal income, the SSE proves to be an essential foundation for anticipating and guiding these transformations.
1. A historical view: from medieval solidarity to Social Security
From guilds to solidarism
The roots of the solidarity economy reach back to the Middle Ages, an era when guilds, brotherhoods, and journeymen's associations already played a role of protection and mutual support. These were professional communities (artisans, merchants) organized to ensure apprenticeship and the regulation of production, but also mutual aid in cases of illness or accident.
The industrial boom of the nineteenth century was accompanied by numerous movements and economic theories. The thinkers of utopian socialism, such as Charles Fourier and Robert Owen, laid the groundwork for a reflection on labor, equality, and the sharing of wealth. In parallel, Saint-Simonianism and solidarism, championed by figures such as Saint-Simon and other philanthropists, helped advance the idea that wealth should serve the common good.
The creation of Social Security as a milestone of social justice
In the aftermath of the Second World War, France established Social Security (1945), a system designed to protect the entire population. Inspired by workers' mutual societies and the first insurance funds, this system embodies the institutional translation of an ideal: that of guaranteeing equitable access to healthcare, family allowances, and retirement pensions. This legacy of solidarity draws on a long tradition of associations, cooperatives, and mutual societies, thereby perpetuating the spirit of the old medieval and revolutionary practices of mutual aid.
2. The historical emergence of solidarity economies
From the Le Chapelier Law (1791) to the Industrial Revolution
The Le Chapelier Law of 1791, which initially banned corporations and brotherhoods, paradoxically hastened the birth of new forms of workers' associations. Deprived of their old corporate points of reference, workers organized to fight against everyday insecurity, giving rise to the first mutual aid societies and health mutuals.
Mutual societies, a response to social insecurity
With industrialization, precariousness and workplace accidents multiplied. Mutual societies thus constituted a first concrete and structured response, offering workers a system of shared contributions to cope with life's hazards. Their logic of solidarity—the pooling of resources for the benefit of all—would remain a founding pillar of the social and solidarity economy.
The birth of solidarism
At the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, solidarism took shape as a doctrine advocating equitable redistribution and social justice. It sought to conceive of the collective as a set of interdependent individuals, in which each is indebted to the others and vice versa. These ideas underpinned the establishment of public policies focused on social protection and the fight against inequality.
3. Toward the social and solidarity economy (SSE): a living legacy
The SSE, between past and present
The social and solidarity economy as we know it today is the heir to these historical dynamics. It brings together several forms of organization—associations, cooperatives, mutual societies, and foundations—that share common principles: the primacy of people over capital, democratic governance, and a purpose serving the general interest.
The central role of mutual societies
Mutual societies—some of which descend directly from the first workers' relief unions—play a major role in financing and structuring the SSE. Their social capital is often reinvested in projects with territorial, social, and environmental impact. The VYV Group, chaired by Stéphane Junique, for example, illustrates this determination to combine economic performance with solidarity, notably in the fields of health and provident insurance.
The legislative framework and the Hamon Law
Under the impetus of Benoît Hamon, the law of 31 July 2014 on the social and solidarity economy (often called the “Hamon Law”) consolidated the institutional recognition of this sector. This text clarified the legal statuses of SSE enterprises and strengthened their visibility with public authorities. Structures benefiting from this legislative framework can thus be recognized as “SSE enterprises,” which makes it easier to raise funds, build networks, and spread their good practices.
4. The SSE in the service of communities and citizens
A local dynamic
The SSE flourishes especially at the local level. Agricultural cooperatives, reuse centers, solidarity grocery stores, and integration-through-work projects: all these initiatives anchor a circular and solidarity-based economy in the fabric of the town or region. The goal is to foster endogenous development, creating jobs and added value that remain within the territory.
Europe as a lever for action
Beyond national borders, Europe actively supports programs dedicated to the SSE and the circular economy. Transnational cooperation projects between mutual societies and cooperatives open the way to new forms of solidarity and innovative financing. Numerous structural funds, moreover, encourage the development of short supply chains and eco-responsible initiatives within the member states.
Reinvesting profits for “better living”
The distinctive feature of the SSE lies in the fact that profits are not captured by shareholders but reinvested in the activity or in the community. It is this “virtuous circle” of reinjecting profits into the local and social economy that nourishes the idea of a fairer and more sustainable society.
5. AI, robotics, and social transformations: the new industrial revolution
Technologies in full expansion
Artificial intelligence and robotics are upending the organization of labor and modes of production. As in previous industrial revolutions, jobs will be transformed or will disappear, while new skills and new professions will emerge. The challenge is not only technical but also social and political: how should the value created by these innovations be distributed? Who will benefit from it?
Toward a universal income?
Faced with the risk of precariousness and polarization in the labor market, the idea of a universal income (or basic income) regularly returns to the forefront. Benoît Hamon, among others, brought this proposal to the heart of public debate in France, underlining the need to revisit our models of redistribution and social protection. This project entails rethinking how we finance national solidarity and consolidating the missions of the SSE.
Anticipating rather than enduring
Actors such as Stéphane Junique, at the head of the VYV Group, or the Jean Jaurès Foundation, are committed to promoting a collective reflection on the stakes of this transformation. The question is no longer merely to correct, after the fact, the harmful effects of automation, but rather to anticipate the changes in order to build a sustainable and solidarity-based economy in the service of people.
6. The agents of change: initiatives and visions
Stéphane Junique (VYV Group)
At the head of the leading mutual health and social protection group in France, Stéphane Junique argues that the stakes of public health and solidarity must remain at the center of the debate surrounding the digital revolution. His vision: artificial intelligence and robotics should be placed in the service of people, so as to improve quality of life rather than diminish solidarity and social cohesion.
Benoît Hamon and the political anchoring
A former minister delegate for the social and solidarity economy and consumer affairs, Benoît Hamon played a key role in the legal recognition of the SSE, while also opening the way to the idea of a universal income. His approach illustrates the importance for political decision-makers to take up these issues in order to propose innovative frameworks for action.
The Jean Jaurès Foundation and other think tanks
Organizations for reflection such as the Jean Jaurès Foundation, along with numerous think tanks in France and Europe, are working to forge proposals for integrating the stakes of the digital transformation into a comprehensive overhaul of our social model. They encourage dialogue among public authorities, businesses, social partners, and citizens, in order to invent the mechanisms suited to the “new industrial revolution.”
Conclusion: preparing for a collective transformation
The history of solidarity, from the medieval guilds to today's mutual societies, shows that industrial revolutions are always accompanied by new social movements and new economic theories. The SSE, the fruit of this history, proves particularly well suited to answering the challenges of the present and the future: it puts people at the center, promotes cooperation, and reinjects profits into the collective interest.
At the dawn of an industrial revolution driven by artificial intelligence and robotics, it is urgent to build an economy capable of cushioning social shocks and opening up positive prospects for society as a whole. Mobilizing the forces of mutual societies, cooperatives, and citizens is more indispensable than ever: this collective effort of anticipation will make it possible to invent the models of tomorrow—resilient and grounded in solidarity.
In short, the tradition of the SSE reminds us that the economy is not merely a matter of figures and markets: it is also a matter of humanity and justice. The coming decade will be decisive for forging institutions and frameworks capable of channeling the potential of AI for the benefit of the greatest number. It is on this condition that the “new industrial revolution” can become the lever for a better life for all.
To go further
• Stéphane Junique, VYV Group: speeches and op-eds available on the group's website, illustrating the will to link technological innovation and solidarity.
• Benoît Hamon: his legislative work and his proposals on the universal income and the SSE, accessible through his public interventions.
• Jean Jaurès Foundation: in-depth publications and studies on the transformation of economic and social models.
• Law no. 2014-856 of 31 July 2014: a key legislative foundation for understanding the social and solidarity economy in France.
Feel free to supplement this with quantitative data, testimonies from local SSE actors, or concrete examples of projects combining AI and solidarity initiatives, in order to illustrate the vitality and diversity of this sector.