Social Services in Ethnically Mixed Cities: Street-Level Bureaucracy at the Crossroads of Ethno-National Conflict

2021 ◽  
pp. 009539972199632
Author(s):  
Roni Strier ◽  
Hisham M. Abu-Rayya ◽  
Tamar Shwartz-Ziv

There is a paucity of research examining street-level bureaucracy in cities affected by ongoing ethnopolitical conflict. This study addresses this limitation by exploring the work of social workers in the public services of mixed cities in Israel. It shows the interconnection between ambiguous institutional policies, varying workers’ views of the role of social services, and changing discretion patterns. Findings also suggest that episodes of conflict escalation intensify staff ethnic sectarianism, as well as increase workers’ own ethnic biases, which affect the ways in which they act as a liaison between the welfare system and citizens through their use of discretion.

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Nora Ratzmann ◽  
Nina Sahraoui

This ‘state-of-the art’ article on the role of deservingness in governing migrants’ access to social services situates our themed section’s contribution to the literature at the intersection between the study of street-level bureaucracy and practices of internal bordering through social policy. Considering the increasing relevance of migration control post-entry, we review the considerations that guide the local delivery of social services. Among others, moral ideas about a claimant’s worthiness to receive social benefits and services guide policy implementation. But while ideas of deservingness help to understand how perceptions of migrants’ claiming play out in practice, we observe limited use of the concept in street-level bureaucracy research. Drawing on theorisations from welfare attitudinal research, we demonstrate the salience of deservingness attitudes in understanding the dynamics of local social service delivery to migrant clients.


2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 376 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emre Özcan ◽  
Seda Attepe Özden ◽  
Arzu İçağasıoğlu Çoban

Precarious work is a form of work that is widespread today with the influence of neoliberal policies. This form of work includes the lack of job security and some social rights, as well as the fear of dismissal an ongoing job, even if the employee has a job. In recent years, precarious work has begun to be seen in the field of social work as well as being seen in every area with the contraction of the role of the public in working life. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the insecurity that has become widespread in the field of social work in recent years, in the eyes of the social workers, working in this field.For this purpose, in-depth interviews were conducted with 14 social workers who were working without precautions.Interviews were subject to content analysis by the authors and gathered under three subtopics. As a result of the research, it has been seen that precarious social workers feel themselves in an ambiguity on the individual level and on the social level they are away from working for the benefit of the client. The effects of precarious work are not only effect on an individual level, but Precarious work has also affected the social dimension, and it has preventing services for individuals. It is necessary to investigate more precisely the effects of precarious work on employees and clients, and to prevent the loss of rights in social services. ÖzetGüvencesiz çalışma, neoliberal politikaların etkisiyle günümüzde yaygın olarak görülen bir çalışma biçimidir. Bu çalışma biçimi, iş güvencesinden ve bazı sosyal haklardan yoksun çalışmayı içerdiği gibi aynı zamanda çalışanın bir işe sahip olsa bile sürekli bir işten çıkarılma korkusu yaşamasını da ifade etmektedir. Son yıllarda güvencesiz çalışma olgusu kamunun rolünün daralmasıyla her alanda görülmekle birlikte sosyal hizmet alanında da görülmeye başlanmıştır. Bu araştırmanın amacı da son yıllarda sosyal hizmet alanında yaygınlaşmaya başlayan güvencesizliği, bu alanda çalışan sosyal hizmet uzmanların gözünden değerlendirmektir. Bu amaçla güvencesiz çalışan 14 sosyal hizmet uzmanı ile derinlemesine görüşmeler gerçekleştirilmiştir. Görüşme dökümleri, yazarlar tarafından içerik analizine tabi tutulmuştur ve üç başlık altında toplanmıştır. Araştırma sonucunda güvencesiz çalışan sosyal hizmet uzmanlarının bireysel düzlemde kendilerini belirsizlik içinde hissettiği, toplumsal düzlemde ise müracaatçı yararına çalışmadan uzaklaştıkları görülmüştür. Güvencesiz çalışmanın etkileri sadece bireysel düzlemde hissedilmemekte, toplumsal boyuta taşınarak bireylerin hizmet alma ihtiyaçlarının önüne geçmektedir. Güvencesizliğin çalışanlar ve müracaatçılar üzerindeki etkilerinin daha kapsamlı bir şekilde araştırılması ve sosyal hizmet alanındaki hak kayıplarının önlenmesi gereklidir. 


Following on Felice Perlmutter's work on the managerial role of social workers in social services, this article contributes to the still limited knowledge on the role of social workers in middle-management positions in formulating new policies `on the ground`. The study expands knowledge about policies determined by team managers in local social service departments in Israel. It occurs in the nexus between street-level bureaucracy, professionalism and managerial positions. Semi-structured interviews with 28 team managers revealed that they formulated `new` policies with regard to the provision of psychosocial services and material assistance (who gets what, when and how). This occurs when they resist official policy, when it is vague or non-existent. Most of their policy decisions are not documented and draw upon consultations with colleagues and superiors though not with clients. The team managers perceive these policies as a means for achieving balance between clients' well-being and budgetary constraints. Yet their decisions lack transparency, are decided upon without public discourse and may lead to greater inequity between clients


1996 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
pp. 117-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret Gibelman ◽  
Philip H. Schervish

The authors review the current status of the social work labor force within the public sector by means of an analysis of the National Association of Social Workers member data base for 1988 and 1991, with additional data drawn from a 1993 member survey. Changes in the proportion and composition of the public social services labor force are documented, including education, experience, gender, and ethnicity. The decreasing professional social work labor force within public social services is discussed within the context of the realities of public social services practice and social work's historic place within this sector. The authors encourage debate about the implications of these trends, focusing on whether social work should influence labor-force trends or be influenced by them.


2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Winda Roselina Effendi

Walfare State concept born in the era of the 20th century as a correction of the development of the concept of the country as night watchman, the phenomenon of economic capitalism that gradually leads to lameness in the distribution of sources of prosperity. In the Walfare State concept, the state is required to extend its responsibility to the socio-economic problems facing the people. The functions of the state also include activities that were previously beyond the scope of state functions, such as extending the provision of social services to individuals and families in specific matters, such as social security. The role of the state can not be separated with Welfare State because the state that plays a role in managing the economy which includes the responsibility of the state to ensure the availability of basic welfare services in certain levels. Welfare State does not reject the existence of a capitalist market economy system but believes that there are elements in the public order that are more important than market objectives and can only be achieved by controlling and limiting the operation of such market mechanisms.Keywords: walfare state, country, economic systemKonsep Walfare State yang lahir di era abad ke-20 sebagai koreksi berkembangnya konsep negara sebagai penjaga malam, gejala kapitalisme perekonomian yang secara perlahan-lahan menyebabkan terjadinya kepincangan dalam pembagian sumber-sumber kemakmuran bersarma. Dalam konsep Walfare State, negara dituntut untuk memperluas tanggung jawabnya kepada masalah-masalah sosial ekonomi yang dihadapi rakyat. Fungsi negara juga meliputi kegiatan-kegiatan yang sebelumnya berada diluar jangkauan fungsi negara, seperti memperluas ketentuan pelayanan sosial kepada individu dan keluarga dalam hal-hal khusus, seperti social security, kesehatan.  Peran negara tidak bisa dipisahkan dengan Welfare State karena negara yang berperan dalam mengelola perekonomian yang yang di dalamnya mencakup tanggung jawab negara untuk menjamin ketersediaan pelayanan kesejahteraan dasar dalam tingkat tertentu. Welfare State tidak menolak keberadaan sistem ekonomi pasar kapitalis tetapi meyakini bahwa ada elemen-elemen dalam tatanan masyarakat yang lebih penting dari tujuan-tujuan pasar dan hanya dapat dicapai dengan mengendalikan dan membatasi bekerjanya mekanisme pasar tersebut. Kata Kunci: walfare state, negara,sistem ekonomi 


2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 19
Author(s):  
Mohammed Chemingui, PhD ◽  
Faten Al Jabsheh, PhD ◽  
Kais Faki

<p><em>The advent of oil in the GCC countries has led their governments to assume an ever-increasing role in the economy and to build comprehensive welfare states, based largely on the provision of employment in the public sector and the generous supply of social services and heavily subsidized utilities, to their citizens. Moreover, an intricate web of regulatory and restrictive rules and regulations has come into existence over time, resulting in a private sector that is not competitive, is not outward-looking and is generally rent-seeking. The aim of this paper is to investigate the challenges that are preventing Kuwait from succeeding in diversifying its economy and developing a competitive private sector and the pre-requisite enabling environment, thereby reducing its dependence on the oil sector. </em><em>Results of the analysis carried out in this study reveal that developing the role of private sector in the economic transformation of Kuwait could be achieved through a three interconnected strategies: i</em><em>mproving the enabling environment for business to free private sector investors from existing regulations and red tape, developing new markets and opportunities through the creation of new investment opportunities, and ensuring competitiveness and integration with the regional and world economies.</em></p>


Radical Hope ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 151-168
Author(s):  
Michal Krumer-Nevo

This chapter is the first of the book’s third part, titled “Rights”. Thinking about rights-based practice as a necessary complement to relationship-based practice is an organizing principle of the PAP. This chapter serves as a theoretical and conceptual introduction to the discussion on rights. In addition, it describes the guidelines of the new role of rights-exercising social workers, which was adopted by the Ministry of Welfare and Social Services. In line with the PAP’s commitment to seeing the emotional and the material worlds as interconnected, this chapter explains how a rights-based practice can become therapeutic.


2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nihayatus Sholichah

Changes in the role of local government as stipulated in Law No. 23/2014 on Local Government, demanding the role of public services for quality local government to the community. In addition, the demand for public services as the rights of citizens who have direct access to the Government brings impacts on climate change in the Local Government, especially as a state servant and community service. Especially when associated with one of the factors that affect the success of an organization, which is oriented to the public service, namely its success in performing the service function to the public (public service) either in the form of goods or services in accordance with the desired needs. The phenomenon that occurs in the fishing community shows that, the level of welfare of life is low. Difficulties in overcoming the problems of daily living and poverty have made people in fishing villages have to bear the burden of life that can not be ascertained when the end. As a result of poverty, there is a difficulty in accessing services in the field of basic social services from the Government which includes food, education and health. Keywords: People's Appreciation, Poverty, Government


2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliana Bonacorsi de Palma

<span>Abstract: The role of the front-line public agents in the implementation of the public policies created by the first-tier is the subject addressed by the author. From the notion of street-level bureaucrats, it seeks to identify the difficulties encountered by such public agents in decision-making and the need for standards that provide for institutes and administrative dynamics that in fact lead to more efficient, impersonal and guaranteeing public action to protect the well-intentioned front-line public agent to fully exercise the discretion he needs in case-by-case action.</span>


2011 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 344-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liam Foster

Poverty is encountered by the majority of users of social services but is often overlooked in social work practice. This article explores the relationship between poverty in older age, pension receipt and the role of social policy formulation in the UK with particular reference to New Labour governance. It also briefly explores the EU context before considering the implications for social work.


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