Practising social work in a context of austerity: experiences of public sector social workers in Greece

ABSTRACT

Since the 1980s and within a context of neoliberal globalization, the welfare state provision in many countries has been affected adversely by austerity and social spending cuts that have intensified since the last global financial crisis of 2008. A country that has been particularly harshly affected is Greece. This paper draws on interviews with public sector social workers in Greece and presents their perceptions of the consequences of austerity/social spending cuts on their work. The research findings of this study suggest that, within the context of austerity, social workers are facing a number of challenges and tensions. The paper argues that these tensions and challenges are local manifestations of the global conditions of neoliberal globalization and as such they have relevance for other countries. Furthermore, it argues that this understanding needs to inform the actions of social workers. It is important for these tensions and challenges to be contextualized within the socio-economic conditions in which they arise in order for austerity and social spending cuts to become a locus of intervention.

Περίληψη

Από τη δεκαετία του 1980 -και σε ένα πλαίσιο νεοϕιλελεύθερης παγκοσμιοποίησης- το κοινωνικό κράτος σε πολλές χώρες επηρεάστηκε δυσμενώς από τις πολιτικές λιτότητας και κοινωνικών περικοπών που έχουν ενταθεί από την τελευταία παγκόσμια οικονομική κρίση του 2008. Μία χώρα που έχει πληγεί ιδιαίτερα σκληρά από τις εν λόγω πολιτικές, με ραγδαία επιδείνωση των όρων επιβίωσης, διαρκή ϕτωχοποίηση και απορρύθμιση του κοινωνικού κράτους, είναι ηΕλλάδα. Η παρούσα μελέτη βασίζεται σε συνεντεύξεις με κοινωνικούς λειτουργούς του δημόσιου τομέα και παρουσιάζει τις αντιλήψεις τους για τις συνέπειες της οικονομικής κρίσης, των πολιτικών λιτότητας και των περικοπών των κοινωνικών δαπανών στην άσκηση της κοινωνικής εργασίας στην Ελλάδα. Τα πορίσματα της έρευνας αυτής δείχνουν ότι, στο πλαίσιο της λιτότητας, η άσκηση της κοινωνικής εργασίας αντιμετωπίζει μια σειρά προκλήσεων και εντάσεων. Η μελέτη υποστηρίζει ότι αυτές οι εντάσεις και προκλήσεις είναι τοπικές εκδηλώσεις των παγκόσμιων συνθηκών της νεοϕιλελεύθερης παγκοσμιοποίησης και, ως εκ τούτου, αϕορούν και άλλες χώρες. Επιπλέον, υποστηρίζει ότι αυτή ησχέση πρέπει να πληροϕορεί την εκπαίδευση κοινωνικών λειτουργών προκειμένου ηοικονομική κρίση, οι πολιτικές λιτότητας και εν γένει ηνεοϕιλελεύθερη παγκοσμιοποίηση να καταστούν πεδίο παρέμβασης των κοινωνικών λειτουργών.

KEYWORDS:

• Critical perspectives
• austerity
• Greece
• neoliberalism
• international social work

Λέξεις Κλειδιά:

• Κριτική θεωρία των κοινωνικών επιστημών
• πολιτικές λιτοτήτας
• κράτος πρόνοιας
• Ελλάδα
• διεθνής κοινωνική εργασία
• νεοϕιλελεύθερη παγκοσμιοποίηση

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Maria Pentaraki works at Queen’s University Belfast, Northern Ireland. Before that she held academic posts in England and Greece where she was also the Head of one of the largest social work departments. She has a wide range of research interests such as international social work, social work practice under austerity, shared austerity reality, grassroots community solidarity structures, gender based violence, dating and teenage relationship abuse violence and LGBT issues. She has been actively involved in the peace and justice movement throughout her life in many countries in which she has lived.

Notes

1. In this paper, neoliberalism is understood to refer to the worldwide economic and political trends, predominant since the 1970s, which claim that human well-being can be best advanced through an unregulated market (Harvey, 2005). However, in the last 30 years, human well-being has not generally advanced since inequalities have increased in the majority of the countries worldwide (Dorling, 2015).

2. The SAP comprised, among other things, deregulation of labour relations, undermining of collective bargaining, decrease of wages and pensions, privatization of state assets, dismantling of the social security system (Karamessini, 2015).

3. This is a segment of a larger research project that examines the consequences of the SAP to the Greek Welfare State and the response of the social work profession. Other segments of the social work profession have been interviewed too.

4. The interviewees worked in centrally planned services until December 2010. After that a process of devolution was imposed.

5. Both SAP and austerity measures were used because the austerity measures were implemented as a result of the SAP imposed.