Between professional ethics and bureaucratic rationality: the challenging ethical position of social workers who are faced with implementing a workfare policy Mellom profesjonsetikk og byråkratisk rasjonalitet: Sosialarbeideres utfordrende etiske posisjon ved iverksetting av arbeidslinjen

Abstract

This article is based upon an empirical, qualitative study of social workers implementing the workfare policy in five municipal social welfare offices in Oslo, the capital of Norway. The concern of the study has been to investigate the conditions for the social workers’ practice in this bureaucratic context where clients who apply for social and economic assistance will primarily be motivated to choose work rather than social insurance. Particular tasks and roles for social workers are defined in employment contracts and in job descriptions, but professional judgement and professional discretion are influenced by the individual appropriation of professional values and practices and how these are amalgamated to the individual's personal experiences in the practice of social work. The social worker can exercise authority in a very concrete and clear manner when implementing workfare. The law allows for considerable discretion, but internal rules and policies within municipalities can have a great impact upon the social worker and affect his/her practice. This implies that the normative and ethical values of the profession become imperative. The article focuses on the municipal social welfare offices as gate-keeping institutions and on the ethical position of the social workers in that context.

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