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Working in the Public Sector

A Case Study of Social Services

Liverpool Hope University, England, coffeym{at}hope.ac.uk

Lindsey Dugdill

University of Salford, England

Andy Tattersall

Liverpool John Moores University, England

• Summary: This article explores working conditions and quality of life in social services. The article focuses on the qualitative findings generated throughout a phased study comprising: in-depth interviews (n = 8) used to develop an original questionnaire; a large survey (n = 1237) of staff in two social service departments in the UK; and focus groups (n = 4) used in Children and Families Division to develop a better understanding of the difficulties experienced and develop context-specific interventions aimed at reducing or eliminating these stressors. It also reports quantitative findings in respect stress (measured using the General Health Questionnaire — GHQ-12).

• Findings: The survey findings indicated that 36 percent (n = 392) of the respondents were considered to be suffering from mental distress. Children and Families Division was worst affected, reporting the highest levels of absenteeism and poorest well-being. The qualitative findings were summarized into five broad themes: organizational culture and function; control; lack of resources; responsibility for people; and the rate and pace of change, which were incorporated into a model.

• Application: The article suggests that during times of change a thorough understanding of working conditions in the public sector are a fundamental prerequisite to developing interventions aimed at improving them. Additionally, the model clearly identifies a number of factors that are ‘organizational’, rather than being intrinsic to working in social services.

Key Words: public sector • social work • stress • workforce • working conditions

This version was published on October 1, 2009

Journal of Social Work, Vol. 9, No. 4, 420-442 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/1468017309342177


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