Social Work in Social Change pdf

Table 5.3: Registrations and passes for social work from first to fourth year at Limpopo University, 1994–2005 105Table 5.4: Throughput calculations for Limpopo University, 1994–2005 108

Nicci Earle

in Social Change

The Profession and Education

of Social Workers in South Africa

Published by HSRC PressPrivate Bag X9182, Cape Town, 8000, South Africawww.hsrcpress.ac.za

First published 2008ISBN 978-0-7969-2208-3

© 2008 Human Sciences Research CouncilCopyedited by David Merrington

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Tables and figures vPreface vii

Acknowledgements ixAbbreviations and acronyms xi

The฀professional฀milieu฀and฀professional฀labour฀ market฀of฀social฀workers฀in฀South฀Africa

and฀education฀of฀social฀workers฀ 2

Introduction 2Methodology 3Conclusion 12

Image of social work 36Professional organisation 38Transferability of skills 43Conclusion 44

workers฀in฀South฀Africa฀ 46

Demographics and distribution of registered social workers 46Demand for social workers and the factors fuelling demand 49Supply of social workers from the South African higher education system 58Higher education context of changes in social worker supply 63

The Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) 64Conclusion 68

The฀impact฀of฀the฀changing฀context฀of฀social฀work฀ practice฀and฀education:฀Findings฀from฀the฀case- study฀universities

Introducing the case-study universities 70Introducing the departments of social work 77Conclusion 87

5฀ ฀Factors฀impacting฀on฀intake฀and฀output฀of฀

social฀work฀graduates฀ 88

Choosing to study social work 88Intake of social work students 92Output: Perceptions of the quality of social work graduates 98Throughput: Quantitative input versus output 99

Throughput: Qualitative factors affecting graduate numbers and quality 109Conclusion 133

Postscript:฀Developments฀between฀March฀2006฀and฀ July฀2007฀ 154

Table 1.1: Range of interviews undertaken that were not linked to the case-study

institutions 4Table 1.2: Range of research activities undertaken at the two case-study universities 7Table 2.1: HIV prevalence among respondents aged two years and older by sex and

age group, 2005 19Table 3.1: Growth in total number of registered social workers, by gender,

1985–2005 46Table 3.2: Race and age profile of social workers, 2005 47Table 3.3: Social workers – employment status and labour market distribution,

2004 48Table 3.4: Registered social workers, and social workers involved in direct formal

welfare activities, per 100 000 of the population, by province, 2004 49Table 3.5: New demand for social workers due to population growth at ratio of

23.6 per 100 000, 2005–2015 51Table 3.6: Replacement demand for social workers, 2005–2015 52Table 3.7: Current and projected shortfall in the number of social workers employed

in direct welfare based on the implementation of proposed provincial norms 53

Table 3.8: Total additional staff to be recruited by DOH 54Table 3.9: The requirements for social workers to implement the Children’s Bill 55Table 3.10: Available data on emigration of South African social workers 56

Table 3.11: Race and gender profile of social work graduates from South African

universities, 1992–2003 60Table 3.12: Breakdown for university enrolment for social work degrees by race,

2000–2003 61Table 3.13: Race and gender breakdown for total university enrolment for degrees in

social work, 2000–2004 62Table 3.14: Registration for the subject of social work at first and fourth year of study by

university, 2000–2004 62Table 4.1: Breakdown of total enrolments at the University of Limpopo compared

against national HE figures, 2005 70Table 4.2: Breakdown of total enrolments at the University of Stellenbosch compared

against national HE figures, 2005 72Table 4.3: Reasons for choosing to study at Limpopo or Stellenbosch University 76Table 4.4: Comparison of lecturing staff composition between Limpopo and

Stellenbosch universities, March 2006 79Table 4.5: Comparative social work course fees at the universities of Limpopo and

Stellenbosch – 2006 fees 83Table 5.1: Registrations and passes for social work from first to fourth year at

Stellenbosch University, 1996–2005 101Table 5.2: Throughput of students entering the BA Social Work, 1996–2002 103

Table 5.3: Registrations and passes for social work from first to fourth year at Limpopo

University, 1994–2005 105Table 5.4: Throughput calculations for Limpopo University, 1994–2005 108Table 5.5: Overview of the practice education programme for social work at

Stellenbosch University, 2006 127Table 5.6: Overview of the practice education programme for social work at

Limpopo University, 2006 130

Figures

Figure 1.1: Schematic map of the profession and professional education of social

workers in South Africa 10Figure 2.1: The spiral of disempowerment of social workers in NGOs – the views of

labour union representatives 41Figure 3.1: Vacancy rates for social workers in the public welfare sector, 2005 50Figure 3.2: Social work – graduation trends by level of qualification at South African

Many of the hopes and aspirations of South Africa’s new democracy depend upon the production of professionals who not only have globally competitive knowledge and skills, but are also ‘socially responsible and conscious of their role in contributing

to the national development effort and social transformation’ (DoE, 2001: 5) more, there is a dire need for more black and female professionals, not only to redress the inequities of the past, but also to broaden the consciousness of social formations that tend to be conservative everywhere in the world In South Africa under apartheid, the professions reflected race and gender hierarchies and to varying extents they still do

Further-Whether the professions and their education programmes are managing to achieve these ideals is a moot point which the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) hopes to address with a series of studies on professions and professional education,

of which this is the second The studies are intended to explore the policy concerns stated above and also to raise issues that have not yet entered policy discourse

They will examine each profession through two theoretical lenses, the first being professional labour markets, both national and international, as well as the wider general labour market in South Africa, while the second focuses on the national and international professional milieu By this expression is meant the multiple socio-economic and political conditions, structural arrangements and professional and educational discourses which shape what it means to be a professional, behaving professionally, at a particular juncture in history Each profession will examine itself through both these lenses and identify key issues of concern which will form the focus of each study and be explored at multiple levels Studies will also include sub-case studies – micro-level explorations of these issues in professional education settings

This case study concerns the profession and education of social workers and has been selected for two main reasons First, unlike other professions, social work has

a particularly complex relationship with the state through its key role as implementer

of social welfare policy Just over one decade ago the South African state changed from the racially discriminatory system of apartheid – in which the government effectively focused on eliminating poverty among, and promoting the interests of, the white minority population – to one of democracy, with a focus on the development

of previously disadvantaged groups With social development in the face of an escalating HIV/AIDS epidemic high on the national agenda of the new government, but with social workers considered by this new government to be the foot soldiers

of apartheid, the professional milieu was unlikely to escape considerable onslaught

Second, social work is one of the few professions that does not demand maths and science for entry, is still considered to be a profession with some status within certain segments of society, and has moreover demonstrated a change in demographics over the past decade from being dominated by white females to being dominated

by African females Underlying all the professional challenges of the past decade are misunderstandings and suspicions at multiple levels between the various role-players,

as well as the unintended consequences of policies implemented in the absence of a national overarching social development objective and vision

The completion of this research would not have possible without the help of a number of people Thus I would like to thank:

• Dr Mignonne Breier, the project leader of the HSRC Professions Studies series of which this research is a part, for her ongoing guidance and invaluable input;

• Professor Antoinette Lombard, Professor Vivienne Bozalek and Margaret Grobbelaar for their insightful feedback on the final draft of this monograph;

• All the practising social workers, from their various areas of specialisation, who provided me with insights into the general professional milieu of social work at this time;

• My colleagues Dr Renette du Toit, Dr Andrew Paterson, Dr Johan Erasmus, Mariette Visser and Lindi Basson, for their general encouragement and support;

• Carin Farevo for her excellent transcriptions;

• Iveda Smith and Santie Pruis of the South African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP) for providing access to professional statistics and giving willingly of their time;

• Dr Jean Skene of the Department of Education, for providing the statistics that underpin the qualitative analysis of social work enrolments and graduations;

• Inga Norenius of HSRC Press, for managing the production of this monograph

Most importantly, I would like to thank the interviewees who made time to speak to

me Owing to the request for anonymity by some, I am unfortunately able to mention only very few by name

In connection with the University of Stellenbosch, special thanks must be given to Professor Sulina Green for her enthusiastic and active participation in this research

I am grateful also to all the staff of the Stellenbosch social work school, the staff of the social welfare agencies at which the students undertake their practical education,

as well as to the students who participated in the focus groups, for their time and involvement Finally, my appreciation goes to Mr Neil Grobbelaar for his effort in respect of extracting social worker enrolment and graduation data for this study

At the University of Limpopo, I would like to thank Ms Dineo Seloana for granting permission for the study My thanks also to her and the entire staff complement within the social work school for their open contributions in this work The insights

of the Limpopo students who participated in the focus groups are also gratefully acknowledged The staff at agencies providing these students with practical education, who gave freely of their time for this study, have my sincere appreciation

ACVV Afrikaanse Christelike Vroue Vereniging (Afrikaans Christian Women’s

Association) (NGO)AIDS Acquired immune deficiency syndrome

ASASWEI Association of South African Social Work Education Institutions

CMR Christelike Maatskaplike Raad (Christian Social Council) (NGO) CPD continuous professional development

CSW Council for Social Work (now SACSSP)

DPSA Department of Public Service and Administration

GEAR Growth, Employment and Redistribution (macroeconomic policy)GSCC General Social Care Council (UK)

HEMIS Higher Education Management Information System

HOSPERSA Health and Other Service Personnel Trade Union of South Africa

HWSETA Health and Welfare Sector Education and Training AuthorityIASSW International Association of Schools of Social Work

IFSW International Federation of Social WorkersJUC Joint University Committee (now ASASWEI)Medunsa Medical University of South Africa

NACOSS National Coalition of Social ServicesNASW National Association of Social Work (USA)NEHAWU National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union

NQF National Qualifications FrameworkNSFAS National Student Financial Aid SchemePAWUSA Public and Allied Workers’ Union of South Africa

RPL recognition of prior learningSAASWIPP South African Association of Social Workers in Private PracticeSABSWA South African Black Social Workers’ Association

SACSSP South African Council for Social Service ProfessionsSANDF South African National Defence Force

SAOSWA South African Occupational Social Workers’ AssociationSAPS South African Police Service

SAQA South African Qualifications AuthoritySASSA South African Social Security AgencySAVF Suid Afrikaanse Vroue Federasie (South African Women’s Association)

(NGO)SETA Sector Education and Training AuthoritySGB Standards generating body (for social work)

SWASA Social Work Association of South Africa

Wits University of the Witwatersrand

A note on termsDuring the apartheid regime, legislation divided the South African populace into four distinct population groups based on racial classification Although the notion of population groups is now legal history, it is not always possible to gauge the effects of past discriminatory practices, and the progress of policies designed to eradicate them, without reference to it For this reason, the HSRC continues to use the terms African, coloured, white or Indian people where it is pertinent to the analysis of data In this book, in contexts referring to all formerly disenfranchised groups, the term ‘black’ signifies African, coloured and Indian people

And฀proFeSSionAl฀lAbour฀ mArkeT฀oF฀SoCiAl฀workerS฀ in฀SouTh฀AFriCA

Towards an understanding of the profession and education of social workers

Introduction

This study forms part of a series of professional studies being conducted by the HSRC’s Research Programme on Education, Science and Skills Development

It follows a pilot study on medical doctors which was published in 2006 as a

monograph entitled Doctors in a Divided Society: The Profession and Education of Medical Practitioners in South Africa by Mignonne Breier with Angelique Wildschut

Like the other professional studies this study involved developing an understanding

of the professional milieu and professional labour market of social workers, before unpacking some of these key issues at two ‘case-study’ South African higher education institutions contributing to the supply of social workers into the local labour market

Becoming a registered social worker in South Africa demands the completion of four years of university training, which, similar to other professional education, includes the components of theory, practice education and research Unlike the majority of other professional qualifications, however, entry to social work, at any of the 20 higher education institutions in South Africa that offer the degree, does not demand maths or science at matric level This is considered a drawcard into the profession

by those who wish to undertake a professional qualification but do not have these subjects Furthermore, while the low salaries are comparable to those in teaching and nursing (the other professions that do not demand maths and science), unlike the former, employment is virtually guaranteed, and additional perceived ‘perks’ include flexible and independent work, personal offices and, in the case of government employ, vehicle subsidies

Yet, despite these ‘perks’, the reality of social work practice in South Africa one decade into democracy is challenging and complex, and is impacted on by a number of interrelated factors, many with roots deep in the apartheid era For the profession of social work, this decade has been marked by a substantial enlargement

of the client population through the change in focus from the white minority to the disadvantaged black majority with escalating social problems related largely to HIV/AIDS; by a policy change in practice approach from ‘residual’ to ‘developmental’, which has additionally been linked to funding; and by extremely strained relations between government and the NGO sector – the two key players in respect of welfare provision The result of these changes for social workers has been a gradual erosion

in the value of historically low salaries, lack of resources, poor working conditions and high workloads, as the pool of professionals is currently insufficient in size to meet the national social and welfare needs

And, while many students, especially from disadvantaged backgrounds, are drawn

by the perceived professional perks and the status enjoyed by social workers in their local communities, most individuals enter the profession because of a desire to help

Holders of professional social work degrees from South African institutions, however, are not restricted to working in the South African welfare system Alternative

opportunities lie in four key areas: moving into management or education within the public sector; practising in social work or social work-related careers in the private service or corporate sectors; emigrating (permanent or temporary) to countries such

as the UK, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the USA to practise the profession there; or using the degree as a base to access additional higher education in fields such as law or psychology Despite altruism at the start of their education or working careers, the challenges and disillusionment faced within the reality of practice lead many to explore these alternative options

This study considers, from a number of perspectives, the complex world of social work practice in South Africa just over a decade into democracy First, the professional milieu is discussed, along with all the complex and interrelated factors that have made social work an under-resourced, underpaid and undervalued profession over the past decade, as well as the recent attempts by government

to initiate rectification of this situation Second, the professional labour market is described and discussed in respect of the factors impacting on the demand for, and supply of, social work skills Third, the issues uncovered through the reviews of the professional milieu and the professional labour market are explored in more detail

at two case-study universities Most particularly, graduate throughput, and the macro, meso and micro factors that influence this, are the key central themes

Finally, this monograph concludes that in early 2006 neither the social work professional milieu nor the support provided to the profession’s education was conducive to the graduation of high numbers of quality social workers The attainment of greater numbers of high-quality social work graduates in South Africa needs to follow a multi-pronged approach which includes attracting more people to the profession by improving the image of the profession through improved salaries, working conditions and resources; increasing the availability of personal finance opportunities for students wishing to study for a degree in social work; and improving the levels of funding allocated to social work studies at the tertiary institution level

In respect of the last, funding should not only recognise social work as the scarce skill that it is, but should also recognise the four-year professional nature of the qualification, as well as the fact that it generally attracts large numbers of students from disadvantaged backgrounds who require individual input to overcome personal past disadvantage if they are to develop into competent professionals who can lead the way in one of government’s key development objectives, that of raising the social welfare of the nation

Methodology

The monograph follows the basic methodology of the professions project that was piloted in the study on medical doctors (Breier, 2006) This involved the researcher developing a thorough understanding of the professional milieu and professional labour market of social workers in South Africa, and from this identifying key issues

within the education of social workers that were then unpacked through case studies

at two educational institutions The monograph also incorporates research on the

demand and supply of social workers in South Africa, conducted for the Human Resources Development Review 2008 (Earle, 2007).

The findings presented in this monograph represent the outcome of research work conducted between September 2005 and March 2006, including a detailed review

of national and international academic journal article publications, the national media, and national social and educational policy impacting on the profession and its education This process presented a picture of social work in South Africa as a profession in crisis, with pressures coming from a number of extremely complex and interrelated factors and linked to past and present national social, economic and educational policies At the same time, the problems facing social workers and social work education appeared to be relatively uniform across the country and the education institutions offering the programme Finally, it was discovered that, unlike

in the case of medical doctors, there is a level of ignorance among the general population about the scope of work that social workers do and the conditions under which they must do this work

Based on this, it was decided that this research would not try to focus on different issues at particular institutions as the pilot professional study had done, but rather seek to unpack all the key professional issues in both case-study institutions selected It was also decided that prior to undertaking the case-study research at the two educational institutions, supplementary qualitative information about the various issues that emerged from the literature review would be sought through personal and telephonic interviews with a range of informants representing various aspects of social work practice, social work education and professional organisation These individuals were selected on a combination of factors: the particular

organisation represented, their specialty of practice, their geographical location, and their willingness to participate Table 1.1 provides information on the full range of interviews undertaken that were not linked to either of the two case-study universities selected

Table 1.1: Range of interviews undertaken that were not linked to the case-study institutions

Organisation or area of practice represented Date of interview Interview type Tape-recorded

Organisation or area of practice represented Date of interview Interview type Tape-recorded

Child Welfare – a branch in

Limpopo provincial welfare at

The two case-study institutions chosen for this research were the universities of Limpopo and Stellenbosch The choice of these two universities was decided by the desire to undertake a comparative review – of the presentation of the issues related

to the profession and its education as evident from the literature and the other interviews – between a historically disadvantaged, traditionally ‘black’ university and a historically advantaged, traditionally ‘white’ university The choice of these institutions was further supported by topical issues such as the racial transformation within the profession from being predominantly white female to predominantly African female;

the relatively slow racial transformation of Stellenbosch juxtaposed against the focus

of the social work profession on the poor, disadvantaged and marginalised within society; and the continued problems facing historically disadvantaged institutions in respect of student throughput

A weakness emerging from the choice of these two institutions, which can be considered a weakness of this study, is that the impact of challenging higher education institution mergers on social work education in South Africa is not addressed in this work This is because the University of Stellenbosch was not involved in a merger process, while the merger of the University of the North with the Medical University of South Africa (Medunsa) to form the University of Limpopo did not affect social work education directly as Medunsa did not have a department

of social work Yet, despite this weakness, the issues that have emerged out of the research undertaken at the institutions chosen are likely to shed valuable light on the range of problems and challenges faced by all South African higher education

institutions offering social work as a programme, regardless of their merger or merger status.

non-Prior to the start of work on this research, it was necessary for the study to be approved by the HSRC Ethics Committee This involved the submission and approval

of the research proposal as well as the study’s various instruments – the schedules for the semi-structured interviews as well as the participant consent forms

In arranging to undertake the case studies, contact was made with the heads of the departments of social work at both Stellenbosch and Limpopo universities The nature of the research and the proposed research activities were explained through email It was indicated that we desired to conduct a range of semi-structured interviews, to undertake classroom observations and to gain access to institution-specific quantitative enrolment and graduation data The documentation that had been approved by the Ethics Committee was attached to these emails As the month

of March 2006 had been set aside to conduct the case-study research work, it was requested that the institutions accommodate the researcher for one week each within that month, during which time the researcher would be based within the respective department of social work The full range of activities anticipated was indicated to be

as follows:

• Personal interviews with all lecturing staff

• Personal interviews with two university supervisors

• Personal interviews with field supervisors at three agencies/departments at which students undertake their practical placements

• Focus group interviews for each of the academic years (first to fourth) respectively, consisting of five students and covering the range of diversity found

at the institution

• Classroom observation sessions for each of the academic years, first to fourth

For the University of Stellenbosch, permission was obtained from the head of the department of social work, Professor Sulina Green, as well as from the university’s coordinator of institutional planning who required, in addition to the documentation described above, a copy of the certificate of ethical approval from the HSRC’s Ethics Committee The latter was necessary to meet university policy for the approval of research that included students directly The University of Limpopo did not indicate having any such policy, and permission to conduct the research was obtained directly

by email from the acting head of the department of social work, Ms Dinea Seloana.1

Stellenbosch agreed to host the researcher in the week of 13–17 March 2006 and proceeded to set up a schedule of activities that covered the range requested, with the single exception that one of the lecturing staff was on study leave and could not

be seen This schedule was presented to the researcher on arrival at the department

on Monday 13 March, and all events took place as arranged

Limpopo agreed to host the researcher in the week of 27–31 March 2006 On arrival

at the department on Monday 27 March, the researcher and the acting head of department together drew up a schedule of activities, with the researcher then having

1 The correspondence related to obtaining permission for the study, as well as copies of the detailed university fieldwork schedules, semi-structured interview schedules and the templates for participant consent forms can all be obtained on request from the author.

to contact the university and field supervisors to set up meetings for the week This relatively late scheduling resulted in only one university supervisor and two agencies being available for interviews in that week Despite this, at one of these agencies two supervisors made themselves available for the interview, while a field supervisor from

a third agency was contacted telephonically for an interview Similarly, the numbers

of students in the focus groups were somewhat lower than requested – many indicated that they would attend but in the end did not turn up Finally, here, as at Stellenbosch, one lecturer was on leave and could not be seen

Overall, despite the slight variations, both institutions were extremely helpful and supportive of the research, and a virtually identical range of activities was undertaken

at each Table 1.2 provides the details

Table 1.2: Range of research activities undertaken at the two case-study universities

Stellenbosch (13–17 March 2006) Limpopo (27–31 March 2006)

Interview university supervisor 2

Telephonic interview agency 3 field supervisor 1

Prior to all the interviews, the nature of the research was explained to the participant(s) They were also requested to sign a consent form that (1) indicated their consent to participate in the study, (2) indicated the level at which they wished

to be identified (i.e, remain anonymous, identification by designation only, or identification by name and designation), and (3) their permission for the interview to

be tape-recorded All interviewees gave their permission for tape recordings, although only the focus group interviews were transcribed in full by an outside transcriptionist

In respect of the other interviews, the researcher used the recordings to create paraphrased summaries that included only key quotations.

Of note at this point is that, while many who participated in this study gave the researcher permission to identify them by name, such identification has been limited in this monograph All students are identified by designation only, as are the majority of practising social workers and social work educators who participated The reasons for this include the fact that, due to the small size of the social work education community, full identification of some within a department would lead to the identification of others merely by a process of elimination Additionally, the focus

of this work is not on who said what, but rather on what was said Thus, even where individuals gave permission for identification, this has only been done in a minority

of cases

All interviews were conducted in venues in which the confidentiality of the discussion between the participants could be maintained For educators and supervisors, this was generally within their personal offices For the student focus groups, the department of social work at Stellenbosch made available various private rooms that were large enough to accommodate the numbers, while the department of social work at Limpopo assigned the researcher a personal office for the duration of the visit This office was used to conduct focus group interviews at this institution

All primary and secondary research was essentially completed by the end of March 2006 This is important to consider, as many of the issues discussed in this monograph, particularly in respect of legislation and the other aspects of the domestic professional milieu and labour market for social workers, were in a considerable state of flux at that point in time Thus, by the time of publication, these debates and struggles will have moved on As there was additionally a gap of roughly seven months between undertaking the research and beginning the writing

up of the findings, it was debated whether the literature review should be updated prior to writing The decision not to do this was based on a desire to maintain time cohesion between the arguments of research participants and the literature and media current at that time Writing up of the findings began in December 2006, and a first draft of the work was completed by the end of February 2007 A refined draft was submitted to external review at the beginning of April 2007, while the finalised draft incorporating peer review comments was submitted to the HSRC Press in July 2007 Just prior to submission to the Press, the Postscript was written This outlines the key social work professional and educational developments between April 2006 and July 2007

Deciding on a structure for this monograph was no easy undertaking The reasons for this were multifold, and need to be considered in the reading:

• First, and most important, the various issues and challenges facing the profession and its education are so complex, multifaceted and interrelated that it was not possible to present the findings in a linear fashion without relatively frequently having to cross-reference the topic under discussion with issues discussed either earlier or later in the monograph In preparation of the writing, a conceptual map of the profession and related issues was drawn up This is presented in Figure 1.1 (and in its accompanying description that follows) with the aim of providing the reader with some advance understanding of the key issues and their relationship to each other Thus, while the structure chosen was intended

to present the discussion and findings in the most logical linear sense and

in a fashion that required the least amount of internal cross-referencing, the work is self-illuminating and a full understanding of the issues discussed at the beginning of the monograph will only be possible after having read the entire work This was unfortunately unavoidable

• Second, unlike the case with doctors, the author could not rely on the general public’s having an awareness of the history and scope of practice within the social work profession Providing a more detailed background was thus considered important to contextualise some of the later discussions, although those within the profession will be familiar with this

• Third, the overwhelming majority of social work cannot be practised independently of the national socio-political context: the profession depends

on a solid partnership with the state It is critical to unpack in some detail the tensions that have thus resulted from social work’s origins in apartheid South Africa versus the current practice context of the ANC government

• Finally, while a logic exists as to the overall presentation of the findings, disjuncture at the section level results from the need to return to the ‘main road’ (the central theme) after having explored some way down a ‘side road’

(particular issue) In order to assist the reader in this, the chapter, section and subsection headings have been clearly indicated, with the table of contents providing another ‘map’ of the overall discussion presented in this work

Linked to the above challenges in presenting a linear argument from a network

of interrelated issues was the challenge in presenting the findings of the literature review, which were very tightly linked to the findings of the primary research itself

Thus, this monograph is not presented in the traditional academic manner of having

a full literature review preceding a discussion based purely on the findings While the initial chapters are focused around the literature and the later chapters around the research findings, this division is not exclusive: findings that support the literature but that are not discussed as whole issues in the later chapters are included in the discussion of the literature to add richness, while literature that is pertinent to a specific theme discussed in the findings is referenced at that point to add depth

Thus, throughout this monograph, the literature and the research findings are presented in an iterative manner

The schematic map presented in Figure 1.1 presents the key issues within the profession and education of social workers in South Africa and attempts to show the complex inter-relationships between them The issues can be classified roughly

according to three key levels: macro, meso and micro.

Personal factors such as language, culture, personal social problems, career aspirations, geographical location, gender, access to finance, etc.

International legislation/Agreements on trade in goods and services, standards of professional education, etc.

National legislation on education, welfare, economics, labour, professional regulations, etc.

Funding for social work education 'Developmental' welfare

Curriculum change Transformation

Working conditions Salaries

Welfare funding Transformation

Labour unions

Government NGO sector Private sector

Continuous professional development

Drivers' licences

Attrition: temporary or permanent loss of students, new graduates and experienced professionals

Practice education

Reading the schematic map of the profession and professional education of social workers in South Africa

At the meso level are the basic labour market concepts of supply (Education: theory

& practice) and demand (Work environment) of social workers In this map, the

presentation of supply on the left considers the movement of an individual through the system of professional education from the point of application to graduation The narrowing of the arrows attempts to capture the reductions in physical numbers of

people at each stage in the process, as this impacts on the throughput of the higher

education system in respect of the generation of social work professionals

Upon graduation, social workers seek employment Key employers of social workers

include the government sector (Departments of Social Development and Welfare,

Health, Education, Justice, Correctional Services and South African Police Service

(SAPS)); the NGO sector (non-governmental, non-profit and faith-based organisations);

and the private sector (including both the corporate sector and independent private

practice) Work undertaken by social workers includes the physical and emotional support of children and families, elderly and disabled persons, people suffering from mental health problems or drug or alcohol abuse, and victims of abuse, violence or trauma Preventative strategies such as the education and empowerment of vulnerable groups are also a critical aspect of social work

Impacting directly on the working environment of social workers are the other social service professions with whom social workers must work and cooperate in

the delivery of national welfare services (for instance, child and youth care work, community development work, probation officers) The professional development and regulation of these additional social service occupations also falls under the South African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP), although lack of demarcation of roles and responsibilities amongst social work and the other social service professions has led to tensions and conflict Along with the SACSSP, a number

of other professional associations exist around areas of common practice or other

interests and are responsible for guiding and assuring the quality of social work

practice, ethics and training While the organisation of quality continuous professional

individual (i.e., micro-level factors) cannot be ignored in respect of the uptake of these opportunities

Notably, exposure to the work environment occurs long before graduation The

requirement of practice education as part of the professional education of social

workers creates a feedback loop between the education and work environments, as students are exposed to and shaped in their professional education through exposure

to real places of work during their training, while those qualified social workers working in institutions and organisations that host students are impacted on by the latest theory and techniques brought to the workplace by students

The issue of quality is a factor that emerges in relation to all meso-level aspects The

quality of the output of the secondary education system impacts on the quality of applicants and entrants into the higher education system Here, issues of quality are compounded by factors such as the impact of funding on the availability of human and physical resources for education Within the work environment, quality of service delivery is related both to the quality of social work graduates emerging from the

schools of social work and the quality and quantity of resources available to support their work.

At the macro level, factors such as international legislation/agreements on trade in goods and services, as well as standards of professional education, and national legislation on education, welfare, economics, labour, professional regulations and so forth impact on both the educational and working environments of social workers

in an interrelated and complex way For instance, in the sphere of education, macro factors have a direct impact on issues such as the funding of social work education, the overall design of the social work curriculum, the requirement to teach social work practice according to a ‘developmental’ welfare approach, and the need to effect a demographic transformation among higher education entrants and graduates

In the sphere of the working environment, macro factors impact on the funding available for welfare, and through this also on working conditions, salaries and demographic transformation of social work employment Straddling the macro and meso levels in respect of the work environment are the activities of labour unions

Also at the macro level, and impacting directly on social work education and (hopefully) on national and international policies and legislation, and through these

indirectly on the work environment, are international social and social work theories.

The micro level – that of the individual – is, however, equally critical in understanding the milieu of the profession of social work and the education of social workers in

South Africa Factors here include language, culture, personal social problems, career aspirations, geographical location, gender, access to finance and so forth These

factors have a continuous impact on the movement of social workers into and out of

the education and work environments Attrition in this regard includes temporary or

permanent loss of students, new graduates and experienced professionals.

Finally, the critical issue of access to drivers’ licences spans both work and education

environments (through practice education) at the meso level, though it is also critically related to micro-level factors such as limited access to finance and relevant resources

•฀ Each case must give a macro-level overview of current conditions in the profession and its professional education systems while also focusing on micro-level implications in selected sub-case studies

It is debatable whether a study like this is better conducted by a member of the profession or by an outsider An insider would contribute many insights, but also the

inevitable biases entailed in their professional involvement, whereas a professional researcher might present a broader and hopefully more dispassionate view No perspective can be all-encompassing and each approach presents its own problems

The one chosen offers breadth of vision and objectivity, but sacrifices the kind of detail that only an insider can provide It is hoped that the chapters that follow will prove the wisdom of this decision

Professional milieu for social workers in South Africa

This chapter presents the factors that currently make up the professional milieu for social workers in South Africa As in the case of other professions, the professional milieu is largely determined by, but not limited to, national issues The discussion thus includes both South African and international factors This discussion of the professional milieu is intended to provide the reader with context for the later chapters in which the professional labour market and the production of social work graduates in South Africa are discussed

The first section of this chapter provides an overview of the history of the profession, while the second section provides an overview of the social welfare of the South African nation These sections can be seen as the two bases on which the remaining sections of this chapter stand These latter sections discuss the following: the

key changes to the South African welfare system and the implications of these to social work; governance, coordination and cooperation issues impacting on the profession; the other social service professions; the image of social work; professional organisation among social workers; and the transferability of social work skills

History of the social work profession: An international overview

By social work is meant any form of persistent and deliberate effort to improve living or working conditions in the community, or to relieve, diminish, or prevent distress, whether due to weakness of character or to pressure of external circumstances … the rewards of the social worker are

in his [sic] own conscience and in heaven His life is marked by devotion to impersonal ends and his own satisfaction is largely through the satisfaction procured by his efforts for others … social work appeals strongly to the humanitarian and spiritual element It holds out no inducement to the worldly – neither comfort, glory or money (Flexner, 2001: 160–165)

At the moment social work has a very negative image This is because it seeks to be the voice of the marginalised and the advocates of the poor

Many do not want to hear the voice of the poor and thus sideline those who represent them Additionally, the profession suffers from the same lack

of recognition that almost all caring professions – paid and unpaid – suffer from (Head of social work at a historically black university)

Social work as a profession emerged during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries

as states, responding to the threat of the social crisis among the working classes brought about by the industrial revolution, began the implementation of public services and interventions such as sanitation, education, policing, prisons, juvenile correction, public workhouses and mental asylums, all of which were accompanied

by relevant legislation and policies Within this context, a range of philanthropic initiatives financed and managed social work activities, providing practical and

emotional support to those in need (Social Work History, University of Edinburgh

a large extent been ‘borrowed’ from the field of psychology, and, while initially highly influenced by the psychodynamic theory, now includes sociological theories, social learning theory, systems theory, social movement theory, structural theories, deviance theory, family theories, feminism and postmodernism Ongoing debate among social work researchers underlines the sometimes contradictory nature that the use of this broad theoretical base has on practice (e.g., Atherton & Bolland, 2002; Bisman, 2004;

Holscher, 2005)

A second aspect of professionalisation was to define the techniques, or ‘methods’, of social work practice In this process, the views and practices of two influential but very different early social work practitioners were brought together: Jane Addams from the USA and her Chicago Hull House came to represent the ‘community work’

(social action and reform) branch of the profession Mary Richmond of the UK, however, operated within the constraints of the dominating social system, and aimed interventions at the level of the individual and small group From this developed the methods of ‘casework’ and ‘groupwork’ Both these latter methods found support in the emerging theories of psychology that focused on the individual (as opposed to the environment) as the cause and cure of social problems (Hare, 2004; McLaughlin, 2002) Furthermore, being more acceptable to the ruling classes in that they

represented some form of social control through the neutralising and correcting of behaviour considered dysfunctional (Juhila et al., 2004), the methods of casework and groupwork came to dominate social work practice However, the other component, that of community work, social and political action, policy-making and social development, has persisted and recently gained in significance (Hare, 2004)

Linked to the definition of methods of practice, the defined ‘clients’ or users of social work services emerged as follows: individuals; families and other groups;

and organisations and communities For these clients, the social worker seeks to promote social justice and social change – or the end of discrimination, oppression, poverty and other forms of social injustice – through a range of micro- to macro-level interventions that include direct practice, education, supervision, consultation, administration, advocacy, community organising, social and political action, policy development and implementation and research and evaluation In undertaking these activities, social workers seek to enhance the capacity of people to address their own needs and to promote the responsiveness of organisations, communities and other social institutions to individuals’ needs and social problems (NASW website)

The current international definition of social work, agreed upon by the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) in July 2000 and adopted by the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW), reads as follows:

The social work profession promotes social change, problem-solving in human relationships, and the empowerment and liberation of people to enhance well-being Utilizing theories of human behaviour and social systems, social work intervenes at the points where people interact with their environments Principles of human rights and social justice are fundamental to social work (Quoted in Hare, 2004: 409)

While social work started off predominantly as an expression of religious compassion directed into the establishment and administration of a multitude of voluntary

organisations, secularisation and the weakening of its links with religious, voluntary and charitable efforts have coincided with a strengthening of state legislation and government control (Walton, 2005) Over the twentieth century, social work became increasingly a professional activity carried out either directly by the state, or by the voluntary sector on its behalf The state essentially won the right not only to intervene in the lives of individuals, but also effectively to control how and by whom such intervention should be carried out Numerous authors (e.g., Clarke, 2004; Harris, 1998; Jones, 1999; Walton, 2005; Webb, 2001) comment on the effect of increasing state intervention in the provision of welfare and social services in countries such as the UK by noting the rise in managerialism and bureaucracy, and its restriction of professional scope and autonomy

Social work’s relationship with the state has therefore become ever more intertwined and complicated: the profession is not only legitimated and supported by the state, thus reflecting the priorities and values of the host community (Clark, 2005), but its sphere of practice and autonomy is to a large extent constrained by these same factors Furthermore, ‘social work, as a core human service discipline, is often left

to pick up the consequences of macro-social-political and economic policies as they impact directly on people’s lives at the micro-level’ (Sewpaul, 2001: 309) In the face of the globalisation and neo-liberalism pervasive in the last decade of the twentieth century, Drucker (2003) claims that, despite proud and insistent claims

by social workers that the profession is found at the centre of concern for the poor and the excluded, social workers do ‘in fact function largely as selective stretcher-bearers of [their] own society, and act predominantly with a Western cultural orientation, indistinguishable from others, currently dancing to the compelling tune of unrestrained free market forces’ (2003: 55) In this context, social work occupies the challenging and sometimes contradictory roles of simultaneously being an advocate

of the poor and the oppressed and an agent for implementing state social policy.Despite the weakening of its links with religious effort, certain aspects of the profession’s religious origin remain evident One such aspect is the enduring idea of social work as a ‘calling’ The quote below compares closely with the sentiments of Abraham Flexner written in 1915:

Social work is not what we vocationally achieve as a career; social work is what we accomplish as a calling to transform the world Career and calling are two different paths Whereas a career leads to the pieties of academic culture and a corrupting course of professional narcissism, a calling essentially involves redemptive human uplift and social transformation

(Mohan, 2005: 247)

The other aspects of the profession that can be traced to its religious roots are its underlying ethics and values Principle ethics are based on the idea of a ‘common morality’ Used most extensively in medical practice, the ‘principles’ of respect for autonomy, beneficence, non-harm and fairness (or justice) also form the foundation

of ethics within social work The ethics of care, however, provides the profession with an alternative when dilemmas arise out of the placement of the ‘principles’

in relation to each other, as priority to one may not lead to the same outcome as

priority to another (Sevenhuijsen, 2003), or when non-western cultures present different constructs of principles such as autonomy and fairness (Bozalek, 1999;

Sevenhuijsen et al., 2003)

Social work’s values of respect for equity, worth and dignity, service to community and social justice have been called its ‘moral core’, and have been foundational to distinguishing the profession from others that draw from the same knowledge base (Bisman, 2004; Hare, 2004) The following quotes from contemporary social work literature highlight the tensions that exist between the origins of the profession and its current ethical and theoretic bases:

A profession without a calling … has no taps of moral and humane rootage

to keep human sensitivities and sensibilities alert [and cannot] envision the larger ends and purposes of human good that our individual efforts can serve (Gustafson, 1982: 514, quoted in Bisman, 2004: 115)

Social work has always had moralising undertones: this was understood and appropriate in a profession based on overtly stated values … [but] how can social work avoid becoming ‘benevolent colonialism’ at a time when

it seeks to move beyond the confines of western countries? Brawley, 1999: 334)

(Martinez-Social workers cannot be postmodernists because they operate from a set

of convictions that they believe are qualitatively better than competing sets

… Social workers can embrace one set of skills over another on the basis

of best evidence of success using pragmatic tests And they should continue

to argue for one set of ethics over another on principled grounds without hanging their heads over such privileging of their principles (Atherton &

Despite this, or perhaps because of it, there is still a pervasive idea that social work

Social welfare of the South African nation

Despite the transition to democracy, ‘there are still entrenched vices that threaten

to erode people’s basic human rights in a new South Africa These are, inter alia, poverty and inequality, crime, violence against women and children, and racism’ (Noyoo, 2004: 360)

South African society presents many social problems that provide the focus of social work practice Authors such as Bak (2004), Makofane (2003a), Mathews et al (2004), Scholtz (2005), Sewpaul et al (1999) and Triegaardt (2002) highlight these as including poverty; large-scale unemployment; HIV/AIDS; malnutrition, infant mortality and teenage pregnancy; low levels of literacy and education; high levels of violence, abuse and neglect; poor housing and public health; high levels of crime; and racism The currency and pervasiveness of these social problems is furthermore supported by their coverage in the media

Quantitatively, these problems are highlighted by the following sobering national figures:

• Between 40% and 50% of the South African population can be regarded as poor (May & Meth, 2007)

• South Africa’s Gini coefficient (a measure of income inequality) of between 0.58 (official figures) and 0.66 (based on the calculations of May & Hunter, 2005, referenced in Triegaardt, 2007) places the country as one of the most unequal in the world

• According to the narrow definition, national unemployment doubled from roughly 13% in 1994 to 26% in 2006 (Banerjee et al., 2006)

• The national HIV prevalence was 10.8% in 2005 (excluding those under two years of age) with rates as high as 33.3% among females aged 25–29 and 23.3% among males aged 30–39 (Shisana et al., 2005)

• Over one million children in South Africa in 2006 had lost either one or both

parents to AIDS (Health Statistics, Health Systems Trust website, 2006).

• The prevalence of pregnancy among women aged 15–19 years (i.e., teenagers)

was 15.0% in 2003 (Health Statistics, Health Systems Trust website, 2006).

• 34.2% of people aged over 20 years in 1996 had no or very little schooling and

were considered illiterate (Health Statistics, Health Systems Trust website, 2006).

• The incidence by crime type per 100 000 of the population between 1 April

2003 and 31 March 2004 was 42.7 murders, 64.8 attempted murders, 113.7

reported rapes and 14.0 cases of reported child abuse (Crime Statistics, South

African Police Service website)

While all these issues interact in varied and complex ways to create the social ills of the nation, a deeper discussion at this point is beyond the scope of this monograph This is, however, with one exception, that of the issue of HIV/AIDS The varied dimensions and impacts of this disease as a cause and a consequence of poverty have virtually transformed the landscape of social work practice in South Africa, compounding the already challenging changes in the profession’s political context

A major study conducted by the HSRC estimated the national HIV prevalence as 10.8% in 2005 (Shisana et al., 2005) Based on interviews with 23 275 people over the age of two years, of whom 15 851 agreed to be tested, the findings are presented in Table 2.1 The number of HIV-positive individuals within the age group 2–14 is 3.2%

for males and 3.5% for females While the majority of these individuals are likely to have contracted the virus before birth or during infancy from HIV-positive mothers, the slightly higher prevalence for females in this group is likely to be as a result of the start of the trend that becomes starkly evident for those in the age group 15–19, where prevalence among males remains at 3.2% while female prevalence virtually triples to 9.4% These figures, together with a pregnancy prevalence of 15.0% among

women aged 15–19 years (Health Statistics, Health Systems Trust website), highlight

the extent of female teenage sexual activity Female HIV prevalence rates continue to rise steadily, peaking at 33.3% among women aged 25–29, before dropping slowly to

a still high level of 19.3% in the 35–39-year age group Among males the prevalence rise is more gradual, reaching a high of 23.3% among the 30–34-year age group, which is sustained through the 35–39-year age group before dropping to 17.5% in the 40–44-year age group

Table 2.1: HIV prevalence among respondents aged two years and older by sex and age group, 2005

Source: Shisana et al., 2005: xxv

The relevance of these figures to this study is twofold First, they highlight the negative impact of the disease on the supply of social workers, and second they highlight the increasing demand for social work services These issues are discussed

in the next two paragraphs

Regarding the first issue, 89.3% of the social workers registered with the SACSSP

in 2005 were female (SACSSP, 2005a) and 67.4% were between the ages of 20 and

39 (Earle, 2007) Given that the period between the ages of 15 and 49 is one when

‘would-be professionals undergo their schooling and their professional education and

then enter and consolidate their professional practice’ (Breier, 2006: 10), the high HIV-prevalence figures for females in the age groups between 15 and 39 highlight the severity of the negative impact that this disease will have on the availability of social workers in South Africa.

In relation to the second issue, the impact of HIV/AIDS is exacerbating the welfare needs of all South Africans, but particularly those of the previously disadvantaged segments of society who have access to few social safety nets Apart from the direct issues such as ill health, costs related to healthcare and loss of income due to associated inability to work, the impact of the disease is experienced in increasing social disintegration This social disintegration can be seen in the form of ‘rising family violence, family disorganisation, mental health problems, crime, substance abuse, commercial sexual exploitation, homelessness and children living and working on the street’ (DSD, 2004: 11) All these issues are the preserve of social work practice through activities such as assistance in the application for disability grants, planning for the future, bereavement counselling, supporting the physical and emotional aspects of placement of children into foster or state care, counselling and rehabilitation for substance abuse, and probation support, and their escalation has exponentially increased the need for social work services at the same time as placing the profession under an extreme challenge to deliver services directly to communities where they are most needed

Orphans and child-headed households pose a particular challenge to the welfare system, as the vulnerabilities of these children are numerous, and social work input is generally required over the long term in order to protect and promote all aspects of their welfare This includes access to and retention of land and property; education; economic and food security; health; and psychological and emotional well-being The focus on personal development and promotion of self-sufficiency is equally as critical

as issues of access to food, clothing and protection, if these children are eventually to contribute to national economic and human resource capacity (Jacques, 2003)

Seeking to give effect to certain rights of children as contained in the Constitution is new legislation such as the Department of Social Development’s (DSD’s) Children’s Bill In the face of the present HIV/AIDS epidemic, implementation of this legislation will demand thousands of social workers working exclusively with children, and the absence of these professionals in such volumes is a factor that will severely limit effective and comprehensive implementation (Barberton, 2006)

Similarly, the Department of Health’s (DoH) Operational Plan for Comprehensive HIV and AIDS Care, Management and Treatment for South Africa (DoH, 2003) commits

the government to providing all South Africans who require it with comprehensive care and treatment for HIV/AIDS, including antiretrovirals (ARVs) within their local municipal area within five years This has the potential to be the world’s largest ARV rollout Implementation has, however, been considerably more of a challenge One

of the reasons has been the difficulty in obtaining all the additional personnel, among whom are social workers

Certain aspects of the operational plan for HIV/AIDS are considered to be key to its

success: ‘the provision of comprehensive care and treatment for HIV and AIDS needs

to be delivered in an integrated fashion within a coherent overarching public health

policy framework for the provision of basic social services as part of the continuum

of care’ (DoH, 2003: 19, emphasis added) With regard to social work in particular, the plan states that the average social work visit is to last 0.5 hours and that each patient will require two visits per year with a total of 2 917 patient visits per social worker per year In support of the programme, an additional 314 social workers will

be needed between 2005 and 2008 (DoH, 2003: 108) Several issues are of concern, however:

•฀ While the need for social workers is evident in the tables in the plan, the document contains no discussion relevant to this group of professionals

•฀ Considering the fact that social workers have statutory obligations to deal with the management and placement of orphaned children (among which group the largest portion is due to HIV/AIDS), that this is a long-term and time-consuming responsibility and cannot be undertaken by any other group of professionals, and that it must be considered an integral part of any comprehensive care programme, it is clear from the patient time allocation that this social work function has not been included, and that the plan underestimes the real demand for social work support

•฀ A further concern regarding the calculations of staff requirements is that the

plan is based on the premise that the great majority of South Africans who are currently not infected remain uninfected This is a very risky premise

considering the example set by certain prominent national leaders

•฀ The plan relies heavily on the input of NGOs and community-based organisations (CBOs) in providing community care and support; however, it makes no mention of the present severe challenges that this sector faces in accessing funding

•฀ Stating as its longer-term strategy for increasing the numbers of relevant care workers the increased production of such workers and the creation of additional posts, the plan makes no mention of either the factors that constrain the production of professionals or of the fact that large numbers of posts within the public health sector are vacant at present and that increasing the number of posts is only likely to lead to increased vacancy rates

health-This section has sought to provide an overview of the state of social welfare of South Africans one decade after the transition to democracy This reveals that South Africans suffer from a complex web of social ills among which poverty, unemployment and HIV/AIDS stand out The quote below captures the interrelatedness of the social problems that form the backdrop and focus of social work practice at this time:

There are no longer any deep rural areas, [with] RDP [Reconstruction and Development Programme] housing … now they are becoming informal settlements There is overcrowding, there [are] no longer self-sufficient families … the adults leave children behind to go and work in the urban areas, so it is actually households that are being cared for by older siblings

There is more poverty The older sibling falls into a trap – the parent sends money, the kid has no skills in financial management and therefore ultimately all they do is misuse the money … and they fall into the trap of drugs … kids are being used as couriers to carry the drugs to the urban areas … and these big trucks that pass through, the young girls start prostituting to make some money, and as a result teenage pregnancy is rife

… So clearly one can see that there are problems that have never been addressed (Social worker, Limpopo province)

In conclusion, the current state of social welfare in South Africa is poor and is

in many ways deteriorating due particularly to the impact of unemployment and poverty and the consequences of HIV/AIDS on families and communities Neglect

of social service delivery due to the focus on social security without any planned exit levels and a general lack of strategic direction in welfare provision have left the social welfare sector, and social workers in particular, very challenged in addressing national social problems

Key changes in the South African welfare system

Similar to the development of social work within the particular socio-political contexts of the industrialising USA and UK, the development and practice of social work in South Africa has been directed by changing national socio-political and economic contexts While subscribing to the same international values and ethics, and with equally strong roots in religiously inspired voluntary work, the fact that social work in South Africa was initiated, legitimated and supported by the apartheid government to address the ‘poor white’ problem (DSD, 2005a) saw the development

of the profession into an apartheid ‘tool’, used to maintain and promote social oppression and the marginalisation of certain sectors of the population (Lombard, 2005; Schenck, 2004a; Van Eeden et al., 2000)

Furthermore, in line with policies of separate racial development, welfare during the apartheid era was decentralised according to the various racial government houses,

as well as the various ‘self-governing’ homelands Within this division, however, the focus of welfare effort and funding support was predominantly on the minority white population The principal approach to welfare operations at the time was the residual

approach, which was inherited from western developed countries as ‘the offspring

of liberal individualism’ (Clark, 2005: 76) For, while the apartheid government expected families and communities to take care of the needs of black people, they made the state the ‘custodian of the white people’s welfare’ (Mamphiswana & Noyoo, 2000: 23), with social workers forced to operate within this framework

With the advent of democracy in 1994, cries for a reform of the welfare sector were widespread and resulted in key changes at various levels

First, the apartheid welfare focus on advancing the needs of the minority white population was effectively overturned by the new Constitution (Act 108 of 1996), as well as through key supporting policies such as the Reconstruction and Development Plan, the White Paper on Social Welfare, and the Financing Policy for Developmental Social Welfare Services (ANC, 1994; Department of Welfare, 1997 and 1996

respectively, in Triegaardt, 2002)

Second, the duplication of efforts, inefficiency, and conflicting and different standards brought about by the racially determined decentralisation was reduced through the establishment of a single national DSD and nine provincial departments responsible for implementing social development and administering social pensions and grants Local government, however, assumed responsibility for meeting communities’ immediate physical needs (Brown & Neku, 2005)

Third, the White Paper on Social Welfare (1997) changed the approach of South African welfare from ‘residual’ to ‘developmental’ (DSD, 2005b); that is, from seeing welfare as necessary for those whom the institutions of family and market had failed (Ife & Fiske, 2003) to seeing welfare as contributing to developing national human, social and economic capital (DSD, 2005b; Lombard, 2003) Welfare within the developmental approach is considered to be ‘strengths-based’ and ‘empowering’, with the aim of creating self-reliance of individuals, groups and communities

(DSD, 2005a) In contrast to the residual approach, the developmental approach

is considered to be a more efficient use of limited resources, and less likely to perpetuate dependency through the uneven balance of power relations between social worker and client that are associated with the residual approach (Bak, 2004)

Fourth, the social security system of grants, or direct cash transfers, was considerably expanded The state Old Age Pension, the Disability Grant, the Foster Care Grant, and the Child Support Grant2 now form critical sources of income for millions of poor and vulnerable South Africans, and have become the major poverty alleviation programme within the country (Triegaardt, 2002)

Thus the advent of democracy in 1994 brought about massive changes to the context

of social work practice in South Africa, both to its white and black practitioners: the focus of the welfare sector changed from being nationally fragmented, exclusive and predominantly focused on the welfare needs of the minority white population

to being nationally united, inclusive and focused predominantly on the needs of the majority, previously disadvantaged, black population Welfare over the same period took on a more redistributive focus, with social security and grant allocation emerging as a major welfare function and focus (DSD, 2005a)

Yet, despite a submission by a group of social workers and educators in 1998 to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission on behalf of the social services sector

in acknowledgement of human rights violations and social injustices committed under apartheid (Lombard, 2000a; Sacco & Hoffman, 2004), as well as the fact that even prior to 1994 some progressive social workers fought for the rights of the disadvantaged (Habib & Taylor, 1999), social work as a profession in South Africa still bears the weight of its past Being a primary implementer of apartheid’s racist social construction, yet desperately required to implement the social development policies of the new ANC governing party, the profession’s relationship with the state

in late 2005 and early 2006 was complicated and fraught with tension – the subject of the following sections

Effects of these changes on social work practice

The fundamental and positive changes to the welfare system outlined above have had a substantial, and sadly generally negative, impact on the context of social

2 The Child Support Grant resulted from the recommendations of the Lund Committee’s review of the previous system

of state maintenance grants for mothers and children While the value of the previous grant was R700 per month (R135 for each of two children plus a R430 caregiver allowance) compared with a start-up value of R100 per month per child for the Child Support Grant, the old system catered overwhelmingly for coloured, Indian and white mothers and children, and could not be expanded to include all needy African families at the same monetary value Thus, while reaching a substantially increased proportion of the poor population, the Child Support Grant represented a loss of support to those previously receiving the state maintenance grant, and placed a greater burden on women as caregivers (Bozalek & Naidoo, 1997).

work practice in South Africa This has been due to issues such as the following: the implementation of the changes not always being internally consistent; the practical side of policy not being clearly understood by all parties; the lack of adequate leadership and human resource capacity within the departments of social development to drive the implementation; and the lack of forethought regarding the consequences of implementation – both intended and unintended Drower (2002) argues that the process of transformation of the welfare sector has led to a fundamental questioning of the nature of social work within a changed South Africa The discussion in this section unpacks these complex and interrelated issues.

It is an inescapable fact that the development plans that a country embarks upon will eventually provide the meaning and content for social work practice and the pace of social and economic development Social work and social development are very much interlinked Since social development is in part macro-structural practice, social work’s raison d’etre rests on untangling structural forces that impede the optimal functioning of individuals, families and communities (Noyoo, 2000: 461)

The change from a residual to a developmental approach to social welfare was partly an attempt ‘to integrate social and economic policies with an ongoing, dynamic developmental process’ (Midgley, 1996, quoted in Sewpaul et al., 1999: 16) Disjuncture between this paradigm and the macroeconomic policy framework, however, emerged very soon in the new democracy, with the Growth, Employment and Redistribution (GEAR) policy revealing economic factors taking precedence over social considerations Thus Sewpaul (2001: 316) argues that ‘South Africa is currently characterised by the operation of two competing policy paradigms – one of neo-liberalism and one of social development’

Practically, the impact of the tension between social and economic policies has become evident in a number of factors related to welfare funding

Funding of social development activities

While, in respect of the overall social welfare budget, expenditure has escalated to the point where it now forms the third largest programme in South Africa after health and education (Triegaardt, 2002), the social development portion has systematically been squeezed out as increases in the total budget allocation have not kept pace with the rapid expansion of social security spending Nationally, the portion of funding allocated to social development, including all welfare services, developmental programmes, administrative services and capital expenditure, reduced from 11%

in 1994 to only 3% in 2005.3 These national figures, however, hide provincial differences, with social services in some provinces receiving as little as 1% of the provincial welfare budget This has been made possible by the fact that welfare spending is decentralised to provinces with no policy in place to earmark funds for social development services Furthermore, there is no national policy dictating the

3 While there does not seem to be any argument against the belief of authors such as Nattrass and Seekings (2005) and Case and Menendez (2006) that social security is in itself a key and extremely effective means of reducing poverty and promoting social welfare, concerns over the skewed budget allocation stem from the fact that not all social development objectives – e.g., critical services such as youth development and support of the victims of domestic violence, child abuse, rape and HIV/AIDS (Bozalek et al., 2007) – can be met through social security spending.

level of subsidisation of social workers within programmes, with the result that social worker salaries vary considerably across provinces, even within the same national NGOs (Coordinator of NACOSS, in an interview, 2006).

Concerns about the sustainability of the social security system have recently led to the announcement that exit levels must be planned and to the acknowledgement of the neglect of social services within the overall welfare budget (DSD, 2006a) It is hoped that the official establishment on 1 April 2005 of the centralised and independently budgeted for South African Social Security Agency (SASSA), which will be responsible for the administration and distribution of all social welfare grants, will eliminate the problem of budgetary division (DSD, 2005a: 12) Also, the acknowledgement of the importance of exit level outcomes for social security sustainability creates the opportunity for developmental social services, through social work interventions, to make a major impact on poverty alleviation in South Africa However, the issue of provincial variation in the subsidisation of social work posts within NGOs remains a challenge

Related to the above have been the substantial changes to the funding of the NGO sector Historically, the provision of social welfare services in South Africa has been the joint responsibility of government and civil society (NGOs) with government providing financial support to organisations through subsidisation of social worker posts (DSD, 2004) In the post-apartheid era, this partnership has been fraught with many challenges – around issues including the disjuncture between funding and allocated responsibilities, and general mistrust and power struggles over perceived political agendas

The erosion of the social development portion of the national social welfare budget, which has reduced funding available by government for subsidisation of the NGO sector, has coincided with a reduction in donor funding to South Africa over recent years (Triegaardt, 2002) and ongoing inconsistencies and inefficiencies in the new system of NGO funding allocation from the proceeds of the national lottery.4

Conversely, however, as outlined in the previous section, demands on the NGO sector have increased dramatically over the past decade This has been due not only

to escalating social ills but also to the mandatory requirement for the NGO sector

to take on statutory work – the work related to fulfilling government legislation – without any additional funding being made available for this activity Most of this work is in relation to the Child Care Act (No 74 of 1983) (i.e., the removal of children, children’s court appearances, case reports, placement of children in homes, foster care or after-care), with the increasing statutory workload directly related to the AIDS epidemic; however, it also covers work related to the institutionalisation and support of those suffering from mental illnesses and from drug and alcohol abuse (Coordinator of NACOSS, in an interview, 2006; Lombard, forthcoming)

4 For example, Beeld, 2 February 2006, ‘Welsynsubsidies: “Te min en te laat” – inflasie, behoeftes glo geignoreer’

(‘Welfare subsidies: “Too little and too late” – inflation, needs ignored’); Beeld, 24 February 2006, ‘Welsyn gaan weer

vanjaar noustrop trek: Subsidies is R100m te min vir basiese behoeftes’ (‘Welfare again pinched this year: Subsidies are

R100m too little for basic needs’); Cape Argus, 9 May 2006, ‘NGOs struck by cash crunch over Lotto delay’; Diamond

Fields Advertiser , 7 July 2006, ‘We need Lotto money urgently’; Pretoria News, 13 July 2006, ‘Lotteries board sits on cash for charities: More than R257 million unspent last year’; The Star, 5 July 2006, ‘Lotto charity bungle: Red tape is holding

up desperately needed funds’; The Star, 6 July 2006, ‘Don’t blame us, lotteries board tells charities’; The Star, 10 July

2006, ‘Lotteries board and DTI bosses are a national disgrace’.

Thus, at the time when the NGO sector was presented with a substantially increased client group and increased statutory responsibilities, the pools of funding from both the government5 and the donor sector began to shrink The DSD (2005a: 11) finally admitted in 2005 that within this context ‘social service practitioners have been forced to adopt a “make do” approach instead of a developmental welfare approach, dictated by limitations rather than need, priority or statutory and internationally ratified obligations’ This admission, however, was not easily won by social workers and not before much damage had been caused to both the profession and the NGO sector by the confusion around the practical implementation of the 1997 White Paper

on Social Welfare’s developmental welfare approach

Developmental welfare or community development?

Compounding the issue of reduced access to funding within the NGO sector has been the confusion that arose around the implementation of the developmental welfare approach and its relationship to the social work methods of casework, groupwork and community work As the residual welfare approach was highly associated with the casework method, which was considered not only inefficient but also disempowering by the new ANC government, the developmental welfare approach mistakenly came to be associated almost exclusively with the methods of groupwork and community work Sceptical of the NGO sector and social workers

in general as being the foot soldiers of the previous apartheid social system, and seeing the opportunity to use the allocation of funding as a means of affecting

‘transformation’ within the sector and its practices, the ANC government changed the subsidisation model from supporting social worker posts directly to supporting these within the context of programmes with outcomes in line with social development policy and incorporating the methods of groupwork and community work In this context, subsidisation of equally necessary remedial and statutory casework virtually disappeared (DSD, 2004, 2005a; Schenck, 2004a)

As NGOs, and social workers in particular, continued to see the urgent and increasing need for social work methods other than community work, in particular

in relation to the statutory requirements associated with the escalating HIV/AIDS epidemic, government’s ‘transformation’ effort was met with confusion and resistance Misinterpretation of this response in turn lead to accusations by government of resistance to change, with the relevance of the profession to social development simultaneously being called into question and many social workers ultimately suffering a crisis in professional identity and confidence (Bak, 2004; Brown & Neku, 2005; Gray, 2000; Lombard, 2003, forthcoming; McKendrick, 2001; Schenck, 2004a)

The director of a national family-focused NGO sees transformation of the NGO sector as incorporating three different levels: the service level, the personnel level, and the management level She states that transformation at the service level has been relatively easy, with between 80 and 90% of services now in disadvantaged communities and underdeveloped areas, and the key challenges for social workers here related not to an ideological change but rather to working within the new

5 The manager of the Gauteng branch of the NGO SAVF stated that not only has government funding reduced, but it has also become extremely undependable: ‘At the moment you are lucky if you get anything at all and you are lucky if what you get is paid on time And there is no guaranteed annual adjustment for inflation Planning is very difficult.’

political climate and across different cultures At the level of personnel, NGOs offering generic welfare services employ a range of groups including nurses and teachers, social workers and social auxiliary workers, crèche heads and administration staff For many of these types of staff it is possible to employ people who have done short courses, or to provide people with opportunities to study while they are working, thus allowing for relatively easy transformation However, social workers require a four-year university education before they can register with the SACSSP and practise legally, and transformation has been most difficult among this group This is further impeded by the general shortage of social workers and the salary differential that now exists between salaries in the government and private welfare sectors (factors that will be discussed in more detail below) Finally, at the management level, transformation has been most difficult to effect The reason for this is that the majority of workers at this level are voluntary and work for the organisations out of loyalty and because they believe in what they do Issues other than salary – such as appreciation and a belief that they are making a difference – motivate people to work despite the lack of monetary compensation.

Other representatives of both the welfare sector and the social work profession supported this picture, stating that, while there are many cries from government that the private welfare sector is not doing enough to transform itself, there is not enough recognition of the changes that have already taken place, or of the challenges that exist to further transformation at this stage At the same time, there is a cry for government to acknowledge the fact that those falling within the 1997 White Paper

on Social Welfare’s ‘disadvantaged groups’ of women, children and youth, elderly, and HIV/AIDS sufferers are not only Africans, and that such vulnerable people span all race groups In relation to feelings of lack of recognition and appreciation, there

is widespread discouragement within the NGO sector Thus the outcome of the current welfare funding policy has had the unintended consequence of increasing tensions within the NGO sector as their need to access funding is pitted against their autonomy and independent professional judgement of needs and priorities Many fear that the major financial constraints are currently destroying this capable and motivated portion of the welfare sector (Smit, 2005), as many NGOs that have been unable to redesign their programmes to suit the revised funding requirements for programmes focusing on group and community work have been forced to close their doors (Triegaardt, 2002)

It was argued by respondents in this research6 that government now controls the entire welfare sector, and that welfare agencies are disempowered and, due to their dependence on government for funding, have to dance to government’s tune despite

their sometimes better and more creative judgement While the recent Service Delivery Model for Developmental Social Services which states that the ‘allocation of resources

will be determined by the development of appropriate norms and standards’ (DSD 2005a: 7) will contribute towards bridging current divides, the coordinator of NACOSS argued that government still does not seem to have a long-term vision about social development, and that they tend to ‘mouth partnership when it suits them’ but that in reality NGOs do not experience a true partnership

The way forward is seen as the development of a true partnership between the state and private welfare sectors where the roles of each partner are clearly defined

6 Representatives of academic institutions, NGOs, professional organisations and various areas of social work practice.

and respected, and where there is true commitment, trust, integrity, accountability and equality within the partnership over the long term (Lombard & Du Preez, 2004; Lombard & Van Rensburg, 2001) And, while Noyoo (2000: 462) argues that ‘the relationship between the government and social work practice must be one of sound partnership and not one of master and servant, as in the old days of apartheid’, many in the sector argue that the relationship of state as master and social work as servant has not in fact changed, but rather that the new government has just become

a new master One respected social work researcher and educator stated that, while government treated the NGO sector with little respect, service provision through NGOs was more cost-effective and efficient than through the government, and that welfare provision in South Africa would collapse without it – ‘they are the little legs of the millipede, each one small on its own and theoretically dispensable, but without the collection of little legs, the fat body of the millipede would go nowhere

So with government and the NGOs.’

Despite early arguments by academics (e.g., Lombard, 2000b; McKendrick, 2001) that

a particular approach to social work does not necessarily mean a particular method, but that the developmental welfare approach should be incorporated into all social work methods, this distinction has only very recently been clarified within national

documents, with the DSD’s Policy on Financial Awards to Service Providers now

stating that ‘the developmental approach does not replace or give precedence to any one method of practice, but stresses that regardless of the method of intervention, the outcome must promote social and economic justice’ (DSD, 2004: 5) This policy, however, has not yet been translated into practice, with the physical funding of NGO activities still favouring group and community interventions to the detriment of equally critical casework

The NGO sector, which is currently delivering the largest portion of welfare services, will die before the whole chaos of funding is sorted out And then it will not matter if the government realises how important they were, because they will be gone, and cannot easily be re-established (Lecturer at

a historically white university)

Salaries

Poor and variable social worker salaries are the direct result of the reduction in social development funding and the questioning of the relevance of social work to the social development agenda The issue of variable social worker salaries, based

on differing provincial government subsidisation of NGO activities, has already been mentioned above This is, however, not the only level of variability, the other currently being between government and the NGO sector

The Recruitment and Retention Strategy for Social Workers in South Africa (DSD,

2005c) admits, in relation to the welfare policies that aim to address the national priority issues of poverty, unemployment and HIV/AIDS, that:

there is a lack of capacity to implement these policies and programmes due

to amongst others, the overwhelming demand for services and the inability

to cope with such demands This is particularly true for social workers who are at the coalface of delivery to the poorest and most vulnerable sectors of society (2005c: 4)