This study seeks to uncover the local social relations of unpaid overtime work of social workers working in non-profit social service organizations in Ontario. Previous research has identified unpaid overtime work performed by social workers as an ongoing labour issue. For example, Baines, MacKenzie Davis, & Saini (2009) found that 71% of social workers surveyed were ‘donating’ one-six hours of time to their jobs a day. Institutional ethnography is used as a theoretical and methodological framework for this inquiry. Accordingly, this research project focuses on uncovering knowledge about the social organization of unpaid overtime work. This knowledge may be useful for those seeking to make specific changes to the organization of the work of social workers to further prevent or eliminate unpaid overtime work.
During this study, three Ontario social workers were interviewed about their jobs and unpaid overtime, and provided further written information over email. One particular account of a problematic, or topic for IE research, was not formulated in this thesis as originally intended. However, three accounts of the everyday experience of unpaid overtime work of social workers are presented and could each be used to formulate a problematic for future IE research into this topic. Potential threads of ruling which are visible in the local setting are discussed, with particular emphasis on the ruling relations of non-payment of overtime work. Other potential threads of ruling identified and discussed include the social organization of ‘an endless workload’ and the social organization of social work ethics. / Thesis / Master of Social Work (MSW) / Recent research in Ontario has demonstrated that many social workers who work for non-profit organizations such as government social services or community-based non-profits regularly perform unpaid overtime work. The objective of this study was to understand more about how social workers come to work unpaid overtime hours at their jobs in non-profit social service organizations. To accomplish this, Institutional Ethnography (IE) was used as a theoretical and methodological framework for research. IE is a critical sociology which is used to uncover the social organization of a part of every day life, rather than knowledge about the people who experience it.
Studying this research topic contributes to the knowledge of those seeking improved labour justice for social workers. The information discovered in the course of this research about how unpaid overtime work comes to happen for social workers can be useful for those trying to change and prevent unpaid overtime work.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:mcmaster.ca/oai:macsphere.mcmaster.ca:11375/24963 |
| Date | January 2019 |
| Creators | Higgs, Emma |
| Contributors | La Rose, Tara, Social Work |
| Source Sets | McMaster University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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