- Title
- Challenges for Indigenous and non-Indigenous practitioners in the neoliberal context
- Creator
- Gilbert, Stephanie
- Relation
- Doing Critical Social Work: Transformative Practices for Social Justice p. 211-225
- Relation
- https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/books/academic-professional/social-work/Doing-Critical-Social-Work-Edited-by-Bob-Pease-Sophie-Goldingay-Norah-Hosken-and-Sharlene-Nipperess-9781760110840
- Publisher
- Allen & Unwin
- Resource Type
- book chapter
- Date
- 2016
- Description
- There are a number of factors that have changed employment conditions for social workers in modern Australia. Gone are the times when the social worker (whether Aboriginal or not) was seen to be one of a limited group of professionals working in welfare supported by a team of professionals and paraprofessionals, including vocationally educated welfare workers. The modern workplace has workers who have similar job roles but are employed with a degree, vocational qualifications or without a degree but with life or work experience or both. Alongside this major change in the professional circumstances, there has been the devolution of the core work of statutory agencies to non-government agencies. This has occurred in most areas within the social services including employment support services, out-of-home care for children or adolescents, and family support. This chapter examines the nature of these changing circumstances with particular focus on economic change. In addition, the question of how critical theory might assist social workers to understand and construct social work with both colleagues and clients is examined. The chapter looks closely at the neoliberal construct of workers as ahistorical and what this means for Aboriginal workers, and in particular Aboriginal social workers, who may require some compassionate understanding of the historical injustices that may have occurred to affect them. This examination explores what an Aboriginal worker is perceived to bring to the workplace and what is their expertise, as well as the conditions of the workplace for that worker including whether racism is routinely or randomly practised.
- Subject
- social workers; Indigenous social workers; welfare workers; Australia
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1356325
- Identifier
- uon:31673
- Identifier
- ISBN:9781760110840
- Language
- eng
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