A phenomenological case study on immigrant workers' gambling addiction in Korea

This study explores the experiences that have led some of Korea's immigrant workers into gambling addiction and examines possible social welfare services that could support treatment. Immigrant workers' gambling experience as aliens in Korea was analyzed through the methodology of a phenomenological case study. The participants, who voluntarily consented to the study, were five immigrant workers addicted to gambling. Data were collected through one‐on‐one, in‐depth interviews over 6 months, starting in July 2018. The essential themes that emerged in the interviews were “changing strategies for survival,” “forgetting oneself without any sense of responsibility or shame,” “gambling as routine daily life,” “obsession with making a fortune in one go,” and “no home to return to.” Based on its results, this study makes suggestions for the prevention of gambling addiction in immigrant workers. Further, future research needs to be broadened to analyze nationwide cases of immigrant workers with more diverse demographic backgrounds.     

Implementing a diversity policy through public incentives: Diversity Plans in companies of the Brussels-Capital Region

ABSTRACT

The development of diversity policies in the private sector is mostly a result of a voluntary engagement of companies. When interested, they decide about the ways and goals of such policies, implications for human resource management and the inclusion of staff with a migration background. This article explores a specific situation in which public authorities offered support and resources to companies in order to develop diversity policies. I present a first analysis of the implementation dynamics of the Brussels Diversity Plan, a policy instrument launched in 2007 by the Government of the city-region of Brussels. Building on the theoretical tools of the political sociology of public policies, I use qualitative material (interviews and administrative documents) to explore implementation processes in three private companies. I show that public authorities can play a decisive role in developing diversity policies in the private sector through incentives rather than constraint. Yet, the room for manoeuver offered to companies leads to important variations regarding how processes unfold and the results achieved.     

Intention to Leave the Profession: Welfare Social Workers Compared to Health Care and Community Social Workers in Israel

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to compare specific work related-factors (personal factor: length of work experience; structural factors: personal subjection to violence and fear of being subjected to violence; and psychological factors: professional quality of life—compassion satisfaction, burnout, and compassion fatigue) between welfare social workers (SWs) (n = 200) and health care and community SWs (n = 173). Furthermore, since the issue of turnover among SWs has important implications for the provision and programming of social services, the study also aimed to assess the relationship between these factors and SW intention to leave the profession. For the purpose of this study, online questionnaires were distributed to SWs working at social agencies and services. The findings suggest that the two categories of SWs showed a similarity with regard to the association between the personal and structural factors and intention to leave the profession. However, with regard to the psychological factors, the components of professional quality of life were found to operate differently in each category of SWs. It is suggested that future research examine other work-related factors and explore the intention to leave the profession among other social work specializations and employment sectors.     

农民工返乡的理性分析与现实思考

金融危机、经济结构调整和惠农政策的影响是导致2008年下半年以来农民工大量返乡的主要因素。农民工的返乡引发了其收入的减少、子女的上学困难,返乡后的农民工难以适应农村的生存和生活,农民工返乡后给基层政府的治理带来困境。农民工返乡背后所反映的是农民工技能的缺失、农民工创业政策的不完善、土地流转还存在政策上的缺陷、农民工的社会保障制度还有待深化等问题。建议加大农民工培训力度;完善社保制度,使更多的农民工享受到社会保障的权益;降低农民工返乡创业的门槛;采取一些措施消除返乡农民工可能带来的一些治安方面的隐患;规范土地流转制度。     

解决好失业问题是构建和谐社会的必然选择

改革开放以来,在传统的计划型劳动力就业机制向新兴的市场型劳动力就业机制转变的过程中,一大批失业人员成为处手社会底层的弱势群体。正确认识这一群体的现状,并提出积极有效的解决对策,对于正确处理人民内部的利益矛盾和构建和谐社会具有一定的理论和现实意义。     

新生代农民工市民化问题的社会学分析

随着改革开放的不断深入,新生代农民工开始在城市化建设中发挥着日益重要的作用。从新生代农民工群体所具有的特征、市民化的表现以及在由农民向市民转变过程中所遇到的障碍等方面对新生代农民工市民化问题作以初步的探讨。     

农民工社会保障问题研究

建立健全农民工社会保障体系关系到我国和谐社会构建的成败。但目前我国农民工社会保障的法制建设落后,社会保险、社会救助和社会福利缺失。要加快农民工社会保障法律制度建设,降低农民工缴纳社会保险费的标准,建立与农民工收入水平联动的缴费标准机制,构建科学的农民工社会保险关系转移制度,加大国家对农民工社会保障建设的资金投入力度。     

民事诉讼代理视野下的“草根律师”制度——以成都地区为例

民事诉讼代理制度作为现代民事诉讼制度中的一项重要制度,是法律面前人人平等原则的重要体现和保障。但是在我国农村劳动力向城镇转移、劳动纠纷增多的时代背景下,我国民事诉讼代理制度日益暴露出一系列的问题。课题组通过大量的实证调研,拟从民事诉讼代理制度的基础理论出发,结合我国目前农民工维权的实际,在理论上初步构建“来自于农民工,服务于农民工”的“草根律师”制度,解决有关农民工劳动纠纷案件中的诉讼代理难的相关问题。     

金融危机背景下大龄返乡农民工养老保障模式与政策支撑

金融危机对我国中小型企业产生了巨大影响,企业的经营困难造成了一大批失业返乡的农民工,而其中的大龄农民工面临着更为严峻的困境。如何解决他们养老保障问题成为当今社会关注的热点。对现实生活中大龄返乡农民工养老面临的四大困境分析表明,从国家养老保障政策的支持、社会养老关系网络的构建、充分发挥受保主体的自保能力三个层面来构建金融危机后大龄返乡农民工养老保障的模式．具有一定的现实意义和价值。     

城市融入进程中的捉民工传媒话语缺失与重构

农民工作为一个数量庞大的群体,为城市发展作出了巨大的贡献。在我国迈向城市化的过程中,必须要让更多的农民工融入到城市中来。农民工的城市融入,离不开大众传媒发挥的独特作用。现实上,农民工存在传媒“话语”的缺失,这造成了农民工的“集体无语”并影响了市民对于农民工的认识。因此,需要重建农民工的传媒“话语”,促进农民工快速融入城市社会。