‘In the case of social welfare and crime control policies, there are many examples of entanglement between them.’ (Newman and Yeates, 2008, p13)
The course writers use activity 1.2 (Newman and Yeates, 2008, p14) to show the entanglement between them. It gives a different perspective. Table 1 is showing the relationship to be quite clear cut whereas activity 1.2 shows the relationship between social welfare and crime control to be more blurred. For instance antisocial behaviour is used as an example. Social welfare encourages the support of young people and tries to steer them away from what society would define as antisocial behaviour, maybe by providing more youth clubs, social activities for young people to be involved in etc. Interaction with parents might be deemed suitable to give them support with their families. Funding is put in place to help young people attend college and be involved in apprenticeships. All this could steer them in the right direction of entering the workforce and prevent them from being involved in anti social behaviour. Crime control on the other hand maintains social stability and order by exercising control using methods such as issuing Anti-Social Behaviour Order’s and ensuring that guilty people are actually convicted. The criminal justice system is in place to reduce, prevent and prosecute people who are guilty of offences.
One example discussed is the notion of social harm in chapter 3. Work policies are a focus of social welfare and crime control policy. The policies are about protecting workers in the work place, ensuring that they feel secure and have a good sense of well being during their working hours. The policies are in place also to prevent harm, injuries and death. Employers have a legal responsibility for the health and safety of their employees. Health and safety is about taking the right precautions and providing a satisfactory working environment.
An example of this that has been used is that of the International Labour Organisation. This organization is in place to protect workers from exploitation and to ensure they get decent paid work that provides wellbeing for a worker.
‘…the ILO argues that work is vital to well-being and the promotion of social equality’ (Widdowson, 2008, p79)
They believe that a decent job is a main factor in promoting a healthy life and aiding workers in providing for their families and supporting the problem of poverty. Decent jobs can support social skills and integration into the community and more importantly, provide opportunity and give workers choices that can affect their lives in the future. Course writers then go on to explain how such international laws are in place to promote the rights of employees such as compensation for accidents at work, the right to work in a safe and healthy environment, the option to join a trade union. These social protections are in place in many working environments; however there are countries who don’t enforce these workers rights and also employers who don’t follow these rules or find a way around them and seem to slip through the net.
Nick Broomfield’s docudrama film ‘Ghosts’ is a good example of undocumented and informal work where Chinese migrant workers experienced their health and safety rights being ignored whilst cockling in Morecombe Bay. The film, based on a true story shows how these workers were put at high risk of workplace accidents or in this case, death. These workers were not documented in the UK, unaware of their rights leaving them worried about being deported from the country and making them very vulnerable and unprotected from harm.
Another example is that seen in the novel ‘The Jungle’ written by Upton Sinclair about life in a meatpacking factory. Sinclair’s research shows how the workers rights were unprotected and there were no crime control measures in place to protect the workers from injustice especially that of social harm. There were few employers running the factory with no health and safety legislation in place. Sinclair describes the physical harm the workers suffered such as loss in the use of their thumbs, swollen knuckles, loss of nails, and circulation of diseases throughout the workplace. These examples are all occupational injuries but may not be seen as crime.
‘This may be because ideas of violent crime often coalesce around ‘dangerous strangers’ lurking in dark places- a feature that does not pertain here’ (Widdowson, 2008, p84)
Another example of workers experiencing social harm is explained in chapter 3. Course writers explain how Care workers in Argentina and Kenya felt they were treated unfairly. They suffered abuse from people in their care including the family members, poor working conditions and low pay. They felt they did not receive a high status for working in geriatric medicine and didn’t receive adequate funding to deliver the job to the best of their ability. Martha Nussbaum states that social welfare could give carers a better job environment and give them a much better sense of well being
‘A decent society cannot ensure that all caregivers actually have happy lives, but it can provide them with a threshold level of capability in each of the key areas.. (G)ood public arrangements and a decent public culture can make it possible that care.. would not involve constant anxiety about how the job would get done and with what resources.’ (Widdowson, 2008, 76)
The relationships between different policies are not straight forward, they are definitely entangled. Some issues become the focus of social welfare, some of crime control. Some of the issues use the relationship between the two to an advantage and come together, others work against each other.
‘The entanglements between welfare and crime control, then, take many different forms’ (Newman and Yeates, 2008, p14)
Word count -1337
References
Newman J, and Yeates N, (2008) Book 1, Chapter 1, ‘Making social justice: ideas, struggles and responses’, DD208 Social Justice: Welfare, Crime and society, Milton Keynes, The Open University.
Widdowson, B (2008) Book 1, Chapter 3, ‘Well-being, harm and work’, DD208 Social Justice: Welfare, Crime and society, Milton Keynes, The Open University
I’ve tried to use tutor feedback and be less descriptive. I found it interesting to research, however I have found this assignment very challenging. I’ve found it hard to convey my ideas into words and don’t think I had full understanding of the question. I still need to improve on my writing skills. I intend to attend the next tutorial as I think it will be of great help to me. I look forward to your feedback to help me further my skills and to achieve better results in my next TMA. Thanks
