Plants don’t grow simply if you tell them to: Investigating Emotional and Practical Care among Supervisors at Work Integration Social Enterprises

Abstract

This thesis investigates two Work Integration Social Enterprises (WISE) in Sweden, focusing on how employees perceive issues related to their profession, care and emotional labour. More specifically, it examines the supervisors’ experiences but also perceptions and understandings of what care their enterprise should provide, analysed through Annemarie Mol’s (2008) theory logic of care and Leslie K Wang’s (2013) development of her theory about logic of emotional and practical care. The performed care is also analysed through Sharma’s (2014) concept temporality, which affects the care practices. The thesis is grounded on ethnographic fieldwork, including interviews with staff members with an organizing role and participant observation with participants in work integration programmes. The thesis aims to shed light on a group of professionals who aims to reduce inequalities in society by (re)integrating people who, for various reasons, are far away from the job market, a relevant topic given the increasing number of people on sick leave in Sweden. The study shows that different care practices take place at the WISEs, including both emotional and practical, and how the supervisors aim reducing the emotional work for the participants, as well as care for plants and working together is viewed to increase well-being. Furthermore, the study shows how the supervisors and staff members support the participants in work training to seek further support from governmental institutions. Since the supervisors at the WISEs spend more time with the participants in work training compared to caseworkers, they often see and can deal with things that governmental institutions, caseworkers and bureaucracy miss and obstacles that may negatively affect and sometimes hinder participants in work training and from rehabilitating. Furthermore, the thesis shows that the WISEs often help the participants in work training beyond the contract with governmental institutions.