Arbete är vägen till frihet – en studie om arbetsförmedlares syn på sitt nya integrationsuppdrag

Abstract Author: Moa Nordberg Title: Arbete är vägen till frihet – en studie om Arbetsförmedlares syn på sitt nya integrationsuppdrag Supervisor: Carina Tigervall Examiner: Staffan Blomberg The integration work in Sweden has during the last years undergone a reformation process and in December 2010 a new law came into forces. With the new law the government 2006-2010 aims to reform the integration work in direction of a faster establishment towards the labour market. The reform imply that the Employment Office (“Arbetsförmedlingen”) become the new authority responsible for the integration work in Sweden. The purpose of this study was to examine and analyze how employment officers portrays and describes their new assignment with integration, clients and the relationship between work and integration. The study was based on semi-structured interviews with four employment officers. The empirical material consisted of both interviews and parts from the government bill that preceded the new law. The empirical material was analyzed based on a discourse analysis and a social constructive perspective. As a complement to these perspectives Neergards model of employment officer - “in the middle”, to create an understanding of spheres that affect the employment officers in their performance of integration work, is applied. A postcolonial perspective is added to illustrate cultural force. The results of the study shows that politician terms from the government bill is reflected in the employment officers’ discussion of integration. All of them agreed upon that integration work should be efficient and work was pointed out as the most important goal in the integration process. The scrutiny also shows that the vision of efficiency sometimes collide with - on the one hand structural factors such as lines to the teaching of Swedish or child care – and on the other hand individual factors such as cultural clashes or reduced workability in the newly arrived. The result shows that employment officers have to adapt to the demands of the employers when they shall mediate work for their clients. The employment officers expressed a desire to create cooperation with this group to an increasing extent in order to create more opportunities. The employers are key figures and important to collaborate with to make the politicians goal fulfilled about work in the integration process. Further the scrutiny came to the conclusion that the reformed integration work tend to control and transform the newly arrived to adapt to the Swedish system and labour market