Villkorad av verkligheten - Om produktionen av Arbetsförmedlingens yrkesbeskrivningar

Abstract

The first aim of this study is to describe how the public employment service (PES) produces occupational descriptions. The second aim is to analyse the conditions for that production. Method: The empiric material consists of seven qualitative interviews with employed at PES, operational plan for the team working with descriptions on occupations and observation notes. The overall theme in the study is Foucaults perspective on power. The conditions for production of occupational descriptions are understood in the light of the governmentality perspective and the concept of employability. Bourdieu´s concept habitus, symbolic violence and capital are used to articulate the officials’ values and experiences. Eight officials at PES produce the occupational descriptions. They work together in pairs and are responsible for a few occupational groups each. The occupational descriptions are produced and up-dated by means of different kind of sources. For example interviews with unions, trade organisations and/or members of different occupational groups. Individual, organisational and social conditions were found to influence the shaping of the occupational descriptions. Individual conditions were e.g. the officials’ background and experiences that influenced notions of occupations. The organisational conditions were e.g. notions of how occupations were to be described and the officials work with occupational forecasts. Social conditions were found to be e.g. notions of employability. The employability discourse colours the occupational descriptions through the officials’ work with occupational forecasts. The notion of different types of occupations is seen as another social condition, a notion that has implications for the production of the occupational descriptions.