Front-line work in the delivery of Danish activation policies – and how governance, organizational and occupational contexts shape this

Abstract

The nature of front-line work plays a crucial role for understanding what activation, welfare-to-work, work-first or social disciplining policies practically mean and how they affect the citizens subject to these policies. Front-line workers are simultaneously the ones implementing policy (agent of the state), transforming policies into practice (mediator of policies) as well as the ones having an important impact on the political nature of the services actually delivered (mediators of politics) (Brodkin 2013). This means that frontline work has to be interpreted in the interrelation with policy, governance, organizational and occupational contexts. This article analyses the development and current state of frontline work in Denmark where the active welfare state paradigm (or activation) has been incorporated in the employment and social policies. Firstly we give a historical account of the development of activation policies in Denmark and how governance, organizational and occupational contexts have both shaped and been shaped by this development. Secondly we focus on the nature of the frontline delivery of activation policies in Denmark using existing case study material. We present empirical examples of the nature of front-line work with a specific focus on the use of sanctions, exemplifying how frontline work is interrelated with governance, organization and occupational background. Finally we conclude with a short account of recent developments to trace whether a new development of frontline work is under way.