The implications of bureaucracy in society and its repercussions in the social service

Abstract

This text brings reflections on the issue of bureaucracy in the context of capitalist society and its implications for the development of the work of social worker. Therefore, we use the bibliographic research in order to deepen the theme. Based on the literature review was found that although the bureaucracy is a rationally organized control system, useful for meeting organizational objectives and its satisfactory operation, leaves margins for failures, where problems arise. Bureaucratic rigidity tends to undermine their effectiveness because their heavy structure makes it difficult to cope with unexpected and new situations. In systematic division of labor, the specialized staff becomes a gear together with the rest of the organization. This characteristic of bureaucracy is needed both to maximize productivity while keeping the labor as a prisoner of its functions and hampered the tangle of role, fulfilling determinations pragmatically and mechanically. The work of Social Worker is not exempt of formal bureaucratic apparatus, necessary element according to institutional standards requirements. These context affects the Social Worker intervention deeply, since tends to prioritize institutional requests in detriment to social rights demands of social services users who seeks their social rights access, besides induces to routine and mechanistic professional practices. It is considered that to meet the ethical prerogatives of Social Service, it is essential that the professional appropriates strategies to enhance its interventional field and contribute to reduce bureaucracy to its relationship with users.