1. The consequences of the imposition of the structural Adjustment Program (SAP) to the Greek welfare state and the challenges to the Greek Association of Social Workers
Maria Pentaraki, Ph.D. Senior Lecturer, Social Work, Care and Justice. Liverpool Hope University,UK
Social Work Social Development 2012: Action and Impact conference to be held in Stockholm 8-12 July, 2012.

2. Contents Introduction- Austerity Plan and SAP Consequences: Research
A social disaster
A political disaster
Research
Summary of Findings
Conclusions

3. Introduction
The social work profession and its social justice mandate.
Case study of the Greek Professional Association of Social Workers (transliterated SKLE) is a good example to see how is a professional association responding to rising inequalities that undermine social justice.

4. Conditionalities of Loans / Structural Adjustment Program- SAP - A savage austerity program
Austerity plan-conditionality of two loans “bailouts” (110 billion – and 130 billion )
The loan given by IMF, ECB, EU
According to official estimates of SAP outcomes, by 2015, the amount of public money allocated to servicing the debt will be higher than the amount of public money allocated to social protection and healthcare (MTFS, 2011)
Reflects entrenchment of neoliberal policies to the Greek society.

5. Neo-liberal Policies 20% to 62% social spending cuts
Deregulation of labor relations
Massive job losses
Decrease of pensions and salaries- from 20% to 40%.
EU representatives announced that the goal is to get Bulgarian wages of 150 euros
Privatization of public servises/infrastructure/ utilities
Privitization Fund run by Treuhand (sold off E.Germany)
Containment of democratic rights

6. Social disaster and political disaster
PHENOMENA OF THE TWO WORLD WAR Before the crisis homeleness was not visible
Humanitarian crisis: Approx homeless in Athens 25% rise since 2 years ago. Poor-hungry-no access to health care a day eat with hand outs ef

7. Political Disaster- Annulment of Democracy
Non elected prime minister- representative of the global ruling elite- TRILATERAL COMMISSION- from November 2011 to May 2012.
During demonstrations
Illegal chemical warfare -health problems
Immense violence –hospitalizations- chronic health consequences

8. Consequences- Human Development Index (UN Human Development Progress Report 2011)
Greece’s ranking fell from the 22nd to the 29th position (7 ranking places lost). .
Life expectancy, schooling, gross national income, etc
According to the Human Development Index (UN, 2010) Greece is one of the countries that has a very high human development (ranking 22 out of 94 countries with very high or high development, UK ranks 26th, Finland 16th and Denmark 19th)
(UN (2010:143-44)[m1] 
According to the Human Development Index (UN, 2011) Greece is one of the countries that has a very high human development (ranking 29th out of 47 countries with high development, UK ranks 28th, Finland 22th and Denmark 16th)
(UN (2011:17-18)
 [Human Development Index (HDI)Life Expectancy at birthMean Years of schoolingExpected Years of schoolingGross National Income (GNI) per capita PPP$Very high human development0,88980,011,315, High human development0,74173,18,513, Medium human development0,63069,76,311,25.276Low human development0,45658,74,28,31.585
Human Development Index (HDI)Life Expectancy at birthMean Years of schoolingExpected Years of schoolingGross National Income (GNI) per capita PPP$GNI per capita rank minus HDI rankNonincome HDI Very high human development0,88980,011,315, Greece0,86179,910,116, ,902Norway 0, ,617, ,975UK0,86380,29,316, ,879
Human Development Index (HDI)Life Expectancy at birthMean Years of schoolingExpected Years of schoolingGross National Income (GNI) per capita PPP$Very high human development0,88980,011,315, High human development0,74173,18,513, Medium human development0,63069,76,311,25.276Low human development0,45658,74,28,31.585

9. Consequences 2.500 schools closed, no heating, no maintenance
Hospitals merging, less beds, less staff
Households with no water and electricity, back to candle lighting and coal heating
People in Greece among the lowest income earners in EU
Before the economic crisis 1/5 of the population lived under poverty line.
Now 1/3 officially impoverished.

10. Consequences- Unemployment rate (Eurostat, 2012)
Highest increases in EU between January 2011 and January 2012 were registered in:
Greece from 14.7 % to 21.7 % (7% rise)
Spain from 20.8 % to 24.1 %
Cyprus 6.9 % to 10.0 %.
EU27 unemployment rate from 9.4% (March 2011) to 10.2% (March 2012)
EU 27 youth unemployment rate 22.1% (2011)
Greek youth unemployment rate 49.3%
“The euro area seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 10.9 % in March 2012, compared with 10.8 % in February; It was 9.9 % in March The EU-27 unemployment rate was 10.2 % in March 2012, stable compared with February; it was 9.4 % in March “

11. Health consequences Suicide rate rose by 22% from 2009 to 2011
Children hospitalizations due to pain aches increased by 10-15%
Increase in HIV infections rose by 52% since 2010 due to shared needles among drug users and then in increase of prostitution. 1/3 of street programs were closed
Compared with 2007—ie, before the crisis—2009 saw a significant increase in people reporting that they did not go to a doctor or dentist despite feeling that it was necessary , mostly due to long waiting lists because of undefunding and understaffing (Kentikelenis, 2011 et al)
Children with uninsured parents do not get vaccinations- prediction for the rise of preventable diseases
Children faint at school due to hunger
( 28th Greek National Medical Conference, 14th-16th of May 2012; Pentaraki, 2012; Kentikelenis A. et al 2011)
“significant increase in HIV infections occurred in late The latest data suggest that new infections will rise by 52% in 2011 compared with 2010 (922 new cases versus 605), with half of the currently observed increases attributable to infections among intravenous drug users.19 Data for the first 7 months of 2011 show more than a 10-fold rise in new infections in these drug users compared with the same period in Health effects of financial crisis: omens of a Greek tragedy” (Kentikelenis, 2011 et al)

12. A Qualitative Research
Two group interviews and three individual in depth interviews with executive members of the Greek Association of Social Workers (transliterated SKLE) from December 2011 to Sep 2012.
SKLE was established in 1955 and represents professionally, scientifically and as a union social workers in Greece. SKLE during the social democratic phase of capitalism was able to make important contributions to the social work profession and towards the development of the welfare state.
Thematic Analysis
SKLE was established in 1955 and represents professionally, scientifically and as a union social workers in Greece. SKLE during the social democratic phase of capitalism was able to make important contributions for the social work profession and the development of the welfare state.

13. Findings:
Recognition of the undermining of the welfare state and the need to protect it.
Unfair measures the most vulnerable are affected.
Newly qualified social workers have become service users
Contested understanding of the economic crisis. Contested nature of profession.
Micro level interpretation
“It is all our fault”. “We ate them all together”
Macro level interpretation
Political elit and other systemic causes

14. Findings
Strategies still rooted in the social partnership model even though they recognize that it is not working any more:
The doors are closed now

15. Conclusion
In order to be compatible with the social justice mandate of the sw profession:
Social Work Professional Associations need to reconsider and transform their strategies within the context of neo-liberalism capitalism that breeds inequalities and undermines the welfare state.
Break away from the social partnership model.
Necessity to revisit the radical legacy of social work profession and reclaim the macro skills of the profession.
SW associations join forces and make alliances with trade unions and other social justice organizations both locally and globally.

16. Conclusions
The social work definition adopted by IFSW and IASSW reflects a profession equipped to work towards goals of social justice. Now that we recognize the inter-connections of local and global process (Dominelli 2010) is more than evident the need to build coalitions both across local/national and international lines (Ferguson and Lavalette 2006∙ Ife, 2008) in order to overturn the neo-liberal global agenda since it cannot be combined with issues of social and economic justice. This is the only way that we can restore the welfare state in Greece by linking it to struggles across the world.

18. Enough is Enough! A new world is possible!