Material, Social and Political Implications of Work in and beyond Galați, Romania - Gerard A. Weber, Ph.D.

In the last greater than thirty years, the work lives of blue-collar people in Galați, Romania has fundamentally changed. After decades of state-guaranteed employment, many starting in the 1990s were forced into early retirement or made redundant when industrial units were privatized and restructured or closed entirely. Local options for training and re-employment in the industrial sector were few, forcing many to either migrate outside Romania for work, or accept positions in the city with many disadvantages, including low wages, limited benefits, rigid work schedules and inferior working conditions. Embracing an approach applied by Rothstein during 40 years of study in Mexico (2014), this contribution, which is based on a research interest of almost two decades in Galați, looks at the influence that the working lives of members of the working class have had on their material circumstances, social relations and political attitudes. The account explores the impact of changes in work on budgets for housing, health care, education and other basics within working-class families, with particular emphasis on the challenges fiscal austerity in the post-communist era has imposed. Transformations of social life within working-class families in Galați are also addressed. The social fragmentation generated by the need to migrate for a viable job is analyzed, as well as the influence of work in Galați on kinship and community relations at the local level. The political ramifications of job insecurity include mistrust of civil servants and a sense of abandonment by society, which can undermine the full consolidation of democracy in Romania.Read by actor Daniel Popa , with an illustration by Andreea Moisehttps://theanthro.art/material-social-and-political-implications-of-work-in-and-beyond-galati/