Introduction

The Nordic countries of Finland and Sweden are today, as they have been historically, characterized by the existence of several SWPO- type organizations, meeting the SWPO- characteristics to a varying degree (see Chapter 1). Ranging from old, now well- established organizations like the 120- year- old Swedish National Association for Social Work (CSA), initially also attracting actors from then yet- to- become independent Finland, to more recent self- organized online activities such as, for example, the ‘Career network for qualified social workers’ in Finland and the Swedish ‘Now we break the Silence’ – utilizing social media platforms as their central tool – these organizations have impacted the development of varying social work and social policy issues, related to, among other things, social justice, social work education, and working conditions in the welfare sector.

The largest SWPOs in Finland and Sweden today, however, are the Swedish ‘SSR Union for Professionals’ and the Finnish ‘Talentia Union of Professional Social Workers’ respectively, engaging in policy actions related to social work and social policy on the professional (micro) and organizational (meso) as well as policy (macro) level. These two SWPOs could arguably be characterized as ‘hybrid organizations’, even in a double sense. First, not unlike some other organizations in this field in the two countries, they are ‘hybrid’ in the sense of not being ‘self- governed’ by social workers only. Instead, they also comprise other professionals having a university education in social sciences, thus acting as a kind of ‘umbrella organization’ for various professional groups. But these organizations are ‘hybrid’ also in a second sense, since both are trade unions as well as professional organizations.

Introduction

Social work education in India has been established for over eight decades, since the 1930s, and has significantly contributed to national development. About two and half decades later, professional organizations in social work began to emerge. The Social Work Professional Organizations (SWPOs) are self- governed bodies that provide a professional identity to social workers (see Chapter 1). They aim to ensure social justice and human rights through their interventions, education, and value framework at local, national, and international levels. These organizations also closely reflect the historical nature of the social work profession in the country.

In the changing neoliberal context, while social work in countries like the UK, US, Sweden, Spain, Germany, and others has become more pro- market and pro- establishment (Weiss- Gal and Welbourne 2008, Reisch 2013), India's professional training still emphasizes pro- poor and rights- based perspectives. Social workers in India predominantly work with underprivileged and vulnerable groups, assisting them with social justice and equity- related issues. This unique approach of the social work profession in India was reaffirmed in the following resolution taken at the conclusion of National Consultations of schools of social work held in 2012 at Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai (Nadkarni and Desai 2012).

‘As professional social workers and representatives of social work educational institutions across the country, we stand together for social justice and equality in favour of the poor and marginalized sections of society’. This aligns with the global definition of social work, emphasizing social change, development, cohesion, and empowerment (International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) and International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW 2014).

Fashion upcycling offers unprecedented opportunities for the sustainable reuse of clothing: using second-hand garments as raw materials for new creations, upcyclers can transform used pieces of clothing into new fashion products that may become even more sought-after than the source material. Considering the overarching policy objective to ensure a circular economy, the use of trademark-protected fashion elements for upcycling purpose can be qualified as a particularly important form of artistic expression. The reference to products of the original trademark owner is made for the socially valuable purpose of providing a vision of better, more sustainable production and consumption practices.

This chapter discusses a third fictional case involving incomplete contracts. It tells the story of someone grappling with an ethical dilemma related to his bank deposits. After years of having his money deposited, he realizes that the bank invests in the arms and gambling industries. As a result, he looks to transfer his savings to a different bank without facing the costs outlined in his current contract. The chapter aims to clarify how he can use moral principles from the three economic enlightenments to articulate his moral reasons for changing the contract terms, while also showing how bank managers might employ a similar approach.

Introduction

Since its inception, social work has always been promoted by various Social Work Professional Organizations (SWPOs), understood as formal or informal organizations that are self- governed by social workers and do not provide direct services to service users (see Chapter 1). As social work continues to evolve in response to ever- changing societal challenges, SWPOs play a central role in shaping the profession, fostering collaboration and ensuring the ethical and professional standards that underpin social work practice. At the same time, there is still little systematic knowledge about their basic characteristics and forms, especially in an international comparative perspective. To address this gap, this chapter explores the historical roots, organizational structures and key functions of SWPOs in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. These three countries are comparable in that they all have an extended welfare state. In addition, they are pluralistic and representative democracies with a high relevance of non- parliamentary professional and welfare associations (Gabriel and Plasser 2010). Finally, in all these countries, SWPOs play an important role in the development and further professionalization of social work as will be shown in this chapter. Despite all these similarities, there are also marked differences in the political contexts, professional developments, and organizational structures of SWPOs in these three countries. The following sections outline social work in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland, then provide an overview of the existing SWPOs. Each country section ends with a detailed description of the most relevant SWPO in the country, based on the following heuristic dimensions: (1) institutional structure, (2) membership, (3) professional and/ or academic focus, (4) general or field- specific focus, (5) functions and main activities. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the similarities and differences between Austria, Germany and Switzerland.