MUNCA PRECARĂ, SOLUłIE PENTRU POPULAłIA VULNERABILĂ DIN MEDIUL RURAL. (Romanian)

Driven by the social and political transformations and the general economic situation, the overall employment situation in Romania become very complex. It has shifted from generalized standard employment in socialism to wider informal or non-standardized forms of work. Over the last 25 years, Romania has undergone a very long and difficult transition period, with several social and economic recessions. The recent economic crises contributed to a decline in the country's social and economic situation, especially for vulnerable groups (youth, aged employees, disabled or ethnic minorities) that are less protected in the face of economic challenges. Employment is one of the most important factors responsible for standard of living and quality of life. The labour market was particularly affected by crises, and the main consequences were unemployment, but also the emergence of atypical employment forms and substitute strategies for economic survival. The analysis of monetary indicators (poverty rate, equalized median income) and the non-monetary measure of poverty (deprivation rate) demonstrates a poor condition in Romania, in comparison with the European average. The article's research objective is to study the occupational situation of a vulnerable population in a rural Romanian community. The population living in a situation of precarious prosperity (coined by Hubinger in 1996) is defined by irregular income, income and material deprivation, the concept being operationalized by following the methodology of multidimensional poverty measurement. The data were gathered through face-to-face interviews that included a wide variety of topics: employment and career paths, intergenerational exchanges, coping strategies and standards of living. To analyse the data we used analytic induction to identify the main patterns of precarious work in the area under study, investigating the dimensions of instability, insecurity, working conditions, accident risks and level of income. The results showed the dominant pattern of employment in the community to be informal, daily based work in construction, services or subsistence agriculture. Access to more stable jobs is obstructed by the costs of commuting to the neighbouring cities, as well as by the lack of social services for children or other dependent family members. The social consequences of precarious work in this community are observed in individual and family life, and particularly affect the younger generation, for whom the absence of permanent jobs delays the transition to adulthood and independence. The article's results confirmed that there is a population living in a situation of precarious prosperity, based on informal employment experiences, very poor working conditions, low payment and adverse social consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schimbările sociale si economice prin care a trecut România în ultimii 25 de ani, dar si situaţia economică mondială au condus la o transformare a pieţei muncii, prin trecerea de la un domeniu general standardizat în perioada socialistă către o piaţă complexă din punct de vedere contractual caracterizată de apariţia informalităţii. Nu se poate vorbi în special despre contracte nonstandard, ci despre precaritate, fenomen care afectează în afara standardului de viaţă si domeniul ocupării în toate dimensiunile sale (contractual, venituri, stabilitate si securitate). Articolul analizează situaţia ocupaţională a unei populaţii vulnerabile economic, desi situată peste pragul de sărăcie. Situaţia de prosperitate precară este definită de deprivarea severă -- dar si de nivelul redus al veniturilor. Abordarea calitativă, bazată pe 25 de interviuri în profunzime (cu teme referitoare la situaţia ocupaţională, istoria vieţii, tranziţii, standard de viaţă, perspective ocupaţionale), a permis surprinderea unor comportamente si activităţi economice dificil de studiat printr-o cercetare cantitativă. Metoda utilizată în analiză a fost inducţia analitică si s-a realizat prin analiza de conţinut a principalelor teme. Modele ocupaţionale sunt precare, fiind caracterizate de instabilitate, insecuritate (în marea majoritate a cazurilor sunt activităţi de zilierat), dar si de venituri extrem de reduse. Modelele explicative apar a fi în primul rând din sfera contextuală, structurală, legate de oferta extrem de redusă a locurilor de muncă din sfera nonagricolă, dar si de la nivel individual: un nivel scăzut de educaţie, lipsa de experienţă sau de calificare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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