Invaluable and outsourced: experiences of private company cleaners working in the public hospital sector in Cape Town

Simple item page
dc.contributor.advisorGrossman, Jonathanen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorPetro, Lyndseyen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2014-09-02T09:53:04Z
dc.date.available2014-09-02T09:53:04Z
dc.date.issued2014en_ZA
dc.description.abstractIn the hospital context, and in research on hospitals, cleaning staff often find themselves on the periphery. This peripheral status is exacerbated when cleaners are employed by private cleaning companies. The intersection of locations these cleaners find themselves in, as cleaners, outsourced support staff and members of the working poor means that their work-life experiences take a particular shape. In an attempt to better understand the work experiences of these staff members, I conducted qualitative interviews with 8 female private company cleaners from four different public hospitals in Cape Town. Alienation, job insecurity, working poverty and emotional labour are used as tools to unpack and understand these experiences. Here I argue that these workers perform work that is far from ancillary or non-essential, work central to the functioning of the hospital space. However, the scope of their work is unappreciated and as a result, so too are the health and safety risks they are exposed to, making them especially vulnerable. This vulnerability is compounded by insecurity and the struggle to make ends meet. Alienating conditions are evident as they are constantly reminded of their status at the bottom of the hospital hierarchy and made to feel insignificant. Engaging with the experiences of these cleaners shows how alienation, insecurity, working poverty and emotional labour manifest in interesting ways. It allows us to see the numerous challenges they face in their working lives, particularly as private company cleaners in a hospital.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationPetro, L. (2014). <i>Invaluable and outsourced: experiences of private company cleaners working in the public hospital sector in Cape Town</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Sociology. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6829en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationPetro, Lyndsey. <i>"Invaluable and outsourced: experiences of private company cleaners working in the public hospital sector in Cape Town."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Sociology, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6829en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationPetro, L. 2014. Invaluable and outsourced: experiences of private company cleaners working in the public hospital sector in Cape Town. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Petro, Lyndsey AB - In the hospital context, and in research on hospitals, cleaning staff often find themselves on the periphery. This peripheral status is exacerbated when cleaners are employed by private cleaning companies. The intersection of locations these cleaners find themselves in, as cleaners, outsourced support staff and members of the working poor means that their work-life experiences take a particular shape. In an attempt to better understand the work experiences of these staff members, I conducted qualitative interviews with 8 female private company cleaners from four different public hospitals in Cape Town. Alienation, job insecurity, working poverty and emotional labour are used as tools to unpack and understand these experiences. Here I argue that these workers perform work that is far from ancillary or non-essential, work central to the functioning of the hospital space. However, the scope of their work is unappreciated and as a result, so too are the health and safety risks they are exposed to, making them especially vulnerable. This vulnerability is compounded by insecurity and the struggle to make ends meet. Alienating conditions are evident as they are constantly reminded of their status at the bottom of the hospital hierarchy and made to feel insignificant. Engaging with the experiences of these cleaners shows how alienation, insecurity, working poverty and emotional labour manifest in interesting ways. It allows us to see the numerous challenges they face in their working lives, particularly as private company cleaners in a hospital. DA - 2014 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2014 T1 - Invaluable and outsourced: experiences of private company cleaners working in the public hospital sector in Cape Town TI - Invaluable and outsourced: experiences of private company cleaners working in the public hospital sector in Cape Town UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6829 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/6829
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationPetro L. Invaluable and outsourced: experiences of private company cleaners working in the public hospital sector in Cape Town. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Sociology, 2014 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6829en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Sociologyen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Humanitiesen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.titleInvaluable and outsourced: experiences of private company cleaners working in the public hospital sector in Cape Townen_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameMSocScen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
thesis_hum_2014_petro_l.pdf
Size:
1.45 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Download
Collections
Masters