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Distributive justice in theworkplace: Emerging socialwork interventionsMarie J. Raber a c & Sister Ann Patrick Conrad b ca Assistant Dean, Chair, of the National CatholicSchool of Social Services Baccalaureate Program ,The Catholic University of America , Washington,DC.b Acting Dean of the National Catholic Schoolof Social Services , The Catholic University ofAmerica , Washington, DC.c NCSSS , The Catholic University of America ,Washington, DC , 20064Published online: 26 Apr 2010.

To cite this article: Marie J. Raber & Sister Ann Patrick Conrad (1999) Distributivejustice in the workplace: Emerging social work interventions, Social Thought, 19:1,15-28, DOI: 10.1080/15426432.1999.9960248

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Distributive Justice in the Workplace:Emerging Social Work Interventions

Marie J. RaberSister Ann Patrick Conrad

ABSTRACT. In the wake of recurrent corporate consolidations, down-sizings, and restructuring, today's workers face increasing threats of jobloss, job insecurity, and lack of employment opportunities. This articleexamines how American business and the social work profession cometo grips with the present workplace upheavals, displacement of workers,and the distributive justice implications to individuals and companies.Emphasis is placed on the historical development of the role of the EAPsocial workers and its contributions to distributive justice in the work-place. Emerging from this discussion is a comprehensive model thatintegrates EAPs with organizational development (OD). This EAP/ODmodel is developed from the belief that a worker with strong self-esteemand reasonable expectation of continued employment is an indicator of aproductive employee and an example of distributive justice in practice.[Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Ser-vice: 1-800-342-9678. E-mail address: getinfo@haworthpressinc.com]

KEYWORDS. Distributive justice, employee assistance program, orga-nizational development, organizational social work, person-environment

Amid daily reports of organizational downsizing and restructuring,workers face increasing threats of potential job loss, job insecurity,

Marie J. Raber, DSW, is Assistant Dean, Chair, of the National Catholic Schoolof Social Services Baccalaureate Program, The Catholic University of America,Washington, DC. She is a consultant to industry on various EAP issues.

Sister Ann Patrick Conrad, DSW, is Acting Dean of the National CatholicSchool of Social Services, The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC.

Address correspondence to Dr. Raber or to Sister Ann Patrick Conrad, NCSSS,The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC 20064.

Social Thought, Vol. 19(1) 1999© 1999 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved. 15

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16 SOCIAL THOUGHT

and diminished career opportunities. Escalating globalization of theworkplace, rapid technological change, and numerous business con-solidations with their middle management fallout all contribute to themassive job insecurity and loss in this country. These conditions clear-ly constitute major social issues with important social justice implica-tions for the workplace.

When an organization restructures, employees likely experience anumber of potential reactions-anger, guilt, insecurity, helplessness-that threaten basic self-esteem and self-respect. However, most man-agers have never been trained to deal with the human resource side ofthe restructuring process, particularly employees' emotional reactions.Employee assistance programs (EAPs), therefore, can play an impor-tant role in helping organizations respond to employees' reactionsduring such times of crisis. They also are a valuable resource forfacilitating organizational development (OD) (Nail, 1995) and imple-menting social justice.

This article presents an EAP model that responds to the societal,organizational, and interpersonal changes affecting the workplace.The model integrates ecological systems concepts-which emphasizethe ongoing efforts of workers to balance work and family demands-and OD strategies-which provide tools and methods to facilitate orga-nizational change and improvement. Grounded in an egalitarian ap-proach to distributive justice (Rawls, 1971), the proposed EAP modelemphasizes a fair allocation of social goods.

It must be noted from the outset that implementing this modelrequires simultaneous orientation to the employees affected by soci-etal and organizational change and to the organization itself. Theholistic mission of the social work profession, which focuses on theperson-environment interaction as well as its long history of involve-ment in the workplace, positions the occupational social worker clear-ly within the central interests of the gatekeepers of the Americanworkplace (Kurzman & Akabas, 1993).

OCCUPATIONAL SOCIAL WORK:AN HISTORICAL OVERVIEW

In the past, social work services in the workplace have focused onhealth and social issues of the workforce. More recently, however,occupational social work has targeted the organizational system forintervention and change.

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Marie J. Raber and Sister Ann Patrick Conrad 17

The "occupational welfare system," which originated in the late19th century, quickly recognized the need for social welfare servicesprovided by practitioners called "welfare secretaries." These practi-tioners lacked formal training, but contributed to the development oftoday's present occupational social work model. The general responsi-bilities of the welfare secretaries included casework, group work, andbenefits administration. Other tasks often involved "anticipating theduties of the modern personnel manager, including training, job as-signment, and sometimes even hiring, firing, and determination ofsalaries" (Popple, 1981, p. 262).

By 1920, university-educated social workers moved into the occu-pational arena, and workplace services continued to evolve (Popple,1981). Industrial social workers broadened their practice to encompassentire work groups, bridging communication gaps between employersand employees and assessing the needs of the environment.

The onset of World War II strongly influenced the profile of theworkplace. The inclusion of new employee populations, specificallywomen and minorities, resulted in the need for additional social workservices. Management became interested in providing extensive ser-vices to employees. Because wage increases ceased during the war,employers created fringe benefits to enhance worker compensation.As part of these services, employers began to view social workers asvalued allies in the delivery of mental health services (Wagner, 1967).

Employee assistance programs, developed in the U.S. in the early1940s, initially focused only on workers with alcohol abuse problems.Typically, these workers demonstrated declined job performance, andthe EAPs relied heavily on supervisors to motivate workers to acceptservices (Cunningham, 1990). Indigenous nonprofessional or recover-ing counselors usually staffed those programs (Masi, 1982). Overtime, professionally trained alcoholism counselors were hired to pro-vide these services.

During the 1960s, industry experienced increased employment ofwomen and minorities, consumer pressure for influence in corporatepolicymaking, expanded federal regulation of work sites, heightenedalienation of workers, and greater attention to quality-of-life issuesinvolving work (Popple, 1981). The EAP model of this era focused onthe interrelationship between personal problems and job performance.The earlier alcoholism model was replaced by an EAP model thatacknowledged a breadth of employee problems and considered deteri-

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orating work performance as the legitimate basis for intervention andtreatment. This change resulted in a broadened EAP model that ad-dressed emotional, marital, behavioral, and medical problems.

SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE AT THE WORKPLACE:EAP MODEL

The historical development of EAPs has strongly impacted contem-porary social work services in the workplace. EAPs or parallel, union-sponsored membership assistance programs (MAPs) exist today inabout 10,000 work organizations, with social workers as the primeprofessional providers of services (Peters & Waterman, 1982).Through EAPs, social workers have expanded their roles in the work-place to meet the evolving needs of employees.

Social work services in the workplace have been defined a numberof ways. For instance, Kurzman (1988), defines occupational socialwork as the programs and services, under the auspices of labor ormanagement, delivered by professional social workers to serve em-ployees and the legitimate social welfare needs of the organization.Program initiatives include information and referral for child care,elder care, and substance abuse; assistance for workers meeting thedemands of shift work; and policy initiatives to help employeesthrough an era of corporate mergers and downsizings.

Googins and Godfrey (1987, p. 5) describe occupational socialwork as "a field of practice in which social workers attend to thehuman and social needs of the work community by designing andexecuting appropriate interventions to insure healthier individuals andenvironments." Akabas and Kurzman's definition (1988, p. 197 is"that special area of practice where the focus is on the individual inthe status of worker, the environment as defined by employing organi-zations and trade unions, work as the goal of functional performanceamong client populations, and social policy as recognition of the inter-connection between social welfare and the world of work." Special-ized models have emerged to meet changing conditions of today'sworkplace. McClennan and Miller (1988, p. 39) describe "health in-tervention EAPs"; Vigilante (1988, p. 89) suggests the "full familyservice model"; and Googins and Davidson (1993, p. 17) call for"family assistance programs."

These developments clearly indicate EAP's expanded focus from

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the alcoholism model to a comprehensive preventive and wellnessapproach to service. In response to the needs and demands of today'sworkplace, contemporary EAPs offer wellness plans in conjunctionwith company medical departments, and many EAPs develop andmanage child care and elder care programs. Staff development activi-ties may include seminars to help workers balance family and worklife or to share information on such issues as acquired immune defi-ciency (AIDS). Social work in the workplace today has evolved tospan the boundaries between employees and their work environments,while focusing on the rights and responsibilities of employees andtheir organizations.

SOCIAL JUSTICE AND THE WORKPLACE

Central to any discussion of EAP models is the rationale for theirdevelopment and the principles underlying their implementation. Be-cause the assignment of rights and responsibilities is a pivotal consid-eration in the workplace, this article discusses the rationale for EAPsfrom a social justice perspective.

Broadly conceived, social justice is defined as the ways in whichgoods of the earth are shared among the members of a society (Con-rad, 1988). Rawls's egalitarian theory of justice is particularly relevantto employment situations. The theory stresses the importance of speci-fying the principles that give rise to the rights and responsibilitiesinherent in maximizing the fair distribution of the good within a well-ordered society. Accordingly, a person's good becomes the successfulrealization of a broadly conceived life plan (Rawls, 1971). Central tothis realization are the self-respect and esteem necessary to engenderconfidence that a life plan can be implemented. According to Rawls, awell-ordered society is one designed to advance the good of its mem-bers in ways agreed on by the public. It is also characterized bystability over time-allowing for fluctuations to self-correct-and by itsmembers' moral commitment to abide by its collective decisions.

Because of the critical nature of social and economic interaction inpost-modern society, the stability of a person's employment situationis integral to the successful realization of life plans. Thus, social jus-tice is intimately linked with workplace decisions in times of organiza-tional change and development.

A basic assumption underlying EAPs, then, is that the opportunity

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for continuous employment-with a present employer or elsewhere-helps define an individual's status and level of self-esteem (Perlman,1982). As such, employees consider meaningful employment opportu-nities as part of their execution of a life plan. Any change in this statusraises philosophical concerns and issues of fairness to the employeesinvolved, issues related to the justice principles that underlie work-place restructuring. When applied to the employment, the opportunityto hold a job becomes a principle of justice; the self-esteem derivedfrom gainful employment becomes a primary social good.

SOCIAL WORK PERSPECTIVES AT THE WORKPLACE

Social work education does not allow for passive observation by itsmembers, but focuses on social action. It demands constant attentionto values and ethics, diversity, social and economic justice, and popu-lations at risk. Social work education emphasizes that its workers"strive to make social institutions more humane and responsive tohuman needs, are committed to assisting client systems to obtain need-ed resources, and are responsible for their own ethical conduct, thequality of their practice, and seeking continuous growth in the knowl-edge and skills of their profession" (Council on Social Work Educa-tion, 1992, p. 7).

With this mandate, the social work profession has historically deliv-ered services in American corporations through EAPs. EAPs haveprogressively created a broad range of social services to meet theongoing needs of employees. A growing number of EAPs also dealwith macro-level organizational and systemic issues, many of whichaffect the individual problems EAPs routinely address (Googins &Davidson, 1993).

As the restructuring of U.S. corporations continues, economic deci-sions and their impact on the allocation of basic social goods mustfocus more on the self-respect of employees and meeting their needsresulting from job loss or insecurity. Historically, social workers havebeen aware of the intrinsic connection between economic decisions,distributive justice, and social welfare. The person-in-environmenttheoretical framework-which permeates the social work profes-sion-clearly prepares EAP professionals to intervene effectively withworkers and corporate settings to meet both individual and organiza-tional needs.

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DISTRIBUTIVE JUSTICE'S RESPONSETO ORGANIZATIONAL RESTRUCTURING

Representative members from all levels of an organization shouldactively participate in the process of restructuring. When that opportu-nity occurs, both the organization and the individual usually benefit.This model empowers employees to participate meaningfully in theorganization's future and potentially identify alternative work rolesthat will emerge (Raber, 1994). At the very least, employee input fromevery level guarantees some effort at maintaining a minimal level ofself-esteem and some opportunity for continued employment or reem-ployment. At best, integrating OD strategies aimed at enhancing theself-esteem and career growth opportunities for all employees blendsthe best interests of the individual and the business interest of theemployer. Rawls writes of this involvement of all employees as longas "it does not violate what justice demands" for a particular sociallyand economically disadvantaged group of employees (1971, p. 94).

SOCIAL WORK INTERVENTIONS:THEORETICAL FRAMEWORKS

Historically, social work's mission has been to restore and maintainthis social functioning. The evolving changes in the workplace duringthis era of organizational restructuring and consolidation dictate a reem-phasis on the relevance of work and functioning as a goal. Research hasidentified and examined the serious effects of work on families, socialgrowth, and job loss (Silverman, Simon, & Woodrow, 1991).

The role of work is a central organizing factor in the life of anindividual and must be considered in its full meaning (Lewis, 1982).Social work practice at the workplace must utilize this organizingphenomenon. This form of intervention includes the interactive pro-cess of individuals and groups with their social-institutional environ-ments (Vigilante, 1982).

Person-Environment Focus in the Workplace

Roberts (1990) identifies "person-in-environment" as the centralsocial work focus. Social work services at the workplace clearly use

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this framework for assessment and intervention. Cultural and structur-al realities of work organizations must also be considered to determinea systems viewpoint and a unique person-in-environment model. So-cial work practice at the workplace reflects the social work theory thatviews individuals and environments within an interactional frame-work. The conceptualization of employees and organizations as clientsbrings an ideal practice framework to the workplace (Googins & Da-vidson, 1993).

If a strong person-environment practice develops within the occu-pational sphere, the social work profession needs to find new expertiseand gain a professional role broader than what EAPs afford. In thepast, social work services focused on treating environmental variablesas essential factors that affect psychosocial functioning. In response tothe evolving changes at the workplace, a new goal should be to under-stand how to control or alter these variables to enhance an individual'squality of life (Balgopal, 1989).

As clinical social work enters newer institutional settings throughthe growth of EAP programs, professionals have incorporated moreenvironmentally sensitive practice knowledge. This professional re-sponse emphasizes the positive contributions of a holistic, ecological-ly based practice, modeled after earlier foundations established byfamily systems therapy as well as remedial, developmental, and me-diating group work (Balgopal & Vassil, 1983; Germain & Gitterman,1980; Siporin, 1980). Interventions appropriate to person-environ-ment focus often suggest an either-or proposition; that is, they aredirected either at the person or the environment, depending on thesituation.

The EAP professional today can work with the individual client, theenvironment, or both, with either a specific or broad scope of intendedchange (Balgopal, 1989).

Organizational Development Focus in the Workplace

Organizational development is an approach to facilitating changeand growth, enhancing human skills, and resolving difficulties at boththe personal and organizational level (Boss, 1989). Organizationallearning continues to influence the OD approach to facilitating changewithin the workplace. This process entails new insights and modifiedbehavior. First, organizational learning occurs through shared insights,

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knowledge, and mental models. Change is blocked unless all of themajor decision makers learn together, come to share beliefs and goals,and are committed to taking the actions necessary for change. Second,learning builds on past knowledge and experience; that is, on memory.Organizational memory must depend on institutional mechanismsalong with the memory of individuals. The ongoing challenge facingorganizations is to discover new management tools and methods toaccelerate organizational learning, build consensus for change, andfacilitate the change process (Stata, 1989). Systems thinking, particu-larly system dynamics, is a powerful tool to facilitate both individualand organizational learning. Changes intended to improve perfor-mance in one part of an organization can affect other parts with sur-prising, often negative, consequences. Human cognitive capabilitiesoften limit one's ability to comprehend the many activities in complexorganizations.

Forrester (1971) reports that the role of organizational leaders isundergoing dramatic change. Future leaders must be designers andoperators, shaping the design or the organization structure and policiesto best fulfill the corporate mission. Expertise in organizational designwill be a critical skill-a skill that requires considerable technicalknowledge about analyzing, modifying, and stimulating behavior ofcomplex human systems.

Organizational development objectives include improving com-munication and teamwork and directing the organization's culture to amore open, behaviorally oriented management style as opposed to adysfunctional, competitive, authoritative style (Vaught & Buchanan,1985).

ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND SOCIAL WORK:EMERGING MODEL

EAPs have moved from an isolated, relatively nonessential positionin work organizations to occupying a legitimate role in the humanresources area of business. This move is a logical development of theEAP function. Because EAPs are exposed to a variety of problemsaffecting organizations, including individuals, families and communi-ties, they are uniquely positioned to go beyond individual issues todevelop organization-wide solutions. This opportunity broadens EAP

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practice to include organizational development issues parallel to tradi-tional clinical interventions (Googins & Davidson, 1993; Raber, 1996).

Even though EAP's clinical responses to corporate restructureshave made significant inroads to a full-employment economy, oppor-tunities still exist to create further organizational changes aimed at thesystemic distributive justice issues. Indeed, industry has provided out-placement counseling and reemployment services through its EAPs,which have enhanced the dignity of workers suffering through thisprocess. But to cause any substantive changes in full employment andempowerment of the worker in a changing economic environment,employers need a programmatic response that values the worker as themost important resource in their organizations. The shift from a morereactionary and individualistic focus of EAP services to an organiza-tional development model is gaining momentum in American business(Raber, 1994).

EAP professionals are working in tandem with many top manage-ment and senior human resource professionals to create training anddevelopment programs, job reengineering and retraining efforts, andongoing career development and change management workshops. Un-derlying these efforts is the abiding belief that employee satisfactionand development are concomitant with institutional performance.Rather than waiting to react to a personal and workplace problem-whether it be employee alcoholism, absenteeism, or a company-widedownsizing-companies are introducing programs and activities thatgive employees the strategies and training to deal with any changes inthe workplace. It is both good business and the humane thing to do.

A study of 24 profitable companies in our country found a strongcorrelation between company-sponsored OD programs and institu-tional profitability. For example, Xerox's Critical Skills Programmatches surplus, or prospective displaced employees, with the compa-ny's unfulfilled staff requirements in product growth areas. Their re-search proved that the cost of these programs, while significant, wasnegligible compared to the increase in institutional profitability andemployee satisfaction (Casner-Lotto, 1990).

Integrating EAP with OD in industry is impacting social workeducation programs and advancing the principles of human dignityand economic justice for all. It is not unusual to see MSW graduatesseeking graduate degrees in OD with the specific purpose of imple-menting proactive development programs and organizational climate

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changes within their companies. The fundamental goal of improvinghuman dignity through enhanced self-esteem means empowering theemployee as partners with management to plan their own and thecompany's future.

Recently, the author led a career development workshop for socialworkers and program directors employed at a major university hospi-tal. Hospital management and the EAP department sponsored theworkshop to provide staff social workers and management with skillsand strategies to help determine their career potential at the hospitaland in other careers within and outside the health care profession. Thistype of program should be provided to employees before implement-ing restructuring decisions. Such initiatives enable employees to par-ticipate in organizational change and decision making regarding theirown working future.

When the EAP professional takes the initiative to work with topmanagement in developing the right company climate for changes tooccur, a strategic and enduring start occurs. This comprehensive mod-el of integrating EAP with OD is gaining more attention because it"meets the legitimate vested interests of labor and management for astable and productive workforce on which they both depend" (Kurz-man & Akabas, 1993, p. 41).

Organizational development not only helps companies with issuesof employee performance, but also helps management understand theimplications of systems theory, where the actions and culture of onepart of a company impact other parts and, more importantly, the wholeorganization. This systems approach is key to integrating EAP withorganizational development.

DISTRIBUTIVE JUSTICE THROUGH FULL EMPLOYMENT

EAPs designed to deal with employees' loss of self-esteem throughjob loss and institutional restructuring marginally approximate the fullemployment and recognition of an individual's centrality in an orga-nization. Counseling a substance abusing employee, assisting a dis-placed employee with outplacement services, or attempting to find adependent-care resource for a single parent worker are good and effec-tive interventions for an EAP professional. But they fall short offraming company policies and practices around an EAP/OD modelthat is driven by the shared employee and company belief that a

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worker with healthy self-esteem and reasonable expectations of con-tinued employment is a good predictor of a productive employee.

The intrinsic value of a public policy that incorporates employmentopportunities for all in a work environment conducive to personalgrowth is not a meaningless truism. Traditionally, the values of self-re-spect and self-determination have been central to social work's mis-sion, and the goal of the profession is to provide the resources thatpromote the abilities of all people to pursue these social goods (Wake-field, 1988). The leaders in American business have already initiatedvision statements and organizational practices that operationalize"distributive justice for all employees." It is also gratifying to observethe emergence of the EAP social worker, joined with management, inrecognizing and enhancing the rights and opportunities of all workersduring these times of economic uncertainty. Although these initiativesare still exceptions to the rule, some of our largest and most profitablecompanies in this country are implementing this EAP/OD model (Cas-ner-Lotto, 1990). In examining the annual reports of these companies,their mission statements on profitability expectations are intimatelylinked with their goals for a partnership of management and em-ployees aimed at an organizational community jointly committed toenhancing personal growth and institutional profitability.

Admittedly, most corporations do not generally recognize the rela-tionship between demographic and social changes in the workplaceand institutional profitability. Until companies understand these rela-tionships in business terms, they will be unable and unwilling toinstitute appropriate organizational interventions. For the most part,companies are driven by short-term and specific profit expectations. Inturn, top management often sees the EAP/OD function as minor andperipheral in comparison to their business goals. Therefore, a majorchallenge and opportunity for EAPs is to educate and discuss theseissues with companies during periods of strategic planning rather thanduring organizational crises.

This proactive initiative will hopefully help create a culture andclimate where distributive justice is intrinsically tied to a person'sright to work, and to the business community's responsibility to re-spect and enhance the self-esteem of any employee, particularly thosewith minimal social and economic goods.

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