Understanding the convergent experiences of home-based eldercare workers in different welfare regimes: A multiple case study of Sweden and Türkiye

Sammanfattning: Since the 1970s, neoliberal policies worldwide have been affecting the organization of care in welfare regimes and the working conditions of care workers. Although it takes different forms in different welfare regimes, studies show that it is a global phenomenon in which care workers endure poor working conditions such as low wages, heavy workload, and sexual harassment. Using the Social Reproduction Theory with an intersectional approach, this thesis examines the working conditions of home-based eldercare workers in line with the organization of care in welfare regimes and the neoliberal transformation of welfare regimes within the cases of Sweden and Türkiye. This thesis is designed as a multiple case study, and these two countries were chosen since they have entirely different welfare regimes. Adopting the feminist methodology, the data is collected with 22 semi-structured interviews (11 each) in Stockholm, Sweden, and Istanbul, Türkiye. The data is analyzed through thematic analysis, which relies on the theoretical concepts and themes derived from the interviews. This research illustrates that eldercare workers’ experiences are closely interlinked with the marketization and commodification of care and shaped by the intersection of dehumanization, racialization, and sexualization in both cases. By stating that the neoliberal transformation of organization of care in welfare regimes create poor working conditions for eldercare workers, the thesis concludes that the complex and intersecting power relations, including race, gender, class, and migration status, reinforce the vulnerability of eldercare workers.