Outsourcing Of Public Services Research Articles

Social care outsourcing in Britain and its potential occupational health consequences

AbstractThis paper considers the potential occupational health effects of the way in which the outsourcing of public social care services is prompting reforms to the employment regimes within voluntary organisations involved in their delivery. It does so by juxtaposing research findings on the nature of these reforms with existing evidence on how key features of such regimes, as well as outsourcing more generally, can impact on the health of workers. The paper concludes that there must be a real concern that current social care outsourcing is impacting negatively on the health of voluntary sector workers. Against this backcloth, the paper calls for further research on such potential negative effects and also identifies several regulatory reforms that could act to counter them.

Book Review: Simon Chesterman and Angelina Fisher (eds), Private Security, Public Order: The Outsourcing of Public Services and its Limits (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009, 256 pp., £70.00 hbk)

Book Review: Simon Chesterman and Angelina Fisher (eds), Private Security, Public Order: The Outsourcing of Public Services and its Limits (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009, 256 pp., £70.00 hbk)

Urban agriculture and sanitation services in Accra, Ghana: the overlooked contribution

While urban agriculture has long been valued for providing food security and nutrition within cities, it contributes to many other urban services that are seldom cited as rationales for protecting or even expanding urban food production. Articulating the actual and possible contributions of urban agriculture to municipal sanitation and health services is critical for sustaining these urban farms and their functions into the future. In the context of the low coverage and performance of wastewater treatment plants in Accra, Ghana, health risk reduction measures implemented on and off farm can substitute to a large extent for this absence of conventional wastewater treatment. We estimate that Accra generates approximately 80,000,000L of wastewater per day, of which urban vegetable farms alone use up to 11,250,000L. By mitigating the health risks for farmers and consumers associated with widespread wastewater irrigation, these urban farms have the potential to significantly contribute to the city's sanitation needs. This could allow partial outsourcing of public health services from treatment plants to the farm, where wastewater is considered an asset instead of a problem. Urban agriculture could also significantly support buffer zone management along streams and rivers, resulting in a reduction of solid waste dumping and environmental pollution, but most importantly an improvement in flood control and related public health challenges. While urban agriculture is not the panacea for addressing these urban challenges, it can significantly contribute to their solution.

周辺地域における自治体公共サービス民営化の特徴―青森県三戸町の包括業務委託の事例―

地方自治体は現在，行財政運営の効率化の手段の一つとして公共サービス民営化を進めているが，自治体の地域特性に起因して民営化導入は地域差が見られる．特に周辺地域の自治体は専門サービス業者の不足を中心に，民営化導入は困難である点が指摘されてきた．本研究は青森県三戸町の包括業務委託を事例に，周辺地域の自治体の地域特性に応じた民営化後のサービス供給体制の変化とその要因を考察した．三戸町の包括業務委託ではサービス内容の維持と，サービス供給に携わる現業部門従業者の増加が進められた．一方で，包括業務委託の目的の一つである経費削減は進んでいない．三戸町では委託開始後，町と民間企業との間で長期的なサービス運営の協力体制の構築を行う協働的関係が築かれる一方で，町がサービス内容の設定を行い続けている．こうした委託方式や運営が採られた理由として，雇用機会の確保とサービスの持続の二点を町が重視したことが大きい．

The outsourcing of social care in Britain: what does it mean for voluntary sector workers?

While recent decades have witnessed a growth in the outsourcing of public services in Britain, the post-1997 UK Labour governments have sought to put in place mechanisms aimed at encouraging long-term collaborative contracting relationships marked by less reliance on cost-based competition. This article explores empirically how far these mechanisms have achieved their aims and thereby acted to protect the employment conditions of staff, and links this exploration to debates concerning the employment implications of organizational reforms within public sectors internationally. It concludes that in terms of bringing income security to the voluntary sector and stability to employment terms and conditions these efforts have been unsuccessful, and consequently casts doubts on more optimistic interpretations of the employment effects of organizational restructuring in the British public sector.

Workforce Modernization in Police Detention Suites: The Dilemmas of Outsourcing in Public Services

This article draws upon our experience of evaluating a project funded by the Home Office's workforce modernization programme, which concerned the outsourcing of the detention officer role in an English police force. The efficiency and effectiveness of the project were established, but questions about accountability, equity and sustainability were also raised. These findings complement the literature on outsourcing in the public sector. Studies suggest that the issues associated with the application of outsourcing include the extent to which cost savings are achieved, the causes of such savings and the implications of this for quality and equity. Outsourcing may be seen as a relatively unproblematic way of increasing efficiency in the public sector from some theoretical perspectives, but that is disputed. Our work contributes to the debate by presenting further evidence that, while outsourcing can produce significant savings, this is neither straightforward to achieve nor without awkward side effects.

Public or private water management: Experience from different European Countries

Faced with liberalisation proposals and an increasing internationalisation of water resource management, the question arises as to how a change of the regulatory framework would affect the market structure and the supply conditions in this area. While the term "privatisation" relates to the ownership structure of the providers, the term "liberalisation" implies extensive free market ideas. Privatisation involves the outsourcing of public services from the public authorities to a privately organised organisation. Through this, however, nothing needs to change in terms of the market or the intensity of competition for the commodity in question. Within the framework of privatisation it can also occur that the public monopoly is only transferred to a private monopoly. The term "liberalisation" in addition refers to the basic regulatory constraints: liberalisation signifies the cessation of limitations to competition and supply monopolies, and open competition between several suppliers for the consumers. In the EU-15, the only country where the provision of operational services in the water supply has been totally passed to the private sector is the UK, but this is only true for UK and Wales. Another singular case is France, where there is a mix of mainly private operating companies and municipalities which have divided the regional supply areas among themselves. In six other EU-15 countries where some privatisation took place, either the municipalities or (majority) publicly owned companies are controlling water supply. In the remaining seven countries, the water supply is organised by municipality companies only. In an international comparison, there are three basic models for the regulation of natural monopolies in the public water supply: the Anglo-Saxon, the French and the German model. The delimitation between supervisory bodies and operations in the water supply is strongest in the first model and weakest in the last. This has led to three basic types of privatisation: "full privatisation", "privatisation through delegation" and "privatisation with regulation by the supervisory bodies". These have led to three clearly distinguishable forms of competition: substitute competition simulated by the regulation authorities between private supply-enterprises, competition between private operators for the right to the temporary provision of water supplies, and competition in the product and service markets in the provision of water. In this paper, these different forms of privatisation and liberalisation are described and their impact on competition and market structures is analysed.

Privatisation and outsourcing in wartime: the humanitarian challenges

The tendency today to privatise many activities hitherto considered the exclusive preserve of the state has given rise to sharp debate. The specific nature of humanitarian emergencies elucidates in particularly stark contrast some of the main challenges connected to the privatisation and outsourcing of essential public services, such as the provision of drinking water and health care. Privatising the realms of defence and security, which are at the very core of state prerogative, raises several legal and humanitarian concerns. This article focuses on the roles and responsibilities of the various parties involved in armed conflicts, especially those of private companies engaged in security, intelligence and interrogation work, and in the provision of water supply and health services. It highlights the need for humanitarian and development actors to grasp better the potential risks and opportunities related to privatisation and outsourcing with a view to supplying effective protection and assistance to communities affected by war.

Outsourcing of public services and implications for managerial knowledge and careers

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the role of managers in managing the inter‐organisational relationship. It investigates how the nature of work and career prospects may have changed for managers in both the public and the private sector under the public/private outsourcing relationships.Design/methodology/approachTwo case studies were carried out on the outsourcing of public services: PFI of a hospital and the outsourcing of housing benefits administration.FindingsThe most important task performed by managers with this boundary‐spanning role appears to be to enforce and achieve performance targets set out for the service provider firms which are then cascaded down to individual workers. However, these managers are subject to corporate surveillance themselves in the form of tightening targets and constant performance assessments, often through the intervention of the client organisations, and may experience even less job security.Research limitations/implicationsIn view of the significantly increased level of interdependence between the organisations in the outsourcing relationships and the managers who are managing the relationships, the multiple facets of this principle‐agency relationship need to be further explored beyond the traditional organisational boundary as the framework for analysis.Practical implicationsManagement knowledge is often context‐specific and cannot be readily codified. As such the knowledge of the managerial workers remains part of the competitive advantages of the organisation. How to acquire, retain and develop this body of knowledge is an essential part of the organisation and management development strategy of the organisation.Originality/valueThis paper provides insights into the (changing) role of the managerial workers in managing the public‐private outsourcing relationships.

Privatisations, sous-traitance et partenariats public-privé: charity.com ou business.org?

Today's tendency to privatize or outsource many activities hitherto considered the exclusive preserve of the State has given rise to sharp debate. This phenomenon is of direct concern to humanitarian organizations when it involves essential public services such as the water supply and health care. Privatizing the realms of defence and security — the very core of State prerogative — raises serious legal and humanitarian questions. In this article the author takes a brief look at developments in the interaction between the State and the private sector, as well as at the emergence of the non-profit sector. The specific nature of humanitarian emergencies brings out in particularly stark contrast some of the main challenges related to the privatization and outsourcing of public services and security. The author dwells in particular on the privatization of military functions (including the running of detention places), of health care and of the supply of drinking water. He examines the role, responsibility and obligations of the various parties concerned. The economic rationale behind these practices is put into question, as well as the compatibility between the corporate motive of profit-maximization, on the one hand, and the need to ensure public security and health on the other. The author suggests that humanitarian agencies need to better understand how the private sector operates and how they may interact with it. There is a need to better assess both the potential benefits and risks resulting from the current privatization and outsourcing trend — with the ultimate objective of ensuring more effective protection and assistance for people affected by war.