Work In Hungary Research Articles

Challenges for radical social work in Hungary

Social work is a very young profession in Hungary. Radical social work exists despite the fact that in the eyes of the current authoritarian ‘hybrid’ regime, the ‘Global definition of social work’ is also radical. Its ideas are primarily popular among young people and those who criticise the conceptual framework of aid, as defined by the governing party. In practice, non-governmental organisations, with their own approach, provide services.

Psychological harassment at work in Hungary and Slovakia

Abstract Bullying, harassment, and sexual harassment in the workplace are not new issues; they have always existed in various forms. Recent studies have highlighted their impacts on workers and their well-being at work. However, the perception of these problems differ across the United States, Europe, and Asia. These differences are reflected not only in terms of sensitivities, workplace policies, and relevant laws, but also in the language/vocabulary used to designate the same. Psychological harassment is a bitter issue for many who are affected by it. Unfortunately, it remains a less popular topic in academic research. This may be due to the sensitivity associated with the topic, the possible shame and value judgements of those involved, and the myriad cultural differences that complicate its perceptions. This study deals with the characteristics of psychological harassment in workplaces across Hungary and Slovakia. It addresses the following questions: How are the sources of psychological bullying perceived in the two countries, how do victims tolerate the abuse they are subjected to, and what factors influence the same. The study also examines whether the company’s tools for combating psychological bullying in the workplace have an impact on an employee’s decision to leave the organization as a result of mobbing. It conducted quantitative surveys involving 500 Hungarian and 108 Slovakian employees. The results were analyzed by the authors using SPSS version 28 with univariate and multivariate statistical methods. Frequency analysis, ANOVA, T- test and factor analysis, among others, were performed. The results show that the perception of the sources of psychological bullying and the tolerance of the related phenomena depend on a number of personal factors. However, the tools that firms use to deal with mobbing do not necessarily play a determining role in an employee’s decision to leave their workplace following psychological harassment.

“We Are Flying Like a Fish”: Female Academics in Social Work in Hungary

Social 1 work was reintroduced to Hungary during the third wave of democratization in Europe. As an academic discipline, it is in a disadvantaged position: the domestic academic traditions prefer strict disciplinary boundaries to inter- or transdisciplinary integration. Ongoing reforms in the country highlight the economic gains and the societal mission of higher education, with a strong focus on internationalization and direct connections to professional practice. Unfortunately, in this new framework, social work is understood as an auxiliary profession. This, in combination with female academics’ unfavorable position in Hungary, establishes a situation in which gender-based and disciplinary disadvantages result in a negative synergy. To explore the potential impacts, we maintain a dual focus throughout the paper and analyze academic women's position and the position of academics in social work.

A pomázi szerb templom berendezésének kialakulása a 18. század végén

Commission to build an Orthodox church in Pomáz was given around 1720 by the Serbian population demonstrably present in the settlement from the 1660s. The church dedicated to the megalomartyr Saint George was consecrated by the bishop of Buda Mihailo Milošević (1716–1728) in 1722, exactly 300 years ago. The orthodox church of Pomáz is one of the earliest surviving monuments of the Serbian Church after the great Serbian immigration (Seoba). Its history and artistic values have been dealt with by Pál Voit, Sztoján D. Vujicsics, Iván Jaksity sr., Dinko Davidov and Márta Nagy earlier. The church books of birth marriage and death survive as of 1752, the documents of the parish as of 1783. The scrutiny of the accounts books for the period from 1783 and 1800 has revealed a lot of new data about the construction of the church, its furnishing and even of the masters involved. The presentation of the new information is the main aim of the paper.The explored archival data reveal that the church built around 1720 was already in need of reconstruction by the 1770s. In the western end of the nave a gallery was erected in 1783 and by 1794 the old tower was replaced by a new taller one. The still extant furniture is documented from the 1780s. in 1789 two painters were contracted to decorate the existing canons’ seats and the bishop’s throne. The identity of the master named Georgije in a source is unsettled. The other can be identified as painter Arsenije Teodorović (1767–1826) who was in the first year of his studies at Vienna’s Academy. He was to become one of the most outstanding figures of Serbian painting in the age whose many prestigious commissions in the Serbian Orthodox diocese of Buda included the painted decoration of the furnishing of St Nicholas’s church in Baja at the beginning of his career (1793–1794), and already as a mature painter he decorated the iconostasis, cantors’ benches and the throne of the Theotokos in the orthodox cathedral of Buda (Tabán) (1818–1820). From his works in Pomáz only the pictorial representation on the bishop’s seat survives partly overpainted. It shows Saint John Chrysostom in a fairly unusual composition.The wooden framework of the classicizing late baroque iconostasis (1793–1794) was made by wood carver Avram Manojlović of zombor; his most exquisite work in Hungary is the iconostasis in Baja (1788–1790). The iconostasis of Pomáz – a far more modest work than the one in Baja – was a commission for the Baja-born Pavel Ðurković (1772–1830?) as the recently explored documents verify. So far, the first iconostasis by Ðurković – who was to become the decisive artist of the Serbs in the first quarter of the 19th century – was believed to be the one in Dunaföldvár dated to 1799–1801, but the new source confirms that his first known ecclesiastic commission was the pomáz iconostasis. regrettably, owing to layers of overpainting only certain segments have preserved Ðurković’s brushstrokes.A few separate icons in the Pomáz church verify the active presence of another two 18th century Serbian painters in Pomáz. The icon of Christ Enthroned with Saint John the Baptist is attributable to Hristofor Žefarović’s workshop. It probably belonged to the earlier iconostasis painted a little before 1740. Today there is only a single icon in the Pomáz church that preserves the memory of the sojourn in the village in 1770–1775 of Teodor Simeonov gruntović from Moscopolis, who with his workshop was very active in the territory of the Hungarian kingdom. His best-known works are the rich ensembles of icons in the churches of ráckeve and Székesfehérvár.

The prevalence and mental health correlates of exposure to offensive behaviours at work in Hungary: results of a national representative survey

BackgroundWithin the last decades, a substantial number of reports have established bullying behaviours as a severe risk to the health and safety of workers. However, in Hungary, the severity of this issue remains largely unknown. Therefore, the current study aimed to 1) determine the prevalence of offensive workplace behaviours in the Hungarian working population and 2) examine the relationship between exposure to these offensive behaviours and certain mental health indicators.MethodsThe cross-sectional analyses of the present study are based on a sample of 13,104 active workers being representative of the Hungarian working population according to gender, age, educational level, and 18 occupational sectors. The mid-length version of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire II (COPSOQ II) was used to measure workplace offensive behaviours (bullying, sexual harassment, threats of violence, and physical violence) in the 12 months preceding the survey. Examined mental health correlates included depressive symptomatology (Beck Depression Inventory), functional somatic symptoms (PHQ-15), perceived stress (Perceived Stress Scale), and general well-being (WHO Well-being Index).ResultsAlmost half (48.7%) of the sample reported exposure to some form of offensive behaviour; 37.6% of participants reported occasional-, while 11.1% reported weekly or daily exposure. More women than men were exposed to offensive workplace behaviours, and those targeted the most were individuals aged 18–29 and in companies employing 20–49 employees. Top managers reported the lowest amount of bullying, while unskilled labourers reported the most frequent exposure. A moderately strong relationship was discovered between exposure to workplace offensive behaviours and all indicators of mental health.ConclusionWorkplace bullying was revealed to be a significant public health concern according to this large, representative data set from Hungary. Strategies to reduce the occurrence and impact of these behaviours on employee health should be a priority for occupational health and safety interventions.

SOCIAL EXPECTATIONS IN THE CHOICE OF THE RIGHT EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION

More than 1000 public educational institutions maintained by the church work in Hungary currently, therefore recently the denominational public education has turned into a current question again. The expansion can be originated for several reasons, to which as a starting point the law of 1990 may be considered which takes action on the freedom of conscience and religion. As a result of this since the change of the regime, the church has become a school maintainer, too, which means new challenges and continuously sets new expectations for it. Denominational schools as publicly financed institutions have to meet their educational mission with the states and the school selectors’expectations. Several researchers have examined the determinants of school selection on both international and national levels (Bell 2009, Denig et al. 2009, Dronkers 1995, Ferenc-Séra 2001, Kertesi 2014, Korzenszky 1997). We may presuppose that the school - as the device of social mobility - shows the opportunity for the child's prosperity in the parents' eye. The determinants of selecting a school may be changing in each country and age, yet there are factors that can be considered relatively constant like the residential area, the parents’ social status and educational level, their piety and cultural capital, their faith in the school as the device of social mobility, their image of the future and their knowledge on the opportunities of selecting a school. Furthermore, the content and coherence of the family may also be determined. We may assume that the motivation of the school users selecting either a denominational or a state or a foundation school can be different. Also, it can be probable that the school level –primary or secondary– influences the attitudes of school selectors. The aim of the present study is both to show the results of a questionnaire empirical research conducted among students choosing schools maintained by the church, and by putting the results in an extended conceptional framework to find such social correlations that may help to recognise the expectations and scruples drawn to the churches as school maintainers.

Beyond the state: Developments and trends in critical social work in Switzerland and Hungary

This article examines the developments and current trends in the practice of critical social work in Hungary and Switzerland based on the international literature on critical social work, as well as Hungarian and Swiss publications that are less known to the international scientific community. The study concludes that contemporary Swiss and Hungarian critical social work is in close relationship with civil society and is particularly effective in intervening where state-run social services are less efficient. This includes the areas of migration aid and homeless care in both countries, and the support of the Roma people in Hungary.

Hungarian regulation and practice of confined space works in the water utilities sector

In Hungary, public water facilities - drinking water works and wastewater disposal and treatment plants - are operated by companies with a valid water utility licence. During operation, the operator must ensure an organised working schedule, on-call and stand-by service which, in addition to a continuous and reliable service, enables it to intervene immediately in the event of a fault in order to remedy or mitigate operational and environmental damage and to restore service as soon as possible. In many cases, these unplanned interventions can be classified as work with boarding, such as work in manholes or pipelines, repair operations on hydroglobuses (water towers), or even unplanned interventions in waterworks reservoirs. In the course of our work, we summarise the regulation of boarding work in Hungary. We describe the possibilities of employer measures that are part of the regulation. We also compile a list of the most common operations in the water utilities sector and the dangers of boarding, which can be of great help to both those who authorise boarding and those who carry it out.

At the Crossroad of Confessions

The focus of my study is a mid-seventeenth-century Latin manuscript prayer book. Its most basic characteristics should attract the attention of scholars of the period since it was compiled by a Lutheran married couple from Prešov for their individual religious practice. In examining the prayer book, I was able to identify the basic source of the manuscript, which was previously unknown to researchers: the compendium of the German Lutheran author Philipp Kegel. The manuscript follows the structure of Kegel’s volume and also extracts a number of texts from the German author’s work, which mainly collects the writings of medieval church fathers. In addition to Kegel, I have also been able to identify a few other sources; mainly the writings of Lutheran authors from Germany (Johann Arndt, Johann Gerhardt, Johann Rist, and Johann Michael Dilherr). I give a description of the physical characteristics of the manuscript, its illustrations, the hymns that accompany the prayers, and the copying hands. I will also attempt to identify the latter more precisely. The first compilers of the manuscript were Andreas Glosius and his wife Catharina Musoniana from Prešov. I also organize the biographical data we have about their life and will correct the certainly erroneous provenance of Andreas Glosius, whose name appears in the context of several important contemporary manuscripts, including the gradual of Prešov. In the last part of my paper, I will also show how well known and popular Philipp Kegel’s work was in the early modern Kingdom of Hungary. This is necessary because, although the data show that there was a very lively reception of Philipp Kegel’s work in Hungary, previous scholars have only tangentially dealt with the Hungarian presence of his work.

Diverting Welfare Paths: Ethnicisation of Unemployment and Public Work in Hungary*

A new vision of “illiberal democracy” was introduced by the Orbán-led Fidesz government in the 2010s, which marked the end of the welfare state, and the central element of the political discourse once again became the creation of a labour-based society. The new workfarist trend in employment indicated a new direction in active labour market policy, favouring public work schemes. However, public work regulations put a disproportionate burden on the Roma unemployed, while disregarding the contributing factors leading to their material deprivation. This paper examines the new direction in employment and unemployment policy measures, a policy terrain where the workfare regime can be best detected. We placed special emphasis on the Roma minority and how their employment situation is effected by the anti-welfare turn.

The impact of COVID-19 on the gender division of childcare work in Hungary

ABSTRACT As most other EU countries, Hungary implemented severe lockdown measures during the pandemic, including the closure of the schools and childcare facilities. This meant that for several months a vastly increased volume of childcare had to be supplied by individual households without much institutional help. In the end of May 2020, we conducted a representative survey in Hungary to find out how the pandemic affected the gendered division of these childcare duties. We found that on average, in relative terms, men have increased their contributions at roughly the same rate (by 35 percent) as women. But given that women had been doing a lot more childcare work before the pandemic, in absolute terms, women’s contributions grew significantly more than men’s and the gap between men and women has increased in absolute work hour terms. This was particularly so among a specific group of women: middle class, highly educated city-dwellers. Our data suggest that in Hungary the pandemic increased gender inequality the most among the highest educated.

Wyobrażenia i oczekiwania związane z pracą i zatrudnieniem wśród studentów pierwszego roku

Demands concerning the labor market in Hungary tend to change these days faster than ever. It can be seen even in the plans and expectations of students enrolled in higher education institutions. In our research project, we have tried to find answers to the following questions: What kind of work experience did students have when they started their university studies in the 2019/2020 academic year? What jobs do they foresee for themselves in the future? What kind of salary do they expect to get for this, and what sort of considerations and persons influence them in the process of choosing a workplace? Furthermore, do they wish to live and work in Hungary or in another country? During the course of our survey, we used a questionnaire, for the analysis of which we completed correlation analyses and cross-tab(ulation) analyses among other things. After the evaluation of the findings and results, we may state that the majority of the students in the sample do have some work experience. Furthermore, the criteria influencing their choice of work(place) are also presented

Een kennismaking met Jenő Sebestyén (1884-1950)

Abstract During the interwar period, the Hungarian theological professor Jenő Sebestyén was a well-known figure in the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands. He regularly visited the Netherlands and gave lots of lectures to raise money for charity work in Hungary. In 1930 the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam awarded him an honorary doctorate. After his death an In Memoriam appeared in Trouw on 8 June 1950, and on 12 April 1952 George Puchinger dedicated the issue of his magazine Polemios to this Hungarian neo-Calvinist. In the Netherlands there is little attention for him anymore. In this article I deal with three questions: how did Sebestyén come to study neo-Calvinism, what activities did he develop in that context, and what was the result of his efforts?

A szociális munka társadalmi presztízse: Beszámoló kerekasztal-beszélgetésről

The paper investigates the social prestige of social work in Hungary. Although there are no reliable survey data on the social prestige of social work, it is possible to make preliminary assumptions of social work’s prestige by taking a look at the prestige tendencies of related professions. In this way, it is plausible to draw the conclusion that social work as a profession faces serious challenges in contemporary Hungary. This is corroborated by professionals who took part in a round table discussion held in Pecs on November 12th 2019 as part of the conference “Social Work as an Academic Discipline”. Participants of the discussion on social work’s history and present challenges in Hungary were Marta B. Erdős, Szilvia Endre, and Gabor Szollősi.

Egyházi szociális tevékenység Magyarországon

The broadening of church-based charity work, the increasing volume and strengthening complexity of services all represent essential progress in the Hungarian social system. This process is not only closely related to the transformation of the connections between the historic churches and the government, but is also linked to the development of the church’s social services since that creates a greater sensitivity to problems and a diverse system of intervention tools. This study aims to describe the principles and special fields of historic churches’ social work in Hungary, in particular the challenges in an environment of constant change. The paper focuses on the activity of the largest denominations (Catholic, Calvinist and Lutheran Church).

Key Factors of Disabled People’s Working Motivation: an Empirical Study Based on a Hungarian Sample

This paper addresses the background variables influencing the disabled persons’ motivation to work. Data collection was carried out in Hungary by experts analyzing the change of capability to work on a nationally representative sample. This allows us to highlight also the regional differences, because the motivational status sharply reflected this geographical impact. Besides the socio-economical status, not only motivational readiness was studied, but also factors responsible for cognitive and emotional immunity. Points of intervention were also identified, where the motivation processes could be catalyzed. The aim of this paper is to provide a concise summary of results, to give tentative interpretations and finally to identify practical intervention possibilities to increase handicapped persons’ motivation to work in Hungary.

Social Transformation and the Transition from Vocational Education to Work in Hungary: A Differences-in-differences Approach

The ‘dual system’ combining school-based vocational education with employer-provided training is often praised for effectively integrating young people into the labour market and recommended as a model for countries struggling with high youth unemployment. However, without an institutional framework supporting employer involvement, it has proven difficult to elicit or maintain what is essentially voluntary provision of training places by employers. Whenever employers are unwilling to train, school-provided training represents a viable alternative, but to date [the authors] know little about the relative effectiveness of school- versus employer-provided training. This study exploits a rapid shift of training provision from employers to vocational schools that occurred during the Hungarian transformation from socialism to capitalism to analyse how these different ways of organizing training affect the labour market entry of vocational graduates. [The authors’] expectation is that the substitution of employer-with school-provided training has resulted in higher unemployment and lower job quality, particularly on leaving school. Results from differences-in-differences analyses indicate that the shift in training provision from employers to schools between 1994 and 2000 has increased male vocational school graduates’ unemployment rate by 10 percentage points within the first two years after graduation. [The authors] find no effects of training organization on class position.

„Ex mellifluis verbis”

Martin von Cochem (born as Martin Linius) was a dominant figure of 17th and18th century Central-European prayer literature and devotional prose. To my knowledge, research on his literary activity in Hungary has so far been limited to one work only: Makula nélkül való tükör [A Mirror free from Mortal Taint] (first Hungarian edition: Nagyszombat/Trnava, 1712). The oeuvre of this Capuchin monk, who became a best-seller author of his time, consists of thirty-four basic works and their serial editions had stayed continuously in print with different titles until the 1950s. His life-work has largely influenced the genres and the theoretical framework of early modern Hungarian devotional literature. The Hungarian edition of Martin von Cochem’s prayer book entitled Mennyei követek avagy Sz. Gertrudis és Mechtildis égböl vött imádsági [Heavenly Messengers or Celestial Prayers of Saints Gertrude and Mechtilde] (1681), followed the Latin and the German editions ten years later (Preces Gertrudianae). My paper points out the changes both in the structure and content of the Hungarian translation. This work is known with six Latin and German title variations. Previous research has already identified more than fifty editions. I add nearly forty new editions to this corpus, existing under three different Hungarian titles (Mennyei követek [Heavenly Messengers], Len kötelecske [Flax Rope], Az két atyafi szent szüzek Gertrudis és Mechtildis imádságos könyve [Prayer Book of the Two Saint Virgins, Gertrude and Mechtilde]), and I also touch upon the approximately two hundred year-long reception history of this work in Hungary.

Drug use among sex workers in Hungary

Drug use and sex work are both controversial issues with multiple interesting connections. This article presents findings from the first-ever survey on drug use and sex work in Hungary. The study aimed to chart the prevalence, function, and problems of drug use among various groups of sex workers. Survey forms were collected from 510 participants (average age 29.5 years, 91% female) in and near Budapest over a period of six months. The results show that sex workers have manifold higher lifetime prevalence, 84.3%, of illicit drug use compared with the prevalence of the Hungarian general young adult population, 20.9%. In our sample, it was very rare to perform sex work for alcohol or drugs (5%) or for money to purchase alcohol or drugs (20%). Findings also indicate notable relationships between location-based sex work types and the drugs used. One-third of the street sex workers reported regular amphetamine use, but none reported regular cocaine use. On the contrary, no escorts reported regular amphetamine use, but 38% admitted to regular cocaine use. The location of sex work may pose an additional occupational health risk factor for substance use. Regular use of alcohol was twice as typical (64%) for sex workers who were employed in bars, in salons/parlors, or alone in rented apartments than it was for those working in other indoor locations (33–34%). Furthermore, 74% of street sex workers smoked tobacco compared with 17% of escorts. Problem drug use was roughly estimated by asking the participants about the main problem domains (medical, legal, social, etc.) from the Addiction Severity Index instrument. The most problematic drug was amphetamine, and the most frequent problem was prolonged or excessive drug use. These main findings may contribute to more focused planning of health intervention services, harm reduction measures, outreach programs, and specific treatments.

Prospects of social welfare work in Hungary and in Hajdú-Bihar county

The social care has been accompanying phenomenon of mankind from ancient times. An individual's social and economic processes that affect the lives basically forced the representatives of the powers to help those in need. The concepts used in social care today (equality, solidarity, etc.) have evolved over the centuries, shaped by political ideologies of the content. This wide range of people living in today's society for granted the fact that life is present in the social care system, which is necessary for security.