Avaliação do trabalho social habitacional: narrativas de profissionais de uma empresa terceirizada em Fortaleza-CE

Abstract

This dissertation critically analyzes the social work carried out within the scope of the social housing policy in the municipality of Fortaleza, Brazil, with emphasis on the narratives of professionals working through a private company outsourced to implement social actions in housing developments. The work takes place within the framework of a Public-Private Partnership (PPP), established between the public administration and the company, highlighting the effects of outsourcing on the operationalization of social work. The investigation starts from the recognition of the importance of social work as a means of mediation between the State and society, while questioning the impacts of institutional fragmentation and the lack of intersectoral coordination on the effectiveness of public policies aimed at dignified housing. The research adopts a qualitative approach, grounded in the dialectical method and based on content analysis according to Minayo (2012). It is anchored in a critical evaluative perspective, seeking to understand the limits and possibilities of social work as an emancipatory practice. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with four social workers who operate directly in the territories of the housing developments. The empirical focus allows for an understanding of the challenges faced in daily practice, particularly regarding the precarious working conditions, the fragility of the relationship between the implementing teams and the managing bodies, and the invisibility of the educational and emancipatory dimensions of social work. The analysis revealed two main axes: (i) social participation as a means of emancipation and strengthening the autonomy of beneficiary families; and (ii) the discontinuity and fragmentation of actions as obstacles to full social inclusion.The professionals’ testimonies indicate that, although social work is recognized as a potential space for community mobilization and citizenship building, it is constantly crossed by market logics, bureaucratic targets, and fragmented practices that weaken its transformative potential. The findings show that outsourcing social actions, although a recurrent strategy in contemporary public management, imposes significant limitations on the effectiveness of housing policy, making social work vulnerable to contractual ruptures, action discontinuity, and lack of intersectoral planning.The dissertation concludes by emphasizing the urgency of valuing the critical participation of families, consolidating integrated public policies, and overcoming the assistentialist logic that still permeates housing policy, proposing paths toward the construction of fairer, more coordinated practices truly committed to social rights.