Research That Matters (January 17 - 20, 2008)

Purpose: One of the major myths about homeless people is that they do not work. Despite this belief all homeless participants in this study discussed a work history. Homeless people employ many strategies to meet their basic needs; often they rely on various labor activities. There is a wide range of labor activities in which homeless people engage. Some stereotypical examples are collecting cans, washing windows, spang'ing etc. This study seeks to go beyond surface conception and gain a deeper understanding of the daily work activities of homeless people.

Methods: This phenomenological study explored homeless people's labor experiences. The preliminary analysis began with a frame-by-frame analysis video footage and thorough review of field notes from the “Street Life on Mill” video ethnography project (29 homeless individuals). Through a review of the video footage and field notes any segment pertaining to homeless labor experiences were documented by time code or notebook page #. On a later date these specific narratives were intensively reviewed for purpose of documenting the homeless peoples' unique experiences. These experiences where then coded into preliminary thematic categories, and transcribed and imported into NUD*IST. These preliminary thematic categories were utilized to formulate questions about homeless people's labor experiences. At a later date in-depth interviews with 11 (different) homeless were conducted. The participants were recruited through two local street outreach programs. Each interviewee engaged in a 1-2 hour interview about their homeless experiences. These interviews were transcribed and added to the NUD*IST file for phenomenological data analysis.

Results: The analysis of the data revealed four major categories of labor activities: general, skilled, informal, and illegal. Most participants identified being involved in both formal and informal labor activities. General and skilled labor activities, or a ‘job', are formal labor activities. General labor activities identified by the homeless were activities such as; day labor, telemarketing, magazine sales, fairs, and food service. Skilled labor activities identified by the homeless were activities such as; construction, chef, artist, and mechanic. These jobs are often scarce, temporary/seasonal, low paying, lack medical benefits, and involve working long hours, physical repetitive tasks, in unhealthy working environments. Informal labor activities are the most common, labor activity reported. Informal methods include spang'ing, selling artwork, selling newspapers, playing music, odd chores, recycling, and dumpster-diving. The informal labor activities are often a less consistent source of income with no medical benefits. Homeless people practicing only informal labor often go long period without substantial and nutritional food. Alternatives to these legal survival labor activities include illegal informal labor activities such as dealing drugs, prostitution, and shoplifting. The use of illegal labor activities creates serious personal risks for homeless people.

Conclusion/Implications: Overall the myth of homeless people and work is unfounded, and some homeless people work hard for little pay or resolution of their circumstances. Further, homeless people often fulfill labor activities that others would prefer not to do. Social workers need to challenge the myth that homeless people don't want to work and provide access to stable/substantive job opportunities for homeless individuals.