On June 4 in Turin, VITA will bring to the public debate the growing exodus from social work, through a discussion based on the latest issue of the magazine, Social workers: without them, we all lose, and on the Social Work Manifesto, promoted together with 75 major civil society organisations. The event will take place at 6:00 PM at Housing Giulia, via F. Cigna 14/L, Turin.

A silent crisis is affecting the Italian welfare system: it is becoming increasingly difficult to recruit and retain professionals such as educators, social workers, socio-health workers, low-threshold outreach operators, psychologists, care professionals, nurses, and healthcare assistants. Not by choice, but due to exhaustion, lack of recognition, and lack of prospects. Those who remain, often with effort and sometimes frustration, continue to play a crucial role for communities, vulnerable families, and both public and private services. But for how long?

If “social” means holding together what risks breaking apart — communities, relationships, services, and vulnerable individuals — it also means building an economic system that deserves to be understood and supported far beyond those working within it. Yet those who make this possible every day are increasingly under pressure: poorly recognised roles that are becoming harder and harder to retain.

This is described by editor-in-chief Stefano Arduini in his editorial in the May issue of VITA magazine, which includes all the data on the phenomenon and an in-depth investigation into the crisis of social work, titled “Lavoratori del sociale, fare senza non si può” (Social workers: we cannot do without them). He states: “Social economy actors are born with a clear vocation: to generate both social and economic development. It is called ‘social’ because the wealth it produces does not belong to an individual, but becomes shared heritage, value made available to a community and to future generations”.

From this awareness, the Social Work Manifesto was born, promoted by VITA together with 75 major third-sector and civil society organisations, published in the magazine with the aim of bringing back into public debate those who, every day, with competence and responsibility, make possible the civic pact that holds our communities together. The Manifesto is based on a simple conviction: defending caregivers means defending the well-being of society. It calls for recognising social work as skilled work—not merely vocational or gendered labour; ensuring fairer economic conditions for those working in care services; and finally considering welfare not as a cost to be reduced, but as one of the most strategic investments for the country’s future.

“To the root of this model lies a demand for social justice that has never disappeared, with all its ups and downs. Justice is not an abstract concept but is made of real interventions: it starts from people’s problems, proposes solutions, implements them, weaving and rebuilding social ties,” says Stefano Arduini, editor-in-chief of VITA. “It does so through a democratic practice of participation, placing at the centre not the isolated individual, but people and their relationships. The adjective ‘social’ is not a value label placed on top of balance sheets: it expresses a worldview, a political and economic vision. It is the way we decide what to do, how to do it, with whom, and why.”

To bring this reflection into the public sphere, VITA has chosen Turin, a city that in recent years has developed significant experiences in social innovation, proximity welfare, and urban regeneration, while also facing strong pressure on social spending and service sustainability.

The event will take place on June 4 at 6:00 PM at Housing Giulia, via F. Cigna 14/L, Turin, a community and social housing space hosting a dialogue between institutions, foundations, social organisations, and contributors to the magazine issue. Guests include representatives of the City of Turin, the Piedmont Region, and the third sector, among others: Michela Favaro (Deputy Mayor of Turin), Mario Calderini (spokesperson for Torino Social Impact), Roberta Delbosco (Head of Welfare and Territory-Care Area, Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Torino), Giusi Biaggi (President of the national consortium CGM), Alessia Minuz (President of social cooperative Koinè), Alice Caimi (social worker and public communicator), and Maria Gigantino (programme manager at the Giuliano Accomazzi social cooperative).

The event, titled Social workers: we cannot do without them, is free of charge and open to the public upon registration via the dedicated link.