Özet:

Purpose: This study deals with the working life experiences of single mothers working as cleaning and security personnel within the scope of CBWP (Community Benefit Work Program), which is one of the employee workfare practices. Within the scope of the research, single mothers working in CBWP, the reasons for starting working life, the difficulties they experience in the labor market, the jobs they work, and the strategies they develop while choosing a job form the basis of the study. Scope: The study consists of female workers working as single mothers within the scope of the Community Benefit Work Program by the Provincial Directorate of Zonguldak İŞKUR. In this context, interviews were conducted with 26 single mothers. Method: Phenomenological research design, one of the qualitative research designs, was used. In-depth interviews were conducted with the participants. Participants were asked to fill in the interviewer consent form. Audio recordings were taken with the consent of the participants. Audio recordings were deciphered and analyzed with the MAXQDA 2022 program. Results: As a result of, it is important to find that single mothers, at the beginning and during their working life exposed to gender and age discrimination and have to work in temporary, low-qualified, low-paid, long working hours and precarious jobs. To cope with this situation, single mothers tended to work temporarily within the scope of the CBWP created by the public, instead of working in the private sector. Thus, they worked in jobs with regular working hours, minimum wage, and insured jobs for a short time in which they felt safe. Same time, it was found that they experienced future anxiety because they worked temporarily. Working in the CBWP doesn't provide single mothers with qualifications and qualifications. The CBWP causes them to remain in a continuous cycle in the unemployment-social assistance-temporary employment triad. Originality: The work consists of single mothers emerging as a new risk group and female workers working in the Community Benefit Work Program, which is a temporary employment policy created by the state. It can contribute to qualitative studies on new risk groups and new ways of working.