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The service relationship has a bad press in the field of social action and social work. It is suspected of corrupting relations with service users. These worries coincide with fears expressed by pioneering authors like Gorz. With the advent of Fordism, industrial society reached a compromise between social justice and economic performance. The service society coincided with an increase in inequalities brought about by dogmatism about the market. However, there is no economic determinism in this state of affairs. On this point, the author has a different point of view from Gorz. He emphasizes the variety of institutional constructions within a service society. The first part of the article establishes a general framework. The second examines the specific forms taken by the service relationship in personal care, and the analytical framework specific to the field.