http://www.genderanddevelopment.org Gender & Development 17:2 Work en-us Sun, 08 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT Sun, 08 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1402 http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1402 An important feature of contemporary globalisation has been the 'feminisation of agriculture' across the global south, as numerous new regions of export horticulture emerge to supply global retailers. Much literature details the poor conditions faced by women workers. This article details the formation and expansion of a highly globally integrated export horticulture sector in north-east Brazil, the reliance by farms on overwhelmingly female labour forces, and the role of the region's rural trade union in both representing workers generally, and, women workers in particular. It shows how women workers have become increasingly active within the trade union, and suggests that such outcomes are possible in other global regions of export horticulture. Author: Ben Selwyn Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1403 http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1403 Increasing numbers of corporations are vying to capture one of the largest untapped consumer markets - the world's poor - in ways that are not only economically profitable but socially responsible. One type of initiative that has gained increased traction is trading partnerships between multinational corporations and women's informal exchange networks, creating micro-enterprise opportunities that not only deliver soap and mobile phones, but financial empowerment for women. This article examines one such initiative - the trade in Avon cosmetics. It aims to determine the extent to which the initiative alleviates poverty, and fosters empowerment, among black women in South Africa. It suggests that as unlikely as cosmetics may seem as a vehicle for development, direct sales of beauty products can offer low risk opportunities for women to become entrepreneurs, and form a potentially promising route to gender-equitable poverty reduction. Author: Catherine Dolan Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1404 http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1404 This article looks at how women home-based workers are finding ways of organising for their rights and challenging poor labour conditions. It uses case studies from Bulgaria and Turkey to explore the factors that shape the form this organising takes, and some of the challenges and successes they have had. Based on these examples, the article attempts to draw some general conclusions that may be useful to other women and their supporters who are organising for improved working conditions. The article gives a brief overview of the nature of informal work, and outlines the significant place that home-based work occupies within the informal economy Author: Ruth Bergan Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1405 http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1405 Dramatic reductions in trade barriers during the past 10 years have caused unprecedented economic growth in India. Little is known about the impact of globalisation on the informal labour market, especially the impact on women. We interviewed women working in four occupations in Mumbai's informal labour market, gathering information about their daily lives, job responsibilities, and how the circumstances of their jobs have changed over the last 5 years. We construct a typical day in the lives of these women, discuss similarities and differences in the issues they face, and consider the policy implications of our results. Author: Ranjeeta Basu Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1406 http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1406 Giving small loans to women has become a mainstay in development practitioners' toolkits. Using data collected for Oxfam America's Saving for Change (SFC) project, this article argues that repayment of micro-credit cannot be used as a measure of micro-enterprise development per se. Instead, repayment signals the presence of peer pressure, loan sharing and remittance payments in the studied setting. This conclusion is borne through an ethnographic approach, which focuses on who accesses loans, how people who access loans use them, and how borrowers mobilise resources for repayment. The research indicates that future studies should use ethnography in tandem with other approaches to evaluation, and concludes with implications for an agenda seeking to forward women's workers rights. Author: Amelia Duffy-Tumasz Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1407 http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1407 Two hundred and twenty-two working fathers with working wives and 246 working mothers with working husbands were randomly sampled and interviewed to ascertain the circumstances under which fathers in Uganda are getting involved in child-care tasks (which traditionally in Uganda are a women's domain) as a result of increasing maternal involvement in paid employment. Paternal confidence and motivation, access to paternity leave, shorter work time requirements, harmony in marital relationships, and higher education levels, have a positive influence on fathers' involvement in child-care while wife's employment and wealth have a negative influence. Author: Apollo Nkwake Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1408 http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1408 Within current research on African health worker emigration, relatively few studies have explored how health workers themselves see international migration and its impact on their lives, and how gender norms influence these perceptions. This article draws on research aiming to examine these issues, conducted between June and August 2008. Ghanaian nurses' views of migration are highly influenced by gendered notions of women prioritising family responsibilities over personal desires. However, these ideas are being called into question by the growing numbers of women who may consider migrating as skilled professionals, and attach considerable importance to their professional interests. Author: Joanne Nowak Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1409 http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1409 Domestic service continues to be one of the principal means for poor women and girls to earn a living. Yet, household workers do not have the same legal protection and employment rights enjoyed by other workers. This article examines changes in the sector in Mexico over the past 20 years. During this time, organisations supporting household workers have struggled to keep going against the odds, and to make this 'invisible' work visible to legislators and policymakers. Also, social reproduction - the work of caring for people within the home - has gone global, and an increasing number of Mexican women are migrating to work in households in the North. In this context, the International Labour Organisation has finally decided to begin a consultation process that is expected to lead to a convention protecting labour rights in domestic service worldwide. In this article I will highlight some of the changes in working conditions in Mexico, the continuing demands of household workers, and the ways in which they are organising at a local and national level, and internationally. Author: Marilyn Thomson Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1410 http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1410 In its 2005 White Paper on Gender Equality, China announced that its legal system offers women workers complete protection of their rights and interests. However, this strong political declaration has to face an uncomfortable 'reality check'. New forms of gender discrimination at the workplace have emerged in more subtle ways, and usually under the disguise of protecting women, as authorities have outlawed traditional types of prejudice based on gender. This article draws on a survey of opinions in 25 cities about women in the workplace, to demonstrate how pervasive attitudes to men and women in China have systemically worked against women at work in the new reform era. The article goes on to examine the effectiveness of existing gender equality laws, and identifies their weaknesses. In China promoting gender equality is a course of promoting long-lasting changes in society. In the final part of the article, the authorsmake concrete suggestions to legislators, judiciary, and international donors on remedying workplace inequalities in China. Author: Sadie Yang Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1411 http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/display.asp?K=002J1411 This article explores the issue of women providing unpaid care for family members living with HIV in South Africa and Zimbabwe. State policies rely on women providing home-based care, in the context of failing health systems. This has the effect of impoverishing women, and reinforcing gender stereotypes. Recommendations will be given on how to make policies more gender-sensitive. Author: Anesu Makina Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT