Critical Social Inquiry 0189 - Gender and Work

The last three decades have seen the rapid integration of markets across national borders. This has been accompanied by dramatic changes in the organization of production and in employment conditions. In both high- and low-income countries, these processes have led to profound changes in the distribution and location of women's work. This course focuses on the nature of labor market transformations that have resulted from economic restructuring, neoliberal policies and reorganization of production in both high and low income countries during the past three decades, and their significance for women workers. The course takes a comparative perspective that points out the contradictory tendencies at work and emphasizes the shared concerns of workers across the globe. Among the questions that will be addressed in the course are the following: What does the 'feminization' of the labor force mean? What are the main trends leading to labor market informalization? What are the implications of these trends? Can we generalize across countries? What are the gender dimensions of these processes? Is there a role for government policy, international labor standards, as well as social and political activism across borders in raising wages, promoting equal opportunity, fighting discrimination in the workplace, and securing greater control over working hours and conditions?

Power, Community and Social Justice Quantitative Skills Writing and Research Students are expected to spend at least six to eight hours a week of preparation and work outside of class time.