Failure to center gendered dynamics of labor policy guarantees serial policy failure and perpetual exclusion of black women
Cookson ’23, (Tara Patricia, Assistant Professor of Gender, Development, and Global Public Policy @ University of British Columbia, Nina Ebner, Doctorate @ University of British Columbia, author, feminist geographer, Yardain Amron, University of Columbia, Canada, Graduate Degree in Human Geography, Kritika Kukreja, University of British Columbia, Canada, “Social protection systems and gender: A review of the evidence”, Global Social Policy, p. 8-9, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/14680181231180507 // MZ)
Within the perspective that approaches gender and social protection systems through a labour lens, there is also a focus on the gendered dynamics of informality, decent work, and the ‘future of work’. One study that we reviewed examines the role of labour unions in mobilizing around women domestic workers’ access to decent work in Bangladesh, including full access to the national social protection system, inclusive of contributory social security (Ghosh, 2021). The study found that the unions’ focus on national legislation and policy bore some fruit by enabling domestic workers to form collectives, and guaranteeing maternity leave for domestic workers, although implementation of these rights still lags. Others consider rising automation and gig work, finding that while many of the gendered challenges facing social protection systems aren’t novel or unique to ‘future of work’ trends, there is a real risk that these trends exacerbate pre-existing gender inequalities, and as such, policymakers would do well to adapt social protection system design to reflect these (Bastagli and Hunt, 2020). The third main approach we identified suggests that social protection systems should align with human rights principles. Sepúlveda Carmona (2017) argues that the principles of equality and non-discrimination can be better utilized to overcome wide and persistent coverage gaps for women, including through application to various system components and mechanisms such as personal identification systems and targeting mechanisms. In South Africa, Matthews (2020) applies a human rights perspective to the conceptualization and implementation of the national social protection system as it interacts with labour policy. Focusing in particular on the concept of non-discrimination, the article finds that gendered and racial discrimination in the labour market perpetuates the exclusion of Black South African women from accessing social protection.