Sammanfattning

Since 2001 when Lesotho embraced the neoliberal African Growth and Opportunities Act that offers preferential access to the US market, its garment industry has expanded dramatically to become the nation's leading employer. Elsewhere, large-scale employment of women in low-paid factory jobs has entailed spatial restructuring of gender and age relations. Lesotho is a distinctive context, with socio-spatial relations historically adjusted to male labour migration, high levels of contemporary male unemployment and alarming AIDS prevalence. Based on semi-structured interviews with 40 female factoryworkers and 37 dependents, this article applies a relational time-space analysis to explore how financial and spatio-temporal aspects of factory employment articulate to alter women's relationships with those for whom they have culturally determined responsibilities: their children, those suffering from ill health and their (generally rural) home communities. The analysis highlights that such employment is not merely adding to women's responsibilities, but transforming how they are able to undertake social reproduction, as practical, social and emotional roles are converted to largely financial obligations.

Nyckelord

social reproduction; garment sector; Lesotho; time-space; neoliberalism

Publicerad i

Gender, Place and Culture
2015, Volym: 22, nummer: 3, sidor: 363-382
Utgivare: ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD

SLU författare

• Hajdu, Flora

  • Institutionen för stad och land, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

Globala målen

SDG5 Uppnå jämställdhet och alla kvinnors och flickors egenmakt
SDG8 Verka för varaktig, inkluderande och hållbar ekonomisk tillväxt, full och produktiv sysselsättning med anständiga arbetsvillkor för alla


UKÄ forskningsämne

Kulturgeografi
Genusstudier


Publikationens identifierare

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/0966369X.2013.855712

Permanent länk till denna sida (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/66635