Homeworking Women: Gender, Racism and Class at Work

"This book challenges existing research, such as it is, and provides new empirical evidence on the gendered and racialised nature of homeworking. Moreover, it is distinctive in that it also offers an agenda for action to improve the appalling conditions that many homeworkers were found to be experiencing. Homeworking Women is committed research at its best: scientifically sound but with clear policy implications drawn out." --Teresa Rees in Housing Studies, Vol 11 Homeworking Women provides an up-to-date overview of all types of home-based work. The authors argue that homeworking replicates wider divisions in the labor force and that its potential for improving women′s employment opportunities is therefore limited. Drawing on original research, they outline the advantages and disadvantages, the pay and conditions, and family situations for contemporary women homeworkers. Gender, racism, and ethnicity are shown to be key factors in constructing the homeworking labor force. The authors acknowledge the shared position that homeworkers occupy as women, as well as the clear differences experienced by clerical, manufacturing, and professional homeworkers, and question whether new technology in itself can be the way forward to a better paid, less onerous form of homeworking.