"women's work" ranting

[cangetmad]

Patricia Hewitt, Minister for Trade and Industry, and also, as a pin-money job, Minister for Women:

"[W]omen are still more often found in low-status, low-paid jobs with little opportunity for career development and can find it harder to get promotion than men."

Comments

[andypop]

Whatever happened to Wages For Housework, anyway?

[cangetmad]

They're here and here!

It's right, you know. The answer has to be to force the signifiers of esteem (sadly, mostly money) onto women's work. That would be the basis for change, because we know the current methods aren't working.

[andypop]

Oh, OK. I wonder if the UK group still exists, though? Couldn't find them on the net, if so. I remember that they were persona non grata to orthodox feminists in the 70s/early 80s because they had close links with the English Collective of Prostitutes, who were considered gender traitors.

That would be the basis for change

Yep. And if the men charged in and took all the jobs, well at least you'd see men doing housework & looking after babies & the like. Which would effect a few changes in itself.

[cangetmad]

It's not at all that I don't think men should be working in childcare and so on, by the way. I think it's pretty important that some do, and I think there are damaging stereotypes that stop those that want to from doing it now- it's just that I was on a "plain feminism" rather than a "gender revolution" rant when I wrote that. I should footnote my rants better, really.

I don't think there is a current British Wages for Housework group. Didn't know that about them and the ECP, though. Interesting, because they're both groups talking about the current realities for (largely working-class and marginalised, rather than "corporate ladder") women. Hmmm.