by: helen l. safa presented by: rebecca welsch. economic growth 1950-1980 total production...
Post on 19-Dec-2015
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Economic Growth 1950-1980 Total production increased 5 times Per capita production doubled Manufacturing output increased 6 times Population more than doubled
• Moved to urban areas Decline in agricultural employment Internal migration: women and young adults Decline in fertility, mortality and infant mortality Increase in life expectancy– over 60 years old Household size decreased Women headed households increased 20% Higher education and employment levels increased for
women
Causes of Economic Crisis 1980s Causes of Crisis
• Rising prices of imports • Rise in interest rates on foreign debt
• US$410 billion in 1987
• Decline quantity and price of exports• Specifically oil, agricultural products and minerals
Outcomes of Crisis• Poverty increase• Unemployment rate increased by 48%• Real wages declined by 12-18%• Countries forced to implement structural adjustment
programs
Structural Adjustment Programs
Designed by International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World BankCut government expendituresImprove trade balanceReduce foreign debt
IssuesMore hardship for the poorDevaluate currencyIncrease in inflation and cost of livingEliminate government subsidiesCuts in government expendituresFreeze on real wages
Economic Crisis and Women Women join the workforce
Help with rising cost of livingMake up for men’s decreased wagesWomen in labor force went from 32% in 1980 to 38%
in 1988 Demands for women for export-led industries “The increased economic importance of women,
coupled with the rise of female-headed household, is challenging the myth of the man as the principal breadwinner in Latin American and Caribbean households”Two-wage-earner family
Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico Export-led industrialization policies
• Limits self-sustaining growth Women are replacing men Dominican Republic:
• 135,000 workers in 385 firms of the free-trade zones
• Leading exports in Caribbean Basic Initiative
• Lowest cost of labor in Caribbean
Cuba Socialist economy
State is in control of most production○ Focus on sugar exports○ Import-substitution industrialization
Full male employment Economic crisis in 1990
Trade with other socialist countries declined greatlyDecline in male breadwinners—even with full male
employment Women are not replacing men in the workforce
Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Cuba Contribution to household budget
Weakened male authority in houseChallenge the myth of male breadwinner in
the home Supplementary wage earners: working
women who still depend primarily on male’s earningsPoorly paid, unstable jobs
4 Fundamental Factors for Women’s Wages State policy Access to resources Household structure Gender ideology
State Policy: Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico
State’s principal role “create a favorable climate for foreign investment through investment incentive and the control of wages and labor”
Export manufacturing firms are multinational (not domestic producers)Workers typically get minimum wage– if
quota met
State Policy Continued: Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico
Labor ControlDominican Republic: prohibit unionsPuerto Rico: co-optation of laborBoth: weak labor movements, making
workers more vulnerable Structural adjustment
More unemploymentLower real wages
State Policy Continued: Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico
Dominican Republic: higher unemployment for womenWomen in labor force: 9.3% in 1960, 38% in
1991 Puerto Rico: higher unemployment for
menWoman’s salary is at least 40% of total
house income Women are major economic contributors
State Policy: Cuba Actively incorporate women in labor
More educational opportunitiesSupport services
○ Day care centers, laundries, transportation to workplaces, shopping plans
Puestos preferentes (positions where women have preference): affirmative-action plan
Family Code: encourage couples to share household responsibilities
Women labor force increase from 15.9% in 1970 to 34.8% in 1990
Access to Resources: Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico
Capitalist: depend on private sectors Nearly all production workers are women,
management is menPaternalistic setting
Access to Resources: Dominican Republic Worse wages and working conditions in
export manufacturing plantsWorkers quit instead of organizingUnions are recently legalWomen receive little help from government
More women hired for exporting because they are cheaperMen unable to find jobsMen not considered economic provider
Access to Resources: Puerto Rico Unionized plants
International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGWU) does little to defend workers
Union workers dropped 20% in 1970 to 6% in 1988
More dependence on transfer paymentsReduce women’s dependence on male’s
wageIncrease woman’s dependence on state
Access to Resources: Cuba State power is stronger than capitalist
State employs most citizens Women guaranteed:
Equal pay for equal workMaternity benefitsPaid vacationsSupport services
Occupational segregationWomen in social services sectors
Access to Resources: Cuba Continued 1976: demand increased productivity,
decrease costsMore occupational segregationWomen kept in inferior jobs: defending male
as bread winner
Household Economy: Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico
Women have more authority in family because of their incomeWomen have a base to resist male
dominanceMore equal relationships
Household Economy: Dominican Republic Dominican Republic: 80% of women still
see husband as the head of the householdYoung children and more of them
○ Most critical stage economically
Women on the jobLess protectionNo transfer payments
Afraid to challenge male dominance
Household Economy: Cuba Housing shortages
Double up in homes: 41% have at least 3 generations in 1 house○ More common among female head of
households
Extended families have higher incomesMore people to contribute
Teenage pregnancies contribute to marital instability
Household Economy
Women head of householdTypically younger, separated at least once
○ Exception: Puerto RicoReluctant to remarryJob is a reason to remain singleGenerally poorer due to less wage earners in
homePuerto Rico: kinshipsDominican Republic: leave children with families in
rural area
Household Economy Economic support and authority are connected
Single mothers do not want support from dadOver ½ of married employed Cuban women make
decisions with husband Men’s household responsibilities have
changed littleTraditional gender ideologyWomen are breadwinners while continuing
domestic rolesFamily survival shifted from men to women
Challenges myth of male breadwinner
Gender Ideology
Traditional: Productive/reproductive roles Public/Private split
Spanish Casa/calle distinctionNot followed by poor and subordinated ethnic
groups Breaking of traditional gender ideology
Women workingRising divorce ratesTeenage pregnancies
Is it just these countries?
Standing says “global feminization” goes farther than the Caribbean area• International competition increasing• Growth of export manufacturing• Labor deregulation• Structural adjustment
Benefits industrial countries (U.S.) Relocate production for money Weakens labor but strengthens capital
Are the spheres eroding?MAYBE
Women still subordinated
• Occupational segregation replaced home confinement
NO Lack of change in
household chores• Paid job is
considered part of domestic role
Women do not recognize themselves as breadwinners
YES Women more
visible in the public sphere
Marital instability Women head of
households
The male breadwinner myth is still considered intact because of the patriarchic system that is embedded in the workplace and the state– which profits from women’s subordination