Women hit hard by financial crisis

LUXEMBOURG:  Over-represented in precarious and low paid employment, women in manufacturing jobs have been badly hit by the financial crisis concluded women participating in a metalworker meeting on March 10, 2010.

Participants at the meeting heard how manufacturing workers in general have found themselves victims of a crisis far from their making. The particular impact on women workers is especially hard since women belong to the group of workers least paid and most often precariously employed. More and more families today rely on women’s incomes to survive and when women lose their jobs the impacts are felt by those they support. Massive numbers of male job losses have increased the pressure on families and therefore on the women who perform the majority of caring and support work.

The meeting also heard how jobs created via stimulus packages launched by governments are more likely to go to men as they are largely focused on construction and infrastructure improvements.

Seeking to highlight the situation of women in the metals and manufacturing sectors during the crisis the meeting examined what has happened to women’s employment and discussed what strategies should trade unions adopt to tackle these issues.

The meeting concluded by making the following recommendations for union action. In order to address the disadvantage experienced by women as a result of the crisis, unions should:

• Improve recognition of the overwhelming role played by women’s existing lack of economic power and participation in power structures in the disadvantage that women are experiencing during the crisis
• Demand that governments make an assessment of the impact of the crisis on women as well as analyze to what extent measures taken in response to the crisis are specifically benefitting women
• Demand that stimulus packages are designed to also benefit women workers and that measures be taken to ensure that women have a say in the development of responses to the crisis
• Maintain a strong focus on addressing existing discrimination and equal pay gaps and improving minimum wages despite the crisis
• Strengthen actions against precarious work now and in the future
• Make policy recommendations that promote the positive contribution to economic recovery that is to be gained by putting more money into women’s pockets
• Focus on training and education, especially for women
• Exchange strategies and experiences internationally

The meeting held in commemoration of International Women’s Day and was organized jointly by the European Metalworkers’ Federation and the International Metalworkers’ Federation.