CONFERENCE - Call for Abstracts: Women and Work in the Service Sector in Asia and Oceania, 21-23 June, 2010 [25.09.2009]
Gender, Work and Organization
6th international interdisciplinary conference
21st – 23rd June, 2010
Call for abstracts
Women and Work in the Service Sector in Asia and Oceania
Stream Convenors:
Kaye Broadbent, Griffith University, Australia
Fang Lee Cooke, Manchester Business School, University of Manchester, UK
Glenda Strachan, Griffith University, Australia.
The Asia and Oceania regions are socially, politically and economically dynamic. Countries in the regions have undergone rapid transformation from colonies to economic powerhouses. The regions have produced women presidents and prime ministers. They have also attracted an increasing number of transnational migrants who are contributing to the economic and social development of the regions. The rising significance of the Asia and Oceania regions and their economic role in the global context highlights the need for detailed analysis of the jobs, occupations and work experiences of women in these regions. Women are significant contributors to all facets of development in the regions, yet at the same time face the pressures of combining their economic contributions with their domestic and family responsibilities.
There is diversity and disparity between the experiences of women in each of the countries but while there is difference in the degree, similarity exists as uniformly women are worse off than men on a range of employment measures including access to secure employment, wages, conditions, workplaces free from harassment, safe workplaces and access to training and promotion including overcoming the phenomena of the ‘glass ceiling’ and ‘sticky floor’. There are also disparities between women – some countries in the regions have produced women in senior leadership positions in business and politics, yet these same countries also have a high percentage of women comprising the poorest sections of the community and naturally the demands of these different constituent groups differ.
This stream seeks to explore the nature and diversity of women’s work in a variety of service sector industries and occupations in the Asia and Oceania regions. By exploring the specificities of individual national contexts and of specific industries and occupations, the stream will also examine the similarities in women’s experiences and the barriers women face in their working lives. Experiences such as in Korea and Japan where women are disproportionately represented in casual and temporary employment, in India women are overwhelmingly employed in the ‘informal’ sector of the economy. Yet in countries where the state has taken a positive role in promoting women’s employment, gender inequity and barriers remain. The issue of occupational segregation ensures women in China, Japan, Australia and New Zealand are over-represented in education, child care, health care, finance, retail and hospitality.
The experiences of women in the service sector in the Asia and Oceania regions merits more detailed examination. We are seeking papers which address issues which are not readily available or accessible in the English language literature. In addition, because of the limited literature available in this area, we are especially keen to receive contributions examining the Pacific Islands.
Papers in the stream will address women in service sector industries and occupations in countries in the Asia and Oceania regions. Issues might include:
- The applicability of western (or Anglophone/European) focused feminist/gender analysis for understanding women and work in the Asia and Oceania regions
- The formal or the informal service sector
- Public or private service sector experiences
- Women in either highly paid or low paid service sector employment
- The impact of the global financial crisis, privatisation, marketisation, immigration, deregulation, ethnicity, religion on women working in service sector occupations
- Career development of women professionals and managers
- Women expatriates working in these regions
- The role of unions and union organising in service sector occupations compared with the service sector and female workforce generally
- Underemployment of women in the service sector
Contrary to the burgeoning body of studies and debates that gender and employment issues have generated in the European and North American regions over the last two decades, similar issues in the Asia and Oceania regions have not attracted the same attention. As such, the nature and characteristics of women’s experiences of work in these regions remains little understood, as well as the challenges they may face as individuals and occupational and social groups within and across national boundaries. The intention of this stream is therefore to address this gap by generating debates and discussions amongst academics and practitioners who are interested in these regions and issues.
Abstracts of approximately 500 words (ONE page, single spaced, excluding references) are invited by 1st November 2009 with decisions on acceptance to be made by stream leaders within one month. Prospective contributions will be independently refereed. New and young scholars with 'work in progress' papers are welcomed. Please note that due to restrictions of space, multiple submissions by the same author will not be timetabled. EMAIL a copy of your abstract to: k.broadbent@griffith.edu.au Abstracts should include FULL contact details, including your name, institutional affiliation, mailing address, and e-mail address. State the title of the stream to which you are submitting your abstract.