Söndrade kroppar, invasiv bemanning och prekära anställningar. Intersektionella perspektiv på försörjning, lönearbete och social reproduktion

Abstract

While wage labor has been celebrated as a means of women’s emancipation within Swedish gender equality policy, unequal workplaces, the prevalence of sexual harassment, precarious working conditions, and work-related health issues indicate that wage labor also entails serious problems for many women. This article examines how unstable working conditions and work organizations built on precarious labor and flexible staffing strategies impact women’s well-being. Through feminist intersectional perspectives on social reproduction, the analysis sheds light on the risks posed by current work models to workers’ health, work capacity and liveability. The article is based on survey responses among retail workers. Their responses show that working life in retail is characterized not only by precarious employment conditions but also by invasive staffing strategies. The consequences are precarious livelihoods, stress, and limited possibilities to leisure time and social relationships. The lack of opportunities to recover highlights how workers’ bodies bear the brunt of companies’ pursuit of precarization. Building on theories of social reproduction and an analysis of working conditions in retail, we call for a deeper examination of the role of wage labor in feminist strategies.