“Under contemporary globalization, it has undergirded the ‘global care chain’, wherein women from poor countries migrate to richer countries to care for children and the elderly. That elder-care institutions and private households should be staffed by women from poor countries at low wages is but part of the logic (or ideology) of contemporary capitalism (Moghadam, 2021).”

What concept is highlighted?

Here Moghadam (2021) touches on the fact that under capitalism, women’s domestic labour is undervalued and made largely invisible, yet simultaneously “global care chains” have developed that monetize the work and incentivise women from peripheral regions under the capitalist world system to relocate away from their home and loved ones to provide this undervalued care for vulnerable citizens (children, the elderly, etc.) of core countries. In short, the women from dominated nations are just yet another resource to be extracted for the benefit of 'developed' nations.

Why this quotation?

Intrigued by the idea that while work in the ‘global care chain’ may provide women from peripheral, dominated regions a living that could not be found in their home countries, such a situation denies these women the opportunity to provide this invisible labour for their own families, which while unpaid and often underappreciated, often plays an important role in the cohesion of the family unit and the emotional wellbeing of children (Loo, 2024).

Similarly, interested in the fact that states, contrary to ideas that globalization diminishes their influence (Moghadam, 2021), actively encourage this ‘global care chain’ through immigration pathways, educational structuring, and Labour Export Policies (LEPs) that push women towards emigrating/immigrating for such work (Loo, 2024), such as the massive recruitment programs funded by Canadian provinces to entice Filipino nurses to immigrate and fulfil labour shortages (Dubois, 2023).

Question derived from reading?

Is the transformation of what used to be good jobs for male providers under more protectionist and Keynesian economic policies into what is considered ‘women’s work’ (that being work that is irregular, precarious, and non-unionized) (Moghadam, 2021) creating more camaraderie amongst male and female workers in their class struggle, or furthering misogynistic radicalization?

Connections?

As a teenager, I volunteered at a local senior’s home for a few years, while there, it was hard to ignore the distinct ethnic divides that existed among the residents of the senior’s home and the staff, with the residents being overwhelming white and the nurses and professional caretakers being overwhelmingly Filipina women. During my time there, I got to know one Filipino caretaker in particular, and heard the long process of her settling in Canada, qualifying for permanent residency, and in turn finally being allowed to bring her children over from the Philippines. I find it ironic that when my partner (a citizen of New Zealand) applied to gain permanent residency through their relationship to me, it took all of a few months to be approved, and throughout that time they continued to work for their employer back in NZ, not helping to fulfil any urgent roles in the Canadian healthcare system.

I also was also reminded of a film I had seen, "Inay (Mama)", which follows the children of Filipino carers that immigrated to Canada under the “Live-in caregiver program”. An immigration pathway where workers must complete 24 months of live-in work within three years of arrival in Canada before permanent residency process/sponsoring relatives back in the Philippines can even begin and where the full process of setting and bringing over family members can take five to ten years. Much of the film touches on the mental health struggles and strained familial relationships that have followed both the mothers and children well into adulthood after years of separation while the mothers worked and settled in Canada.

Citations:
Moghadam, V. M. (2021). What was globalization? Globalizations, 18(5), 695-706. https://doi.org/10.1080/14747731.2020.1842095

Loo, T. (Director). (2024). Inay (Mama) [Film]. Knowledge Network.
https://www.knowledge.ca/program/916a0876-923c-43ed-ad69-499c59ff74f4

Dubois, S. (September 8, 2023). Inside the recruitment pipeline bringing nurses from
the Philippines to Canada. Radio-Canada.
https://ici.radiocanada.ca/rci/en/news/2007262/inside-the-recruitment-pipelinebringing-nurses-from-the-philippines-to-canada

“The Philippines is a country where you’re not meant to stay there, your education is you’re going to be working abroad… Since the 70’s, Filipino families have seen the benefits, like the material benefits, of having a relative working abroad. Although it was meant to be a temporary solution in the 1970’s, it is impossible at this stage for the Philippines to not export its people.”

-Charlene Sayo (Loo, 2024)