The Marginal Among the Invisible: Women in the Informal Economy

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Nicaraguan and Malawian speakers will share their experience of organising women domestic workers, street vendors and home-based workers, and to tell us why supporting them should be a priority for those concerned about development, labour rights and gender and economic justice. Speakers: Patricia Estrada, Movement of Working and Unemployed Women Maria Elena Cuadra (MEC) and Faith Shaba, Malawian Union of Informal Workers (MUFIS). When we think about employment we generally focus on formal jobs, making millions of workers invisible. Many workers are self-employed in small unregistered businesses and also wage-earners in cleaning, catering, commerce and other sectors of the informal economy, where economic activities are not regulated nor protected by the State. As unjust trade regimes and structural adjustment become commonplace the dimension of the informal economy is growing across the globe, including in the UK and other European countries. In countries in sub-Saharan Africa, the informal economy can be as high as 90% of the total workforce. Women are overrepresented among workers with non-standard employment arrangements and have indeed joined the informal economy in large numbers. In early November women leaders from the Nicaraguan Movement of Working and Unemployed Women Maria Elena Cuadra (MEC) and from the Malawian Union for the Informal Sector (MUFIS) are touring the UK to share their experience of organising women domestic workers, street vendors and home-based workers and to tell us why supporting them should be a priority for those concerned about development, labour rights and gender and economic justice.