The Political Economy of Post-COVID Life and Work in the Global South: Pandemic and Precarity

Description

This edited volume highlights cascading effects of the pandemic and lockdown on informal economies of varied countries in the Global South. Uneven development after colonization, imperialism, and externally influenced conflict have caused many countries in the formally colonized or semi-occupied countries in the world to lag behind in wealth accumulation, investments in manufacturing, and technology. The fact that these countries were dragged into world market dynamics on an equal footing with already developed countries exacerbated these inequalities and saw the rapid burgeoning of informal economies. COVID-19 and the lockdown of western countries unravelled global production chains, resulting in hordes of workers in the Global South losing their livelihoods. Even people engaged in traditionally locally-bound economic activities, such as domestic work and sex work, found their livelihoods disappear. This volume brings together case studies from India, Brazil, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka to analyze global economic disruptions as they affected informal sector workers who were already largely invisible within state development policies. The chapters question whether existing models of neoliberal development are still conducive within the post-pandemic Global South as it grapples with rebuilding economies, livelihoods, institutions, and systems of governance.  Acknowledgments Contents List of Contributors List of Tables 1 Neoliberalism, Informality and Precarity Workers; Right to Protest and Unionization Informal Economies, Urban Poverty and Health Disparities Road Map Conclusion Bibliography 2 The Covid-19 Pandemic: Narratives of Informal Women Workers in Indian Punjab Introduction Review of Related Literature Gender and Multidimensional Poverty Informal Employment in India: A Gendered Analysis Methodology Key Findings and Discussion Heightened Food Insecurity at the Household Level Conclusion References 3 When Hammer Misses the Nail: Health Aspirations and Internal Migration in India Introduction The Capabilities Approach, Health and Agency Measuring Aspirations Migration and Health Aspirations India and Public Health—Between Method and Madness Low Health Aspirations and a Compromised Future—Rural Households in Nuapada Conclusion References 4 Female Labor Workforce and Precarity in India’s Construction Sector Introduction Fieldwork in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai Female Labor Workforce in India Precarity and Informality Lived Experiences of Precarity, Informality, and Human Security The Limits of Government to Minimize Precarity of Construction Workers: The Building and Other Construction Workers Act Before and during COVID-19 Conclusion Bibliography 5 Diminishing Constructions: The Work of Exposure in Pandemic Times Diminishment Productive Exposures? Conclusion: Corona Exposures References 6 Women Workers at the Forefront of COVID-19: A Roadmap for Recovery and Resilience in India Introduction Context Conceptual Framing Background Under-Resourced and Gendered Public Systems Community-Based Frontline Workers: Concerns and Struggles Impact of COVID-19 on Frontline Workers Global Evidence Unfair Conditions of Work for CB-FLWs Unpaid and Underpaid Public Service A Feminist Roadmap from the Global South Recognition and Representation Reimagining Macroeconomic Policies from a Feminist Lens Recovery and Resilience Conclusion Bibliography 7 Gendering Precarity in Postcolonial Sites: Health Securitization and Sexual Labor in India’s Commercial Sex Trade Industry Introduction Precarious Labor and Racialized-Gendered Absences Gendering Precarity: Feminist Critiques Precarity of Sex Work The Health Securitization Analytic for Precarity: The Contamination-Invisibility Nexus The Case of HIV/AIDs Securitization: Contamination based Conflictual Politics Invisibility: The Other Side of the Contamination Coin Concluding Thoughts Bibliography 8 Ready Made Garment (RMG) Factories During the Pandemic: Mapping the Effects in Bangladesh Introduction Impact of Pandemic on the Garments Industry of Bangladesh Announcing and Receiving of Stimulus Package Closing and Reopening of Factories Order Cancellation and Reinstatement of Orders RMG Export Workers Losing Jobs Methodology Data Collection and Dissemination Data Presentation and Discussion Factory Distribution Operational Status Employment and Capacity Utilization Diversity in Production Limitations Conclusion and Recommendation Annex 1: Questions Asked During the Surveys Rapid Survey Phase 1 and 2 Phase 2 Additionally Covered the Following Issues Bibliography 9 Demoralizing Impacts of the COVID-19 on the Bangladesh Ready-Made Garment (RMG) Supply Chain Introduction Evolution of the Bangladesh RMG and CSR Methodology Origin of the Crisis Dominating Role of Buyers Struggling Suppliers Vulnerability of Workers Response from the Government and Other Agencies Lessons Learnt References 10 Wither Labor and Human Rights? Precarious Work and Informal Economies in the Post- COVID-19 Global South Global Networks; Global Fallouts Sri Lanka and Subcontracting Labor and Human Rights Education-Pre-Pandemic Pandemic Waves and Global Factory Workers Wither Labor and Human Rights Within Global Production??? What About Occupational Health? Occupational Health, Labor Rights, and Human Rights Education Conclusion Bibliography 11 Supermarket Workers: Discovered and Uncovered During Covid-19 Pandemic Introduction Precarious Work in Brazilian Supermarkets Impacts of the Pandemic Crisis on Work in Supermarkets Final Considerations References Index