Work/Care Regimes in the Asia-Pacific: A Feminist Framework

Abstract

This chapter illustrates surveys of the contemporary work/care regimes of countries in the Asia-Pacific. It highlights the role and importance of women in providing care for children and the elderly, whether it be in their place of origin or in the places to which they migrate. Economists use a U-shaped curve to hypothesise the relationship between women's labour force participation and stages of economic development. Women in the Asia-Pacific bear major responsibility for reproductive labour. In addition to measuring women's labour force participation, it is also important to evaluate the employment outcomes for women who enter the paid workforce. The majority of the literature on work/care regimes, particularly in a comparative perspective, is based on OECD economies. The dominance of the family as the locus of care reflects the ideology of gendered familialism that prevails in all countries of the Asia-Pacific. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.