Third ISA Forum of Sociology (July 10-14, 2016)

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Transnational Migration of Care Workers: Policy Challenges and Outcomes

RC19 Sociology of Poverty, Social Welfare and Social Policy (host committee)

Language: English

Around the world, demographic ageing, increased women’s paid employment and social policy reforms have led to increased outsourcing and commodification of care. This in turn has reinforced “global care chains” that draw women from the poorer countries into employment as care workers in wealthier ones, highlighting the changing global context for care and migration and critical roles of government policies in structuring and managing care migration. 
This two-part session focuses on the role of government policies in managing the global demands and resulting flows of care workers. We focus on Asia Pacific, the region adjoined by the Pacific Ocean, including North and South East Asia, Oceania, and the Americas. We ask: 

• How are different countries managing the global demands and flows of care workers?
• What are the challenges in current policy formulation in regards to entry, employment and outcomes of care workers?
• What are the current challenges in relation to the rights of migrant care workers under their jurisdiction?
• What do we know about their families and the settlement and other social and economic outcomes of foreign care workers?
• What are the pathways to care work in the context of widening socio-economic inequalities?

Posters: