Fair care? On the prospects of (and limits to) implementing ‘fairness’ in live-in care
Abstract
Brokering agencies are key agents in shaping the working conditions in live-in care. Many of them have increased their lobbying activities to counter the persistent allegation of prevalent exploitative practices in live-in home care. In contrast, this chapter analyses the strategies of a care agency that tries to create ‘fairer’ conditions for live-in care workers. The authors draw on the ‘Geographies of Justice’ framework, a theoretical perspective that builds on feminist, anti-capitalist and anti-colonial critiques to address spatial inequalities. It places particular emphasis on the fact that concepts of justice are embedded in historical and geographical contexts. Based on this framework, the chapter explores how ‘fairness’ is implemented in live-in care. The chapter discusses strategies that allow workers to claim time off, to mitigate the prisoner-of-love dilemma, to alleviate the burden of being away from home and to counter the problem of ‘brain drain’. In conclusion, it reflects the potential of and the limitations to ‘fairness’ in live-in care.
Keywords
- live-in care work
- labour geography
- fairness
- justice
- Switzerland
Aulenbacher, Brigitte / Lutz, Helma / Palenga, Ewa / Schwiter, Karin (eds.) 2024: Home Care for Sale: The Transnational Brokering of Senior Care in Europe. London: Sage, pp. 249-260.
Authors
Links
Publication information
Institutions:
Authors:
Karin Schwiter, Anahi Villalba Kaddour
Editors:
Karin Schwiter, Brigitte Aulenbacher, Helma Lutz, Ewa Palenga-Möllenbeck
Publisher:
SAGE Studies in International Sociology
Languages:
English
City:
London
Year:
2024
Themes:
Disciplines:
Research labels:
Care
Work – carrer – professions
Police – justice – coercion – jail
Subjects:
Geography
Genres:
Book chapter