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Going underground in South African platinum mines to explore women miners’ experiences
Abstract
Women have worked underground in South African mines since 2003. Their inclusion has been lauded by some as a step in the right direction – that is, towards gender equality in employment, as well as challenging gender stereotypes about work and women’s abilities. This dominant narrative, however, fails to acknowledge and address the challenges faced by women in mining. Using participant observation, living and working alongside women miners over the course of a year, I explored these challenges, and analysed their implications. I argue that if the mining sector wants to fully include women in mining, it needs to go beyond using quotas to achieve gender parity in numbers of women and men workers. While access to these jobs is important, retention depends on addressing the masculine culture which is deeply embedded in mining, making this a very challenging environment for women workers.
... Women in the South African mining industry face numerous challenges affecting their working conditions, career progression, and well-being, including gender-based discrimination, sexual harassment, and hostile work environments (Botha, 2016;Benya, 2017). Botha and Cronjé (2015) found that 63% of women miners reported gender-based discrimination. ...
... This absence creates a physically uncomfortable and psychologically stressful environment, negatively impacting women's well-being and contributing to feelings of isolation in a predominantly male workforce (Botha Cronje, 2015). The demanding nature of mining, including extended shifts and remote locations, complicates the work-life balance for women (Benya, 2017). reports that 72% of female miners struggle to balance work and familial responsibilities compared to 45% of their male counterparts. ...
... This systemic inequality is more severe for rural women, who face educational and economic barriers, hindering their professional mobility and skills compared to urban or wealthier women. Benya (2017) discusses black women's struggles in South Africa's underground mining sector, where they face multifaceted discrimination. These women are often assigned strenuous, dangerous jobs with limited advancement opportunities. ...
This literature review examines the potential of African feminist philanthropy to improve the working conditions of women in South Africa's mining industry. Despite legislative measures promoting gender equality, female miners continue to face significant challenges, including discrimination, harassment, and inadequate facilities. This review investigates how African feminist philanthropy, grounded in solidarity and collective action principles, can address these issues. Key themes encompassed the status of women in mining, barriers to gender transformation, and African feminist philanthropic models. The findings indicate that African feminist philanthropy, focusing on African-led solutions and intersectionality, could potentially drive substantive changes. However, further research is required regarding their practical implementation.
... Women in the South African mining industry face numerous challenges affecting their working conditions, career progression, and well-being, including gender-based discrimination, sexual harassment, and hostile work environments (Botha, 2016;Benya, 2017). Botha and Cronjé (2015) found that 63% of women miners reported gender-based discrimination. ...
... This absence creates a physically uncomfortable and psychologically stressful environment, negatively impacting women's well-being and contributing to feelings of isolation in a predominantly male workforce (Botha Cronje, 2015). The demanding nature of mining, including extended shifts and remote locations, complicates the work-life balance for women (Benya, 2017). reports that 72% of female miners struggle to balance work and familial responsibilities compared to 45% of their male counterparts. ...
... This systemic inequality is more severe for rural women, who face educational and economic barriers, hindering their professional mobility and skills compared to urban or wealthier women. Benya (2017) discusses black women's struggles in South Africa's underground mining sector, where they face multifaceted discrimination. These women are often assigned strenuous, dangerous jobs with limited advancement opportunities. ...
In this conference presentation, I examined the potential of African feminist philanthropy to improve the working conditions of women in the mining industry. Despite the existence of legislative frameworks aimed at advancing gender equality, women miners continued to face persistent challenges, including discrimination, harassment, and inadequate facilities. The presentation drew on a literature review that investigated how African feminist philanthropy—grounded in solidarity, collective action, and African-led approaches—could serve as a mechanism for structural change. The analysis focused on three core themes: the status of women in the mining sector, the barriers to gender transformation, and models of African feminist philanthropy. The findings suggested that this approach, particularly when informed by intersectionality and local knowledge, held significant promise for transformative change. However, further research was identified as necessary to explore the practical implementation of these frameworks.
... Workplace studies tend to focus on women's experience of working in masculine mining organizations and the various challenges and barriers women encounter (see, for example Chinga, 2020;Valadares et al., 2022). The main empirical source in workplace studies is women, either through interviews about their work (see, for example Moalusi and Jones, 2019;Eveline and Booth, 2002) or through participant observation where women workers and their work interactions are the main focal points of the observation of study (Benya, 2017;Rolston, 2010). Several studies draw on empirical sources containing both women and men to identify the barriers to women's participation and how women and men explain the gendered differences in mining work in relation to women's participation (Salinas and Romani, 2014;Evelyn and Booth, 2002). ...
... The concept of gendered organizations (Acker, 1990) in mining is explored through studies of recruitment practices and skill shortages (Bryant and Jaworski, 2011;2012), career advancement (Moalusi and Jones, 2019), inequality regimes (Ringblom and Johansson, 2020), policy implementation (Pugliese, 2020;Johansson and Ringblom, 2017), managerial control (Eveline and Booth, 2002) and critical perspectives on gendered symbols, organizational discourse, interaction practices and organizational culture (Ringblom, 2022;Norberg and Fältholm, 2018). A further prevalent theoretical framework examines constructs of masculinity in mining, such as the ideal of the male worker (Lahiri-Dutt, 2012a; Moalusi and Jones, 2019), "macho masculinity" (Abrahamsson and Johansson, 2006), "hypermasculinity" (Benya, 2017;Harris, 2000) and structures of hegemonic masculinity (Kubisa, 2016;Kesküla, 2018). Masculinity in mining is analysed in relation to technology (Rolston, 2010;Abrahamsson and Johansson, 2020;Großmann and Gullo, 2022), safety (Laplonge, 2014;Somerville and Abrahamsson, 2003;Sauer, 1992), class (Klubock, 1996), sexuality (Maake et al., 2021) and workplace culture (Somerville. ...
... Masculinity in mining is analysed in relation to technology (Rolston, 2010;Abrahamsson and Johansson, 2020;Großmann and Gullo, 2022), safety (Laplonge, 2014;Somerville and Abrahamsson, 2003;Sauer, 1992), class (Klubock, 1996), sexuality (Maake et al., 2021) and workplace culture (Somerville. 2005;Benya;. Policy and discourse analysis is applied to mining organizations' representation of gender (see, for example, Mayes and Pini, 2010;Fältholm and Norberg, 2017;Pugliese, 2020) and women's experience and motivations for mine work (Biwa, 2021;Ledwaba and Nkomo, 2021). ...
This article reviews the expanding research field of gender in industrial mine work and organizations. The findings show that the literature provides nuanced insights into the prevalence of men and masculinities in industrial mine work as related to masculine mining ideals and patriarchal family structures, gendered practices and processes within mining organizations, the strategies of marginalized identities, and counterproductive attempts to increase equality and diversity in mining. Signs of potential change were also identified in the form of empowered women in mining and alternative mining masculinities. Articles focused on women and mining in specific organizations and national contexts dominate the field, with a more heterogeneous array of articles that empirically and theoretically expand on the earlier literature. Few studies elaborate on intersectionality, various forms of masculinity and the doing of gender within various professions and occupations in mining organizations. Future research should expand the theoretical framework of gender in mining organizations and broaden its empirical base through comparative approaches, quantitative and mixed methodologies, and a renewed focus on the dominant group in mining organizations, i.e., men.
... Analysing ILO data, the study demonstrates persistent vertical discrimination of women, who are concentrated in low-skilled, non-core (administrative) and low-paying occupations in the energy industry. Other studies show similar results of very few women in senior positions and a clear gendered divide in regard as to where men (underground work) and women (above ground in administrative positions) generally work (Baruah and Biskupski-Mujanovic 2021;Benya 2017). ...
... In relation to women's perception of working in mining organizations, health and safety practices must also be understood in relation to sexual objectification, harassment and violence against women and other groups that do not conform to the masculine, heteronormative culture of the industry (cf. Kansake et al. 2021;Benya 2017). ...
Questions of how the mining industry can address gender imbalance and inequality are recurring and increasing across the sector. Neglecting how gender affects organizational processes, work environment and work, risks reproducing, rather than transforming the organizational culture and processes that uphold masculine culture and male domination in the industry. The aim of the article is to give research-based suggestions to the industry - companies and policy-makers - on how the results of gender perspectives in research on mining organizations can contribute to inclusive and innovative work environments, organizational cultures and processes in mining. Based on an extensive review of previous research on gender in mining, the study concludes that possible transformative change, through new technology and new forms of organization, may enable organizations to shift the gendered structure of mining. A shift toward automated mines and increase of industrial mining due to the demands of the green transition will lead to new types of jobs and new forms of organizing mining work. Within these changes lies a possibility to transform gendered structures in mining.
... In the last decade, global mining booms have driven increased attention in both popular media and academic research circles to the challenges facing women miners in a masculinedominated culture (Benya, 2017;Jenkins, 2014;MacPherson, 2017a;Minerals Council of Australia, 2009;Nyabeze, Espley, S., & Beneteau, 2010). This emerging body of gendered mining research originated in Australia where the commodity cycle started its last mining boom in the early 2000s, well ahead of the most recent mining boom that started in Saskatchewan around 2010 (Brier, 2012;Phillips, 2016). ...
... Botha (2016; in times of downturn women may be more susceptible to losing their employment in mining, due to their relatively lower status and seniority within their organizations (Hughes, 2012;Nyabeze et al., 2010). The predominant message from the literature is that a cultural shift is required to attract and retain women in mining (Benya, 2017;Botha, 2016;Hughes, 2012;Lahiri-Dutt, 2015;Mayes & Pini, 2014;Mining Industry Human Resources, 2016). This required cultural shift can be thought of as inclusion, or the acceptance and celebration of differences within an organization. ...
In response to societal pressures and a looming labour shortage, the Canadian mining industry has recently embarked on a journey to welcome gender diversity and inclusion in its male-dominated workforce. The purpose of this two-phase, transformative mixed-methods study was to understand how Canadian mining companies are working to close the gender gap in the industry. In the first phase of the study, a qualitative, rhetorical criticism-based methodology was used to analyze over 75 public documents from ten companies involved in Canadian mining, which represent approximately half of the Canadian mining sector employees (Mining Industry Human Resources, 2017). Rhetorical analysis applied theoretical approaches drawn from cluster, fantasy-theme, generative, and generic criticism (Foss, 2004); continuum analysis (Brummett, 2011); and consideration of the construction of a Second Persona (Black, 1970). Findings from the top-down analysis indicate that some individual mining companies are employing targeted strategies but ultimately companies are at different positions on their journey to create an industry that is reflective of the communities in which they operate.
The bottom-up approach of the second phase, informed by the first phase outcomes, involved an anonymous online survey that was intended to capture perceptions and experiences of current and former workers in the Canadian mining industry. 540respondents completed the survey and responses were analyzed using statistical and rhetorical methods to distinguish differences and similarities. The respondents identified as men (n = 318) and women (n = 220) , and current (n = 459) and former (n = 81) mining workers. Second phase results showed a divide between the primarily positive messaging coming from the top of organizations and the needs of employees. Findings included a lack of open communication, a disconnect to the personal benefits of gender equity strategies, and flaws in the current discrimination and harassment reporting systems.
The industry still has a long way to go to achieve gender equity; however, early signs of culture change are evident, and the goals of inclusion and diversity in the workforce have the potential to be achieved with a multi-fronted communication strategy that encourages shifting mindsets and behaviours.
... She argues that men, particularly those in oppressed positions, also need to understand themselves and contribute to an understanding of their experiences from a feminist viewpoint (Harding, 1991). South African feminist research on workplace oppression and inequality in male-dominated workplaces has predominantly focused on women's experiences (Benya, 2013(Benya, , 2017Heinecken, 2019;Jansen van Rensburg, 2021), often neglecting the perspectives of marginalized gay men who are oppressed by heteropatriarchal occupational cultures that enforce the hegemony of heterosexual masculinities in these workplaces. In this paper, I do not seek to contest the significance of applying the feminist standpoint epistemology to women's experiences of oppression, particularly in South Africa, where patriarchal oppression is a reality that affects many women in various spaces. ...
Contemporary South African feminist knowledge on inequality in male-dominated workplaces is largely produced from the patriarchal and heteronormative standpoint that emphasizes the oppression of women and privileged positions of heterosexual men. While acknowledging the unwarranted subordination of women in workplaces, this paper challenges the prevailing notion that all men thrive on heterosexual male privilege in workplaces. I argue that the adoption of the feminist standpoint epistemology to Black gay men’s experiences in heteropatriarchal male-dominated workplaces can illuminate hidden aspects of oppression and contribute to feminist knowledge. Having employed the feminist standpoint epistemology in two studies on the experiences of Black gay men in male-dominated workplaces, I reflect on how the intersecting identities of Black gay men provide a distinctive standpoint that enriches feminist knowledge within the South African context. The paper highlights the role of Black gay men in expanding feminist knowledge and advocating for change within heteronormative and patriarchal workplace cultures that suppress their voices and render them invisible.
... The ethnographic material in this article is framed by the effects of the amendments made to the Mining Health and Safety Law, lobbied for by Oyu Tolgoi lawyers in 2016 and passed by the Mongolian Parliament in 2017, 6 The regulations adopted by the International Labour Organization (ILO) after 1930 formalised a situation in which, with few exceptions, women no longer worked in underground mines (Romano and Papastefanaki 2020). In South Africa, see Benya (2017) and Ledwaba and Nkomo (2021). 7 In coal mining in England and Wales, infertility and high child mortality were linked to economic growth and the rapid pace of industrialisation (Haines 1977;John 2006). ...
This article investigates the reproductive health challenges faced by female mineworkers at Oyu Tolgoi, one of the world’s largest underground mines located in the Southern Gobi Desert. Harsh working conditions, driven by national objectives and the global resource economy, adversely impact female workers, who navigate expectations of motherhood in an environment that impedes their aspirations. Although women represent 18 per cent of the workforce, their efforts to address critical issues – such as sexual harassment and reproductive health problems – are often overlooked. Despite legal frameworks and discourses promoting gender equality, the male-dominated workplace culture creates a repressive atmosphere that discourages women from voicing their concerns. The article examines how female workers engage with everyday politics to address detrimental changes in their reproductive health. Through the lens of necropolitics, it highlights how women confront experiences of pregnancy loss and infertility, and navigate sociopolitical forces in search of care and healing.
... Despite global progress, women in Indonesia still face significant barriers to representation, leadership, and safe working conditions. Research by Benya (2017) and Kansake et al. (2021) has documented hostile working environments, limited promotional pathways, and pay inequity, which continue to marginalise women. National Labour Force Survey data reveal that women make up less than 10% of the Indonesian mining workforce, with just 115,000 female employees compared to 1.28 million men-underscoring the entrenched gender imbalance in the sector. ...
This research examines governance strategies to address gender inequality in the mining industry and enhance women’s empowerment. It identifies barriers preventing women from accessing opportunities and leadership roles through a systematic review of 37 articles published between 2014 and 2024. Data analysis using NVivo 12 Plus focused on themes such as women’s roles, challenges, and gender dynamics, while VOSviewer was employed for bibliometric analysis. The findings reveal systemic barriers, including limited training, unequal pay, and exclusion from decision-making. The study underscores the need for inclusive policies and gender-sensitive governance to drive meaningful change, aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly gender equality (SDG 5) and decent work and economic growth (SDG 8). It calls for comprehensive policies, comparative analyses of effective strategies across contexts, and integration of community perspectives into empowerment initiatives. Strengthening governance frameworks and fostering collaboration between stakeholders, policymakers, and local communities can enhance gender equality and inclusive growth in mining. Future research should further explore policy effectiveness, cross-national comparisons, and innovative governance models to address structural inequalities and promote sustainable economic participation for women.
... Traditionellt har genusforskning om mansdominerade arbeten och verksamheter ofta tagit sin utgångspunkt i kvinnors erfarenheter och fokuserat på de hinder och extra arbetsmiljöproblem som kvinnor får av det som Kanter (1977) kallar minoritetseffekter. Dessa handlar om såväl öppet som passivt motstånd (från manliga arbetare, chefer, fack och samhälle) mot kvinnor och jämställdhet (Benya 2017). De handlar även om hur kvinnors strategier för att hantera minoritetssituationen bidrar till olika konstruktioner av femininitet (Rolston 2010; Johansson med flera 2020). ...
This article discusses how changes in male-dominated work are connected to changes in gender constructions in the workplaces. The discussion is based on results from research conducted 2001–2021, mainly qualitative empirical studies of mine work. Although the development of the mining industry will not be as technologically deterministic and rapid as the usual dystopian and utopian visions predict, our research shows that there has already been changes that have affected mine work and workplaces. These changes have challenged the old, gendered mining workplace cultures and the implementation of new technology and reorganisation initially met resistance in the workplace. Workplace cultures seemed to be lagging behind in their acceptance of technological and organizational changes. The resistance was shaped in relation to intertwined masculinities and miner identities linked to the old ‘macho masculin-ity’, a form of local hegemonic masculinity built upon overarching myths and discourses about both mining and rural communities. The subsequent changes of mining work resulted in new gender encodings of the new technology and the new spaces of work – which created new organisational gender boundaries and new forms of inequality. At the same time, there are new forms of masculinities and feminini-ties emerging in mining organizations, which can provide openings for gender equality. Although mine work continues to be male dominated, we can see that new places, new technology, improved work environment and increased gender equality seem to imply that it has become difficult to preserve the old (‘macho’) miner masculinity and to maintain the gender marking of mining work as male and the image of the miner as male. As of now, the ‘green transition’ and the acceleration of new digital technologies implemented in mine work is beginning to shape the industrial workplaces of northern Sweden. The discourses of “green” and “technological transformation” are permeated by gendered preconceptions, by some expected to reshape the masculine workplace of the mine. Yet, our conclusion is that transformation of gendered structures in mining is not foremost dependent of technological change. Rather, we have seen complex connections between gender, technology, work and place for these male-dominated industrial workplaces, including processes of both stability and change, suggesting that changes in workplaces does not only challenge but also reproduce and reconfigure gender-based preconceptions and social constructions of gender.
... Beban kerja ini mencakup durasi waktu kerja serta berbagai tuntutan kerja, baik fisik maupun mental, serta tingkat kinerja dan usaha yang diperlukan dalam pekerjaan (Feng & Ren, 2021). Dalam konteks industri pertambangan, beban kerja sering kali mencakup tuntutan fisik yang tinggi, keberanian, serta ketahanan menghadapi lingkungan kerja yang berbahaya (Benya, 2017). Industri ini juga memiliki proporsi pekerja yang bekerja dalam sistem shift yang signifikan, yang diketahui dapat meningkatkan risiko masalah kesehatan, kesulitan psikologis, serta memperburuk hubungan personal, yang pada akhirnya memicu konflik kerja-keluarga yang lebih tinggi (Fang et al., 2014). ...
Penelitian ini mengkaji dampak desain pekerjaan dan beban kerja terhadap konflik antara pekerjaan dan keluarga pada karyawan wanita di sektor pertambangan, serta hubungan antara konflik tersebut dengan kinerja dan kesempatan promosi. Menggunakan metode snowball sampling, studi ini melibatkan 122 wanita yang bekerja di industri pertambangan. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa konflik pekerjaan-keluarga secara signifikan menurunkan kinerja karyawan. Konflik ini terjadi ketika tuntutan pekerjaan mengganggu tanggung jawab keluarga, yang mengakibatkan penurunan produktivitas. Desain pekerjaan yang buruk dan beban kerja tinggi memperburuk ketidakseimbangan ini. Temuan ini menegaskan perlunya kebijakan perusahaan yang mendukung kesetaraan gender dan pengembangan karir wanita, seperti kebijakan fleksibilitas kerja dan dukungan keluarga. Penelitian ini memberikan wawasan untuk pengembangan kebijakan yang lebih inklusif, serta kontribusi terhadap peningkatan produktivitas dan kesetaraan gender di sektor pertambangan.
... Debido a factores asociados a la naturaleza del trabajo minero, principalmente en el socavón; el trabajo minero ha sido tipificado como intrínsecamente masculino (Benya, 2017). Además, los sesgos y prejuicios tradicionales en el sector minero han concebido la presencia de mujeres en las minas como antinatural. ...
... Mining workplaces adopt targets, but chasms between the policy of targets and the reality of women's experiences remain, as does sex-based discrimination (Rolston, 2014). In an exploration of women mineworkers' experiences in South Africa, Benya (2017) shows that although a 2004 Mining Charter introduced a target of 10% women employees, "the assumptions held by workers, the daily practices, and the policies and discourses around mining, are all shaped by male norms" (p. 513). ...
Since the year 2000, an unprecedented commodity boom has been accompanied by intense scholarly attention on the various challenges involving women and gender in extractive industries. However, instead of being a marginal “add-on” area, gender issues are now at the forefront of research mining, and the volume of research has turned the thematic area into a field in its own right. Taking 2006 as the milestone year, this paper reviews the emerging directions in literature on women and gender in both large, industrial-scale mining and informal, artisanal and small-scale mining to draw out the main research threads. It concludes with a discussion of anticipated areas of future research and the theoretical frameworks it might rely upon.
The maintenance and reproduction of the working class remains a necessary condition for the reproduction of capital. But the capitalist may safely leave this to the labourer’s drives for self-preservation and propagation. (Marx [1867] 1976: 718)
The capitalist mode of production gives rise to a crisis of working-class social reproduction from the outset, and continually exacerbates that crisis in the course of its development. Far from being in principle a crisis for the capitalist mode of production itself, then, crises of working-class social reproduction are the empirical effects of changes in the capitalist economy, reflecting capitalist power over the fate of the propertyless population. The inherent characteristics of the capitalist
mode of production – competition between individual capitals, uninterrupted scientific and technological revolution, an ever-increasing division of labour on local to global scales, the constant process of ‘creative destruction’ as obsolete capitalist enterprises die and new ones are born, the universalisation of commodity production, concomitant to proletarianisation and the creation of a permanent ‘reserve army of labour’, and the tendency for capital to invade and take over any form of production more ‘primitive’ than itself – all continually disrupt areas of social and economic activity within capitalist social formations and those which capitalism has not fully penetrated yet. The effect of state government policies and governance on the part of international organisations is to induce or exploit crises of working-class social reproduction in order to further the hegemony of capital over their own territory and the world market as a whole.
Drawing on interviews and focus groups from Conakry, the capital city of the Republic of Guinea in West Africa, this article examines how people talk about women working in male-dominated skilled trades alongside women’s accounts of their work experiences in those sectors. We find that the idea of women doing gender atypical work, whom we call “crossovers,” evokes widespread admiration. They are unanimously described as brave and virtuous, contrasted with women who rely on money from relationships with men. However, this celebration falters in the workplace, where crossovers often experience paternalism and harassment. Building on theories of both gender beliefs and femininities, we attribute this discrepancy to the differential threats to the gender order that are posed by accommodating crossovers at work versus speaking positively about them. Working together requires men to confront actual women’s unexpected capabilities, while rhetorically celebrating crossovers may in fact reify stereotypes about most women and fail to fundamentally undermine men’s authority. Crossovers can serve as sources of inspiration for an alternative gender order, but we find that professed admiration for “exceptional” groups of women has both limitations and risks. We conclude by suggesting that the subversive potential of admiration for gender atypical behavior must be empirically examined, rather than assumed, with attention to why such women are seen as admirable as well as how this admiration is borne out in social interactions.
The role of women as mineworkers and as household workers has been erased. Here, we challenge the masculinity associated with the mines, taking a longer-term and a global labour history perspective. We foreground the importance of women as mineworkers in different parts of the world since the early modern period and analyse the changes introduced in coal mining in the nineteenth and early twentieth century, the masculinization and mechanization, and the growing importance of * This thematic issue is based on the two sessions on "Women
The underground—for decades the invisible ‘other’ of landscape and terrain in geography—has emerged in political ecology literature as the source of ‘stuff’, or material things, resources and commodities that are not deemed intrinsically valuable until extracted. As a corrective, this paper offers a feminist political ecology perspective that brings subaltern women’s voices to the forefront, and argues that the underground is co-constituted as a gendered space by gendered humans. As evidence, I take the readers on a journey into the belly of a coalmine where humans labour, and bring out women’s voices that narrate their experiences and imaginations to create the underground as a space teeming with social life. These alternative and gendered narratives reinstate the diverse, complex, and secret lives of this netherworld, draw attention to the politics of imagining space, and potentially shift geographers’ focus to interpreting the underground as a gendered social space.
With Murdoch University’s commitment to quality research and teaching in public policy at both national and international levels, the Commission and its reports are exercises in applied public policy informed by rigorous scholarly research and analytical thinking.
'The Third Murdoch Commission: Inclusive Transactions on the Continent of Africa' is a peer-reviewed Research Report commissioned and published by Murdoch University in 2021, under the leadership of Mr David Doepel and Mr Maximillian Jarrett.
Chapter 2: The Blue Economy in Africa, contains section (3) 'Fulfilling the Promise of Aquaculture in Africa' which was led by Dr Ben Roennfeldt. The section focuses on methods for improving the sustainable production and use of seafood produced by artisanal aquaculture farming, to improve the livelihoods of Africa's growing population.
From its beginnings, the sociology of work in South Africa has been preoccupied with three enduring themes: skill/deskilling, racism in the workplace, and Fordism/racial Fordism. With the advent of democracy in the 1990s there was a shift away from studying the labour process. We argue in this article that there has been a return to taking seriously the ways new forms of work in this postcolonial context pose new questions to the global study of work. A central preoccupation in the study of work has been the racialised reinscription of post-apartheid workplace orders, now in the context of new dynamics of externalisation and casualisation of employment. Another important theme is the shift away from studies of the formal sector workplace and toward the broader implications of the precarianisation and informalisation of labour. This focus coincided with the growth of new social movements by mostly unemployed (black) township residents around state services provision. This includes studies on working-class politics more broadly, with attention focusing on questions of organising and mobilising. More recently this interest in precarious labour has grown into studies of the gig economy, returning to earlier themes of technology and skill, as well as new forms of waged labour and wagelessness. We argue for the ongoing salience of labour process studies for understanding the specific issues of the securing and obscuring of value, and through the articulations of ‘racial capitalism’ offered by the long tradition of labour studies in South Africa.
The role of women as mineworkers and as household workers has been erased. Here, we challenge the masculinity associated with the mines, taking a longer-term and a global labour history perspective. We foreground the importance of women as mineworkers in different parts of the world since the early modern period and analyse the changes introduced in coal mining in the nineteenth and early twentieth century, the masculinization and mechanization, and the growing importance of women in contemporary artisanal and small-scale mining. The effect of protective laws and the exclusion of women from underground tasks was to restrict women's work more to the household, which played a pivotal role in mining communities but is insufficiently recognized. This process of “de-labourization” of women's work was closely connected with the distinction between productive and unproductive labour. This introductory article therefore centres on the important work carried out in the household by women and children. Finally, we present the three articles in this Special Theme and discuss how each of them is in dialogue with the topics addressed here. Many thanks also to Marie-José Spreeuwenberg for her invaluable engagement.
Dans le présent article, l’auteure soutient que l’approche fondée sur les droits, telle qu’appliquée dans le contexte minier, s’appuie sur une interprétation limitée du concept des femmes. Les femmes sont généralement pensées comme étant en dehors du secteur minier et comme des victimes de l’oppression patriarcale. Une vision aussi incomplète du genre va à l’encontre d’une perspective féministe qui est nécessairement holistique, tout comme elle est éclectique dans son traitement des problématiques touchant les femmes. Pour justifier cet argument, l’auteure discute des résultats de recherches-actions menées dans des mines de charbon en Indonésie et en Inde orientale. Elle démontre comment l’approche fondée sur les droits, lorsqu’elle s’appuie sur une conception incomplète du genre, aliène la figure de la femme qui, bien que travaillant comme citoyenne économique à l’intérieur du secteur minier, généralement tout au bas de l’échelle, n’en est pas moins asservie.
This essay examines the connection between violence and masculinity that leads men to appoint themselves the protectors of racialized communities and that constitutes its own interracial brotherhood linking lawbreakers and law enforcers. Feminists are familiar with the concept of "gender violence," but this term is usually used to denote violence by men against women. Yet exploration of the violence in the criminal justice system begins to reveal the extent to which masculine identity is shaped by relations of repulsion and desire between men. Indeed, this community of violence extends to state actors within the criminal justice system, most notably the police. Disrupting the cycle of gender violence both inside and outside the state is a race issue and a gender issue, as well as a criminal justice issue.
Contrapower sexual harassment occurs when the target of harassment possesses greater formal organizational power than the perpetrator. Traditional conceptualizations of power underlying sexual harassment have either focused on location within organizational hierarchies or sociocultural status differences between men and women. We suggest the utility of simultaneously considering the influence of gender, race, and class on power dynamics at organizational, sociocultural, and interpersonal or individual levels. Using qualitative data obtained from 8 focus groups, 20 interviews, and 1 in-depth case study, we examine how gender, race, and class influence varied sources of power available to perpetrators and targets in workplace contrapower situations. We argue that the exploration of the dynamics involved in contrapower sexual harassment can illuminate broader processes of doing gender and power in the workplace.
Women's experiences with sexual harassment were analyzed with three types of variables: occupational and workplace sex ratios, organizational policies and procedures for dealing with sexual harassment problems, and women's cultural status (age and marital status). Regression analyses revealed that extent of contact with men was a key predictor of incidence of harassment, number of different types of harrassment, sexual comments, sexual categorical remarks, and sexual materials. Gender predominance was a significant predictor of physical threats and sexual materials. Informational methods were less successful than proactive methods in reducing incidents of sexual harassment. The analyses support two generalizations. The “contact hypothesis” tested and verified by Gutek and her colleagues provides a substantive understanding of our findings on workplace and occupational numerical predominance. Second, organizations that take a variety of steps to address sexual harassment are more apt to be successful in curtailing the problem than those relying mainly on “get out the word” techniques. Peer Reviewed http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/68224/2/10.1177_0891243298012003004.pdf
In the last three years the migrant labor hostels of South Africa, particularly those in the Transvaal, have gained international notoriety as theaters of violence. For many years they were hidden from public view and neglected by the white authorities. Now, it seems, hostel dwellers may have chosen physical violence to draw attention to the structural violence of their appalling conditions of life. Yet we should not lose sight of the fact that the majority of hostel dwellers are peace-loving people who have over the years developed creative strategies to cope with their impoverished and degrading environment. In this challenging study, Dr. Mamphela Ramphele documents the life of the hostel dwellers of Cape Town, for whom a bed is literally a home for both themselves and their families. Elaborating the concept of space in its many dimensions-not just physical, but political, ideological, social, and economic as well-she emphasizes the constraints exerted on hostel dwellers by the limited spaces they inhabit. At the same time, she argues that within these constraints people have managed to find room for manoeuvre, and in her book explores the emancipatory possibilities of their environment. The text is illustrated with a number of black-and-white photographs taken by Roger Meintjes in the townships and hostels.
In the history of the modern industrial world the Witwatersrand stands out in four key respects. First, the size of the workforce which grew from around 200,000 men in 1910 to over 400,000 in 1940; second, the longevity of an industry that has continued almost uninterrupted for well over a century; third its geographical concentration; and fourth, its exclusively male demographic character. All four of these features suggest that we need to pay very close attention to an important question: What kinds of masculinities, to use Connell's term, were forged on the South African gold mines? A succinct answer does spring to mind. The gold mines fashioned explicitly racial masculinities and an intensely monitored legal, economic and geographical boundary between them. Between 1900 and 1950 and probably for some time thereafter, the definitive encounter between white and black men in South Africa was underground on the gold mines. The evidence that we have on the relationship suggests that it was characterised by high levels of personal violence. This article explores worker relationships, and argues that the reason that violence was so common on the mines was that both black and white men celebrated the capacity for personal violence as a key element of masculinity.
This article examines the use of gender in constitutions and its significance for gender equality. New democracies, and some older ones, are increasingly including gender provisions in their constitutions. What is the impact of these provisions on women's political and economic status? Does constitutionalizing gender serve to empower women? If so, what kinds of provisions have an empowering effect and under what conditions? To address these questions, we trace the political use (legislation, policy, and judicial interpretation) of gendered constitutional provisions in Botswana and South Africa, countries that differ substantially with respect to how they have “constitutionalized” gender. The case studies demonstrate how constitutional provisions provide a legal basis and legitimacy for women's rights advocacy and how they influence the content of legislation and judicial review of laws and policies.
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