Labour rights Women’s participation in the labour force has seen immense growth over the past decades. But deeply rooted power imbalances and gender roles continue to limit their options. Moreover, many women are spending extra time on unpaid care work. In India, for example, it is 10 times as much as men. 6 Throughout the region, the legalities and influence of trade unions varies from suppression to public demonstrations. But either way, trade unions in particular are already playing an important role in ensuring women’s participation in the labour force by challenging the status quo and ensuring that workplaces put an end to gender-based discrimination. Common pitfalls: • Analysis of exploitative women’s employment might recognize problems without elaborating the causes. This can lead to only some of women’s challenges being represented and showing them only as victims. • Images used to portray certain sectors reinforce gender stereotypes, such as displaying women in traditionally feminized positions like care work, and the dominance of males in discussion panels on labour law and worker’s social security. Things to keep in mind: • Use gender-disaggregated data to show gender inequality in labour. For example, incorporate percentage differences in wages, or gender discrepancies in the numbers of labour union leaders. • Portray women in labour rights movements and areas of work in empowering ways. Use striking images of women in leadership positions. • Keep an eye on intersectional identities of workers. Include the struggles of migrant workers, LGBT, and other socio-political minorities. • Analyze the low participation of females in the workforce and support the analysis with evidence of causes such as low education, social norms, or religious customs. • Include the context underpinning unequal power relations for a more nuanced understanding of inequality. • Be mindful. Before publishing anything, consider the negative impact that your output could possibly have for trade unions or their members. 6 https://ourworldindata.org/female-labor-supply#informal-work-unpaid-care-work 12 Gender transformative communication in focus areas