A key shift in the global migration of women that has taken place over the last few decades is the increasing presence of immigrant women in the labour market. These women often contribute to both their host and home countries through their work, by sending remittances that tend to form a larger percentage of their earnings than the remittances sent by immigrant men. This is so despite the fact that they may often be relegated to the less secure, less recognized and less skilled sectors of the labour market. Many women, especially immigrant women, work in the informal sector, with all its perils in terms of security and professional development. There are many impediments to the access that women have to the workplace: stereotypes and (mis)perceptions of gender, limitations of language, the lack of recognition across international borders for degrees and diplomas, the global tendency to offer girls less formal education than boys. Even when highly qualified, women can find themselves stumbling up against the expectations of gender that are imposed on them by family or society. Yet the migratory experience can be a liberating one, where women, at times through sheer necessity and at other times through sheer mettle, match or outshine their male counterparts, often revealing high degrees of ingenuity, determination and creativity. Immigrant women often develop plural and simultaneous routes to the workplace, multi-tasking, as entrepreneurs, teachers, translators, and networkers.
Parvati Nair
