Saturday, March 15, 2014
Calvert (Omni Shoreham)
One of the most important goals of socialism was to enable general employment for women and to establish their full economic and social citizenship so they could become financially independent, self-sufficient and autonomous subjects. In particular, employment is a key reason for the entry of women into the public sphere. It changed the relationship between 'domestic' and 'public' sphere, known from the capitalist 19th century. In the period of transition from socialist to neoliberal market economy system, there was a revival of patriarchal structures. The slogan of transition was: “Back to the families and away from the dirty public life!” and it aimed at returning women back to their “natural place” – to the family. This paper is based on the in-depth interviews with women in Slovenia who were employed as high-skilled or manual workers during socialist period. It sheds light on the subjective experiences of employed women and the impact of labour on their sense of self-worth, social integration, identity and power. It tries to understand the importance of labour for the emancipation of women in socialist Yugoslavia and it offers an insight into how these women perceive the notion of labour and employment of women in contemporary post-socialist Slovenia through remembering and negotiating with the past.
