Special Issue – Everyday Abuse in the Global Economy

Articles contained in the Review represent the views of the respective authors and not necessarily those of the editors, the Editorial Board, the GAATW network or its members. [...] This has in turn contributed to a global increase in the number of people in insecure employment or dependent self-employment.4 The concept of contract ‘flexibility’ also expanded during this same period, coinciding with the entrance of large numbers of women into the labour market for the first time. [...] Take, for example, the issue of global supply chains, through which over 80 per cent of global goods and services are now traded.22 One crucial feature of supply chains is the disproportionate power exercised by lead firms at the head of the chain, especially in the case of multinationals. [...] In many cases, public scrutiny of workplaces has struggled to keep pace with the changing nature of work, working relationships, and declining rates of unionisation.25 Both the number of labour inspectors and frequency of inspections has declined in many jurisdictions, and their mandate tends to be complicated by other considerations, such as immigration enforcement and a lack of effective sanctio. [...] In 2009, for example, members of the Alliance of Guestworkers for Dignity and the NOWCRJ spoke in front of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee at a hearing on the H-2B Guestworker Program.29 22 Hepburn, 2009.