Paradoxical payoffs: migrant women, informal sector work, and HIV/AIDS in South Africa.
In post-apartheid South Africa, there has been a significant rise in women's out-migration from rural areas and across its territorial borders for economic purposes resulting in gender reconfiguration of migration streams. Alongside, there has been a simultaneous increase in the participation of women in the labor force. However, this has mostly grown in the informal sector,1 which is often associated with low earnings and insecure working conditions. One consequence has been the increasing reliance of migrant women on survivalist activities such as informal sexual exchanges that increase their risk of contracting HIV infection. Insecure working environments also expose migrant women to sexual abuses. This article is based on the author's work in South Africa's major urban centers and examines the nature of the relationship between the increased migration of black African women in South Africa, the nature of their work, and their resultant vulnerability to HIV/AIDS.
Singh
Gayatri
G
Graduate School for the Humanities and Social Science Private Bag X3, University of the Witwatersrand, WITS 2050 South Africa. gayatriemail@gmail.com
D004651:Employment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D011203:Poverty; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012449:Safety; D012742:Sex Offenses / Q000639:trends; D011477:Sex Work; D012924:Social Conditions; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013019:South Africa / Q000453:epidemiology; D013534:Survival; D014171:Transients and Migrants; D014504:Urban Health; D035862:Vulnerable Populations; D016387:Women's Health / Q000191:economics* / Q000208:ethnology; D014931:Women, Working / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*