Women Employed in Heavy Industry (The Case of Chiatura)

Abstract

The article discusses the issues concerning the people employed in heavy industry (in Chiatura, in “Georgian Manganese”) with the focus on the problems and needs of women in this field. Despite of the huge social interest, intensive studies on working and living conditions of the workers of Georgian heavy industry has not started yet. Especially, the voices of women workers are not heard.  In this article we propose that working places of the employees of “Georgian Manganese” are constructed according to their gender roles, which means that certain spheres, with even worse working conditions, are closed for women workers. It`s also worth to mention, that after miners’ strike, their working conditions have not improved (moreover, in some aspects they deteriorated). The article is an attempt to discuss both - women's paid as well as domestic unpaid labor - the source of their double exploitation.