Evaluating how the lack of recognition of unpaid care work within institutions leads to personal repercussions for womxn and gender minorities who bear the brunt of the work.

What is the problem:
When womxn and gender minorities participate in unpaid care work which is not institutionally recognised (as made more evident in the current pandemic), they become subject to more violence and exploitation. This negatively impacts their mental health. The lack of agency and sense of being trapped in their existing lifestyle limits their access to health resources (particularly reproductive health). If they do have more unintended pregnancies and, consequently, children, the responsibility of their care also falls on the womxn and gender minority groups, which creates a self-perpetuating cycle.

What is the solution:
a) Having representation of womxn and gender minorities in positions of power so they can influence the decision-making on policies relating to health, employment, etc because they will bring their personal experiences and perspectives to the table.

b) Forming communities of care that are based on values of empowerment through work-sharing will help bring more legitimacy to unpaid work and take away the disproportionate burden from one individual. Ex: Community activities where children and their caregivers can come together and focus on building bonds together so that they are more empowered and sensitive to others' experiences. If these groups are self governed, they can create their own structures of power that rest on basic values of building each other up, validating each-other's experiences, and ensuring feminist justice.

c) Granting and normalising parental leave for all parents, regardless of their gender identity, can be a huge equaliser in distributing work and familial responsibilities among caregivers.

Who must act:

a) States can institute policies that normalise and acknowledge all kinds of work,

b) Heads of State can lead by example by promoting the recognition of unpaid work in all conversations around employment, law, economic growth, and healthy societies.

c) Employers must adhere to policies around parental leave and grant it to all parents (homosexual couples, heterosexual couples, adoptive parents, single parents, parents through surrogacy, etc) without bias or conditionality

d) Men must recognise the power that patriarchy affords them and work to unlearn toxic traits of masculinity and actively embrace feminist values in their own lives and pass them onto the following generations. They must be willing to have difficult, self-reflective conversations around power with other men as well

e) Countries to lead by example and encourage partner States to work toward a more gender-equal policy by signing on to and ratifying international treaties, talking about it on international platforms, supporting advocacy efforts etc.

f) CSOs and grassroots organisations to structure their programming around the lived realities of unpaid care workers and support them in building their agency.