Paper short abstract:

This paper introduces a framework of voice as a collective capability and examines its relevance through the cases of household workers in Mexico and garment workers in Bangladesh advocating for labour rights. Voice can enhance capabilities through the voice-building process itself and by influencing the socio-political structure, emphasising its intrinsic and instrumental value.

Paper long abstract:

Background

The poor are also voice poor. The experience of poverty is marked by a feeling of powerlessness in relation to the state and the market, as illustrated by the participatory study "Voices of the Poor" (Narayan et al., 2000). Numerous obstacles impede the ability of poor people to engage in collective action and articulate their demands. Challenges include barriers to association due to limited time and financial resources and lack of access to political institutions, information and markets. Moreover, due to adverse social norms, poor women encounter additional obstacles in exerting their voice, as they are often limited in terms of political and economic empowerment, association and public action. (Nussbaum, 2000).

Given the limited options the poor have access to, voice is often the only resource available for them to advance their objectives (Paul, 1992). As a form of collective empowerment, voice can harness bureaucratic and social commitments for improving the provision of public goods and services, increasing access to justice, shaping a pro-poor market and mitigating crises. Voice becomes a relevant form of social accountability, serving as an alternative mechanism to democratic accountability for demanding provision or structural change.

Within the framework of the capability approach (Sen, 1999), this paper situates voice among collective capabilities, defined by Ibrahim (2006) as "capabilities attained by virtue of engagement in a collective action or their membership in a social network that helps individuals achieve the lives they value." Analysing voice as a dimension of poverty holds both theoretical and practical significance. Firstly, analysing the interaction of individual capabilities with social structures integrates power relations into the analysis of wellbeing (ibid.). This approach extends beyond technical analyses that focus solely on the characteristics of the poor, overlooking the political causes of poverty and processes of accumulation and distribution (Harris, 2009). Secondly, as voice can play an instrumental role in addressing deprivations, examining its components and processes can offer insights for enhancing initiatives aimed at bolstering the capacity of the poor to exert their voices.

The paper discusses the concept of voice as a collective capability, drawing on literature on empowerment and social movements, adopting the concept of Campbell et al. (2010), who define voice as "the capacity of poor people both to develop critical analyses that link their poverty to wider social inequalities and to articulate forceful demands on the basis of these critical understandings". The paper proposes five components of the voice formation process: (i) opportunity structure, (ii) information, (iii) conscientisation, (iv) organisational capacities and (v) social capital.

Methodology

The paper utilises a case study approach to investigate the factors contributing to voice formation and the related processes of capability creation among household workers in Mexico and garment workers in Bangladesh in their struggle to realise their labour rights. The methodology involves a systematic desk review, including detailed secondary data from field studies on workers' organisations and unions. Additionally, qualitative insights will be gathered through a survey administered to garment workers through the Global Worker Diaries platform and key informant interviews with household worker union leaders during the first half of 2024. The paper employs case studies and qualitative comparative analysis as analytical strategies. The use of NVIVO supported thematic coding and pattern matching.

Discussion

The five components of the voice-formation process contributed to some extent to the creation of capabilities among household workers in Mexico and garment workers in Bangladesh. Conscientisation, the process through which workers collectively reasoned on the changes needed to improve their working and living conditions, is at the core of capability creation and the first step towards the articulation of demands. In workshops organised by household workers' associations, individuals critically reflected on their conditions and identified necessary changes for a dignified life. Similarly, gatherings organised by the Bangladesh Independent Garment Workers Union Federation and international campaigns raised awareness among garment workers about their working conditions, facilitating conscientisation within this group. In both cases, horizontal social capital enabled conscientisation and association, while vertical social capital involving NGOs and external advocates supported the articulation of demands.

Adverse gender norms emerged as significant barriers to voice formation in both cases, with particular challenges noted for Bangladeshi workers. Limited employment opportunities for women in Bangladesh discourage collective action. Further, the low representation of women in labour unions and restricted freedom of movement in the public space impede their ability to voice their concerns collectively. This aligns with Nussbaum's assertion that women's work often provides fewer opportunities for association and practical reasoning compared to that of men.

While household and garment workers have made progress in developing their voice, creating an enabling environment to realise their labour rights and improving their welfare remains a slow-paced and challenging process. In Mexico, household worker organisations achieved a milestone with reforms granting formal employment rights and social security in 2019. However, reluctance from elites and the middle class impedes reform enforcement. In Bangladesh, garment workers' unions have contributed to improving factory safety measures and working conditions according to the garment industry's post-Rana Plaza commitments. However, securing dignified minimum wages remains a major challenge.

The process of voice development promotes individual capabilities. Participation in workshops and gatherings organised by unions and organisations fostered social capital, confidence, and bargaining power— domains where the working poor are deprived. Importantly, in this context, collective capabilities translated into individual ones (personal empowerment), not through structural changes (the realisation of labour rights) but rather as an outcome of the voice-building process itself.

Conclusion

Through the case studies of household workers in Mexico and garment workers in Bangladesh, the paper concludes that exerting voice can enhance capabilities in two ways: through the voice-building process itself and its interaction with the socio-political structure, highlighting its intrinsic and instrumental value. The case studies underscore the importance of collective capabilities, documenting the limited capacity of individual agency to drive structural change. Furthermore, the case studies provide insights into the interplay between the capabilities of the poor and political dynamics, showing how the former can influence the latter.