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FAO, ILO and ECLAC launched a second round of studies aimed at exploring the links between rural poverty and temporary employment among female agricultural workers. These studies will focus on seasonal women’s working conditions in the labour markets of coffee in Costa Rica, flowers in Ecuador, vegetables in Mexico and asparagus in Peru.

Due to increasingly volatile labour markets, women’s participation in temporary, seasonal and casual agricultural employment has been growing in recent years, particularly in primary production and processing sectors. These positions, which are generally low-paid and offer few health and work benefits, expose women to severe decent work deficits, undermining their capacity to sustainably exit from poverty through gainful and productive employment.

The first round of studies highlighted many of these. The findings were published in a report entitled “Empleo y Condiciones de trabajo de mujeres temporeras agrícolas”(available in Spanish) – which collects evidence from country-level research in Argentina's lemon and tobacco value chains, Brazil's table grape and mango markets, and the export fruit market in the Central Valley of Chile.

Stemming from an earlier regional investigation led by FAO, ILO and ECLAC between 2009 and 2011 on Labour Market Policies and Rural Poverty, this series of studies provides important insights on how labour policies can effectively contribute to promoting gender equality in agriculture and rural areas, thus contributing to reduce poverty.

To find out more on the first round of studies, visit the website dedicated to the seminar“Working Conditions of Female Temporary Workers in Agriculture: Argentina, Brazil and Chile. Regional Perspectives”, held on 19-20 January 2012.