Care Work

Care Work examines the historical development of caring labor in the United States from the late 19th to early 21st centuries. Through analysis of census data and other records, Duffy traces how care work evolved across domestic service, health care, education, and social services. The book analyzes how race, gender, and class have shaped the care workforce over time, with particular focus on immigrant women and women of color. Duffy explores the devaluation of care work and how various forms of care labor became professionalized or remained in the informal sector. The text maps the relationship between paid and unpaid care work, examining how families, markets, and the state have intersected to organize caring labor. Changes in technology, social policy, and labor organizing receive attention as key factors in the transformation of care work. This sociological study reveals enduring patterns in how care work connects to broader systems of inequality while highlighting the essential nature of caring labor to society's functioning. The historical perspective illuminates contemporary debates about the future organization and valuation of care work.

Readers emphasize the book's detailed historical analysis of care work and its illumination of race and gender dynamics in the care economy. Many appreciate Duffy's examination of how power structures and social hierarchies shape caring labor. Likes: - Clear explanation of care work's devaluation over time - Strong data and research backing key points - Connection of historical patterns to current issues - Balance of academic rigor with accessibility Dislikes: - Dense academic writing style - Too much focus on historical background vs current solutions - Limited discussion of male care workers - Some sections feel repetitive Ratings: Goodreads: 4.0/5 (28 ratings) Amazon: 4.3/5 (12 ratings) Multiple reviewers note the book fills an important gap in labor scholarship. One reader states: "Finally puts care work in proper historical context." Another writes: "Dense but thorough analysis that explains why we undervalue essential care jobs."

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🔹 Mignon Duffy's research reveals that by 1930, healthcare had become the largest sector of care work in the United States, surpassing both domestic service and education. 🔹 The book traces how race and gender intersected in care work from 1900 to 2000, showing how African American women were disproportionately concentrated in the lowest-paid care positions. 🔹 Author Mignon Duffy serves as Associate Professor of Sociology at University of Massachusetts Lowell and is Associate Director of the Center for Women and Work. 🔹 Care Work demonstrates how the devaluation of care labor can be traced back to its historical association with the unpaid work of mothers and slaves in American society. 🔹 The research draws from a century of U.S. Census data to show how care work evolved from a primarily domestic occupation to a professionalized field spanning multiple industries.