The Social-Economy Impacts of Women Migrant Workers on Their Families and Communities (A Case Study in Waru Doyong Village, Central Java, Indonesia)

Abstract

Poverty, unemployment and a lack of education are some of the driving forces behind increasing numbers of Indonesian women who seek to migrate abroad. The migration of women migrant workers influences the condition of their family because they must leave their traditional gender role and position in their household. This condition causes many social problems. This research is aimed to describe deeply 2 points, i.e. 1) the changing of position and role of women migrant workers in their household and outside household; 2) the impact of that changing to the life quality of women migrant workers and their families. This research is carried out in Waru Doyong village, which sends many women migrant workers since several years ago, by employing case study method with gender perspective. The early results show that poverty forced many women in Waru Doyong, who have limited education and skills, to migrate to work at Middle East and other Asian countries. They leave their traditional gender role in their household and shift their domestic jobs to other female family members such as mother or mother in law. However this changing of gender role is not leaded to gender equality but on exploitation, so that it cannot improve the quality of life of them and their families. Furthermore they still are trapped in the circle of poverty.

Keywords: migrant workers, gender, poverty